The Blooming Joy Journal
From Garden to Pantry: My Review of 'How to Grow Medicinal Herbs' Beginner's Guide Book
How to Grow Medicinal Herbs: A Gardener's Review
This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. The author provided me with a review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
A New Medicinal Herb Book for Beginners
As a cut flower grower and garden educator, I'm always looking for ways to help gardeners get more joy and purpose from their gardens. While I spend much of my time teaching people how to grow beautiful cut flowers, I am interested in learning more about growing herbs for everyday use.
When a fellow gardening content creator, Vanessa Minton of From the Garden, sent me a copy of How to Grow Medicinal Herbs: An Illustrated Beginner's Guide to Growing, Harvesting, and Making Herbal Remedies at Home, I was excited to dive in!
If you've ever wondered what to do with the herbs growing in your garden beyond adding them to dinner, this book offers a wonderful introduction to the world of herbal gardening and simple homemade herbal preparations. It is perfect for beginners!
What Is This Book About?
How to Grow Medicinal Herbs is a beginner-friendly guide that teaches readers how to grow, harvest, preserve, and use a variety of medicinal herbs at home.
The book covers:
- Growing 50 common medicinal herbs
- When to plant medicinal herbs
- Designing an herb garden
- Drying and preserving your harvest
- Making simple herbal tincture and salve preparations
- Practical recipes for meals and drinks
One of the things I appreciated most is that the information is presented in a clear, approachable way that is fantastic for beginners. You don't need prior experience with herbalism to understand and enjoy this book.
What I Loved About This Book
Beautiful Illustrations and Easy-to-Follow Instructions
As a visual learner, I immediately appreciated the illustrations throughout the book. They make the information feel approachable and help break down concepts that could otherwise feel overwhelming to beginners.
In the Medicinal Herbs section, Vanessa breaks down each medicinal herb by telling us important things we need to know such as:
- Medicinal Properties for topical, internal and energetic use
- How to Grow the herbs by including when to plant, what grows best from direct seeding or transplanting, sun and soil needs, varieties to try, spacing, bloom time and harvesting tips
- How to Use the herbs whether it is by infused oil, tinctures, tea, or by poultice and compress
- General Safety tips for topical and internal use
The instructions are clear and practical, making this a book that feels welcoming rather than intimidating.
Focused on Growing and Using Herbs
Vanessa has a passion for teaching others how to grow a garden. I've been watching her do this online for years! Her love for education shines through brightly in her Medicinal Herbs book. She truly understands the information you need to know to be successful in growing your own medicinal herb garden and makes you feel confident that you can do it.
I love how she walks the reader through how to understand USDA growing zones and how to find their own growing zone. This books helps you calculate your growing season so you can plan when to plant each type of medicinal herb.
She also walks you through which herbs are considered perennials and annuals, soil requirements, dealing with pests and disease treatments and proper pruning and harvesting techniques.
Encourages a More Purposeful Garden
One of the themes that resonated with me throughout the book was the idea of growing plants with purpose.
Whether you're growing herbs for teas, culinary use, homemade gifts, or simple wellness practices, the book encourages readers to build a medicinal herb garden that is beneficial to their families.
As someone whose gardening journey has always been rooted in finding joy and healing through growing things, I found that message especially meaningful.
My First Project: Homemade Basil Salt
The first recipe I decided to try from the book was basil salt.
Why basil?
Because it is very easy to sow seeds outside in the ground and grow it! Basil is one of those herbs that always seems to be growing faster than you can use it during the summer months.
I loved that this recipe was simple, beginner-friendly, and required ingredients I already had on hand.
The process transformed fresh basil into a flavorful seasoning that captures the fragrance of summer in a way that can be enjoyed long after the growing season ends.
The finished basil salt was:
- Fresh and aromatic
- Easy to make (and so fun!)
- A great way to preserve extra basil
- Perfect for sprinkling on tomatoes, roasted vegetables or in lasagna
I can also see this being a wonderful homemade gift for fellow gardeners, teachers, neighbors, or holiday gift baskets.
Who Would Enjoy This Book?
I would recommend How to Grow Medicinal Herbs for:
- Beginning gardeners
- Herb enthusiasts
- Homesteaders
- Anyone interested in making simple herbal preparations at home
- Gardeners who want to make more use of their harvests
If you're already highly experienced in herbal medicine, some sections may feel introductory. However, for beginners, I believe that's one of the book's greatest strengths. We all start somewhere with learning and this is a great book for beginners to start with!
More About This Book
Learn from the Author of How to Grow Medicinal Herbs, Vanessa Minton as she walks you through her garden of medicinal herbs in this informative YouTube video!
https://youtu.be/_u48gWTxZ_Y?si=iiuhW-LwnCIJrFFHFinal Thoughts
One of the lessons I've learned over the years is that gardens can provide so much more than beauty. They can nourish us, teach us, connect us to the seasons, and bring joy into everyday life.
What I appreciate most about How to Grow Medicinal Herbs is that it encourages gardeners to look beyond simply growing plants and begin exploring how those plants can become part of their daily routines.
Whether you're interested in herbs for cooking, preserving, gifting, or learning new skills, this book provides a welcoming place to start.
If my experience with basil salt is any indication, I have a feeling I'll be trying many more recipes from its pages in the months ahead.
As always, keep on growing and keep on blooming, flower friend! ~ Kara a.k.a Blooming Joy