Medicinal Herbs that Come Back Every Year!

Having a herb garden is invaluable for any homesteader, small scale farmer and for the gardening enthusiasts.

Planting and cultivating medicinal herbs close to home, or right outside the kitchen door is a practice that’s been implemented for as long as humans have been around. Modern day medicine has led us to forget just how easy it is to treat the day to day sniffles right from your backyard.

There’s something out there to grow to treat every single ailment and seasonal sniffle, and a lot of them don’t require any special amount of care from you at all. Heck they’ll throw down so many seeds that they’ll come back year after year, without any planning needed from you at all.

Take a look at some of those medicinal herbs that will keep coming back to treat you and your family for many years, and many generations to come!

Oregano

Oregano is the friend of your kitchen and the buddy that beats bacterial infections. Clinically, oregano beat out all of the other essential oils in the fight against bacterial invaders, and it’s a great way to reduce inflammation in the bowel and arthritic joints.

If it’s made a part of your daily diet, as if we need any excuse to use more oregano, it will give you the best all around protection against infection and it’ll ease inflammation.

The great thing about oregano is that once it's in the ground, it’s there to stay. And it’s got two ways in which it comes back every year.

First, they can throw down seeds after their flowering period, and secondly they discard their leaves during winter, and by the time the spring rolls around again, those leaves and stems have grown roots, creating a brand new handful of plants.

Thyme

Thyme is another great addition to help fight against bacteria. But it’s thyme’s other super power that makes it extra special.

It’s used as a preventative measure against asthma attacks. The calming effects it has on the breathing passages gives it the ability to relax the muscles, keeping them from clamping up completely during the throes of an asthmatic attack.

The same can be said for whooping cough, bronchitis and any condition that causes deep strenuous coughing or clenching up of the bronchial tract. And it's a handy antiseptic treatment for minor scrapes and bruises and a more mild insect repellent, that isn’t quite as pungent as the other options on the table.

Getting thyme to take root can be a little tricky and they won’t do well in areas that freeze over completely during winter, but once it’s taken hold and it likes its conditions, it's there to stay.

Like Oregano, Thyme spreads by making nodes that form roots on the stems and leaves that fall to the ground when it’s their off season, coming back year after year.

Cilantro and Coriander

We mention cilantro and coriander together, because they are actually the same plant. It’s cilantro during its leafy stages, at the beginning of its growth cycle. But once it flowers and creates seeds, well those seeds are coriander.

Brain, heart, digestion and skin can all benefit from coriander and it’s an excellent blood sugar regulator. Cilantro comes in to save the day for outward applications, like for sun burns, rashes, hives and to treat poison ivy.

Inward applications include brain inflammation in Alzheimer patients, soothes menstrual cramps and urinary tract infections and helps regulate menstrual cycles.

Planting coriander is mind blowingly easy. If they’ve got sun and water, just about nothing can kill it off.

And once it produces seeds, they spread it so far and wide, that you never have to worry about replenishing your bushes with store bought saplings.

Rosemary and Lavender

Although these two plants are very different and have distinct medicinal uses, they require the same conditions and methods for propagation and spreading.

Growing them next to each other isn’t a bad idea either, they like each other so much, you might as well. Both are perennials and bounce back every year.

When they eventually do reach the end of their lifespans, which is just about never, or they suffer from disease or some other unexpected factor, just stick a few cuttings in the ground and walk away.

Lavender is a little more finicky and might require propagation indoors before planting them outside.

With lavender you can bring down your blood pressure, relieve pain after childbirth and during menstruation and it’s an excellent all around stress, migraine and sleep aid, all while making your house and your laundry smell divine.

Rosemary is good for improving memory, relieving muscle inflammation and it's a well known immune booster.

Given that it’s an immune booster and is easily absorbed by the gut, rosemary works well to aid other herbal remedies enter the system more efficiently. Whatever you’re treating, add a little rosemary to speed up the process!

French Tarragon

Tarragon in general is a good medicinal helper to have in the garden. But most Tarragon varieties are difficult to get to take root and they are notorious for poor germination.

The French variety however, spreads just like rosemary and lavender do. And with very little help from you. All they need is a fresh coverage of manure before the winter, burying those stems for a few months, when the weather warms whatever was buried under all that fresh food will have sprouted just in time to enjoy the new warmth.

Besides being a fighter against depression and a general immune booster, tarragon increases insulin sensitivity for the beginning stages of diabetes and it’s a natural fungicide.

Sage

Most of us know sage for its menopausal relief and as a memory booster, but did you know it fights cancer and infection too?

Sage is a pretty no nonsense plant to keep around. They love pots and open soil equally, and they’re just as happy outside as they are inside.

Russian sage is especially prolific. Even though their growing season is short, they spread so many seeds from those bulbous flowers that it can actually be a bit of a headache to keep them under control.

Garlic

Garlic is usually reserved for the kitchen and nothing more, but they are so beneficial from a medicinal standpoint that we really shouldn’t be limiting how much we consume.

Since they are harvested whole, most assume that that’s the end of them. On the contrary, garlic reseeds just like any other plant does.

Just put down a few heads in a shady spot and allow them to go to seed, you’ll be astounded at just how many volunteers come up year after year, buying garlic from the store will be a thing of the past.

Now you can have all of the benefits of treating blood pressure, cholesterol, neurological conditions, immune boosters, colds, fungal and bacterial infections….look this list can go on for miles.

Trust us when we say, garlic’s uses to keep you healthy are endless, and besides, do we even need an excuse to have more garlic bread?! It should have been in your garden yesterday already.

Basil

Used for treating anything related to digestion, flatulence, cramps and loss of appetite, blood circulation and blood pressure regulation also gets a helping hand from basil.

Once upon a time it was even used to treat snake bites! We’d advise that you seek medical attention for a snake bite, but treating bug bites and scrapes are perfectly safe.

Basil reseeds so prolifically that it can be a bit of a pest to deal with if it gets out of hand. Growing in just about any climate, basil is going to be around until the very end.

Parsley

Parsley is a no-brainer to keep alive and the thousands of seeds they throw down after flowering borders on excessive. Like basil, you might want to think about keeping them in pots before it invades every corner of your yard.

Gut and kidney ailments do well with parsley, and therefore it’s another one of those helpers for other medicines to help them absorb more efficiently.

It also regulates menstrual pain, and is a safe alternative for babies who have colic. And as an extra bonus, it treats bad breath, especially for those who suffer from diabetes who sometimes have stubborn stinky breath and apparently it's an aphrodisiac too, but you’ll have to let us know if that last one is true or not.

Sorrel

Sorrel is tangy, delicious and the age-old assistant to manage blood pressure, anaemia and to repair degraded cells after a long illness.

It also slows ageing and it’s said to increase eyesight. But I’m still wearing glasses, so let’s take that last one with a grain of sight, I mean salt.

Sorrel regulates itself every season through seed, but it does need shade and cooler temperatures to do well. Dry, arid and desert conditions just won’t do for this fruitful helper.

Dill

Dill isn't just for pickles! Breast feeding mothers can increase their lactation by consuming it. It’s an overall digestion and gut aid, whether that be for flatulence, constipation, cramps or indigestion.

Everything is edible, root, leaf and seeds. But be warned, dill is a monster to get rid of once they start throwing down seeds.

Give it a patch reserved just for spreading out in. There’s no use trying to contain this prolific weed...ahem we mean herb.

Mint and Lemon Balm

And speaking of invaders, let's not forget mint and Lemon balm. Both are related to the mint family and predictably they spread in the same way. By spreading feelers through the ground, sprouting far and wide.

Keep them in pots where they can be contained to a single space, or they’ll just end up choking out the rest of your garden.

Their roots are so strong and insistent that they’ll snake through wooden raised beds, breaking the wood apart.

The two might be related but their applications are very different from one another. Mint is a good pick-me-up in the morning, and congestion related to allergies and seasonal colds benefit a great deal from its passage opening effects.

It’s a gentle relief from irritable bowel syndrome, and digestional issues in general.

Lemon balm on the other hand treats heartburn, cold sores, high cholesterol and insomnia. Heck, it’s even been used to treat genital herpes of all things!

Yarrow

Mother nature made sure that we have a medical powerhouse that can grow anywhere and in almost any environment to make sure that us humans always have help at hand.

Yarrow is the master of pain, any kind of pain. Toothaches, migraines, stomach cramps, achy muscles…you name it, and yarrow’s got your back, which probably hurts, so have some yarrow for that too.

It stimulates regular blood flow after childbirth, and reduces the chance of developing an infection.

It was one of the few things that could pull women out of childbed fever, an otherwise deadly infection in the uterus. They’re sometimes called ditch lilies because they grow so prolifically!

Chicory

Chicory was originally from Northern Europe and Asia, where it was used predominantly to treat everything from diarrhoea to malaria.

All of the reproductive organs' health can benefit from it and there was even a time when it was used in the treatment of lung cancer.

It’s been the go-to hangover cure for centuries and it’s by far the best substitute for coffee in the world. The instant coffee in your cupboard is mostly made from chicory.

And wherever the little plant was brought to, it just thrived like it belonged. Since sea travel became possible it’s found roots in Australia, South Africa and South America, growing alongside all of the other native weeds. Returning year after year like an old friend.

Rue

Rue doesn’t need any help from you to germinate in time for Spring, it’s more comparible with a wildflower than anything else, it was just made to take care of itself.

Rue is all about the blood and the heart. Heart palpitations, better blood flow, clotting disorders and to treat weakening cardiac muscles.

It strengthens blood vessels, including those in the eyes, and it’s been one of the best treatments for parasitic infections in humans and livestock since forever.

It was used to treat epilepsy, but there’s no concrete evidence to support its effectiveness in this area. But given its effect on ocular and blood vessels, there might be some truth to it increasing circulation in the brain too.

Winter Savoury

Winter savoury is another member of the mint family, and you guessed it, it spreads like wildfire when given half the chance.

But it’s a little different in the sense that it grows more like a bush than a creeping vine, like its cousins do.

It’s good for sore throats and to clear nasal cavities with that minty cool effect it brings. Winter savoury is a little better at clearing up phlegm and eases the strain of deep coughing because it relaxes the muscles in the chest.

It was used to kill off food borne bacteria back when meat couldn’t be stored in refrigerators. Yes, it does indeed kill off bacteria, both on food and in the form of bacterial infections.

Hyssop

Purple Hyssop blooms are an eye-catching feature for any garden, and it makes such a great addition to tea that it’s worth keeping in your garden just for those reasons already.

It treats burns, rashes, a wide array of respiratory conditions and it’s got those antiviral properties that blooms just in time for flu season. It's a plant that’s more appropriate for cooler climates, with warm summers and snowy winters. But other than that it just needs a little shade and it’ll reseed itself year after year.

Roman Chamomile

Roman Chamomile is the easiest and most prolific of all of the Chamomile species. It grows in clumps and when it dies off during the winter it uses its own dead foliage as fertiliser for the seeds that it threw down.

It’s the kind of plant that you just forget you had, until suddenly the garden is filled with white and yellow blossoms again.

Besides the well known benefit of aiding sleep and relieving stress, Chamomile is very versatile in treating skin conditions, from acne to rashes and even itchy bug bites.

Given that it’s a reliant already and anti inflammatory, it can reduce the puffiness that comes with allergies and relax the muscles to ease strenuous coughing and sneezing.

Marshmallow

Marshmallow, the plant, not the candy, is pretty tasty all on its own too. It’s been used to treat coughs and sore throats for centuries.

It doesn't just soothe coughing fits, it also reduces inflammation. But there’s so much more to marshmallow than just its uses in the respiratory tract.

Urinary tract infections, outward rashes, stiff arthritic joints and muscles and just about anything that causes swelling and inflammation goes right down with some marshmallow tea.

It was also the predominant ingredient to treat the raging infection that is gangrene. This inconspicuous little bloom doesn’t just purge the system of toxins, it boosts the immune system enough to recover from whatever viral or bacterial infection you had running rampant in your system.

Adding marshmallow to any herbal treatment is a good idea, no matter what the condition is. And given that it’s a wildflower, you can just imagine how hardy it is and how far it can spread if you let it!

Tansy

Tansy spreads by multiplying its root system, plant one now and within the year you’ll have a dozen new shoots that seemingly sprang up overnight.

Tansy is a great helper for mothers everywhere. It gets rid of headlice, it’s a natural parasite treatment and it treats fevers by promoting sweating.

In other words, everything that your kid can pick up at daycare! It was even used to treat epilepsy and tuberculosis back in the day.

Clover

Clover isn’t just for the cows and the goats. It’s the herb that every woman needs.

Red clover specifically treats menopausal transitions, regulates mood swings, encourages the release of serotonin to help battle depressive episodes and it’s a good all around tea to have around when you're on your menstrual cycle or if you’ve just given birth, to get those hormones working optimally again after they’ve been riding the rollercoaster that is giving birth.

And do we even need to mention how far and wide clover can spread? The stuff just swallows up entire fields.

Good King Henry

The Good ol’ King Henry is here to help your iron deficiencies and to treat deeper respiratory infections like bronchitis.

Unlike the other constipation remedies that are a little too aggressive for comfort, the King offers a more mild relief over time when taken daily.

But the King reserves his services for colder climates, he likes things wet, muggy and winters cold enough to freeze over.

If that’s your climate, then he’ll be the royal addition that your garden needs, with the least amount of effort to maintain.

Sweet Cicely

Sweet Cicely is just lovely, they create canopies of small white blossoms that look like clouds resting beneath shady spots.

Make sure you set enough space aside for them to flourish, they don’t need much more than a little room to be happy.

Cicely is here to clear out your system. It removes toxins, aids digestion and cures constipation. If you ever needed a good cleanse, throw away the celery, cicely will do the job much better anyway.

Feverfew

Feverfew and chamomile look alike, and they spread the same way…

But Feverfew is ideal for treating any kind of pain. Tooth, migraine or cluster headaches, ear aches and it’s great for stomach cramps.

Studies suggest that it can inhibit the growth of cancer cells, and it’s been confirmed to improve kidney function and to treat any kind of inflammation.

Lovage

Lovage is a little known herbal remedy. Growing as high as 6 feet tall if they’re given enough room, they spread their seeds in much the same way that dill does.

Not that they even need to be as fertile as they are, the plant can live comfortably for 3 years if they’re taken care of properly.

Lovage is here to spread the love to the elderly and the young. Mild enough for children’s sore throats and those pesky tonsils.

For our elders, it’ll treat arthritis, jaundice and strengthen the heart without being overwhelming.

Ready to get started growing?

Check out this amazing Medicinal Garden Kit. All these seeds have been handpicked from the very best plants, as I wanted nothing less than premium quality.

With your seeds kit, you’ll also receive a FREE copy of Herbal Medicinal Guide: From Seeds to Remedies. This guide will show you how to turn these 10 plants into tinctures, ointments, salves, poultices, decoctions, infusions, essential oils —all in minute detail so you can follow our guide even if you’ve never made an herbal medicine in your life.