Cool it! (with herbs)

It’s bloody hot here today! 40 degrees before 11.30, but thanks to a cool change, we’re no longer baking in the full sun.

Last year, we discussed the cooling properties of Borage (Borago officinalis) and how it was, what is called in herbalism, an ‘refrigerant;. That means that it can cool us from the inside without making us sweat. It’s one of the many plants that have traditionally used in Summer to keep our cool.

Other easy to find plants that can cool us at this time of year include:

Chillies

Cucumber

Lavender

Lemon Balm

Lemon Verbena

Mallow

Violet

For Borage and Mallow, it’s best to leave the leaves in room temperature water for a couple of hours (or even overnight) to extract all the goodness before chilling and drinking cold.

We haven’t covered all those herbs yet on this blog, but they’re so easy to find in our garden or roadside and they all work in different ways, so  it would be a shame not to try them.

So experiment and find your favourite to have as a tea, cold tea, infusion, or even on your salads!

What are your favourite herbal Summer beverages?