Make Basil Tea

Now you can make basil tea for an ice cold summertime refreshing drink. It has been 100° plus here in South Central Texas. We have basil growing on the farm in several areas. Most of it has bolted and gone to seed now due to the heat.

Some basil seedlings that were for sale in front of our store in the spring.Some basil seedlings that were for sale in front of our store in the spring.

Basil is so easy to grow. We normally start basil in pots to sell. We plant some in our garden beds, but most of it gets purchased. We currently sell ten varieties of basil seeds. If you have not yet tried growing this useful herb, order some. We have lemon, lime, cinnamon, holy tulsi, several Italian varieties, one for Thai cooking and a spicy bush basil.

Basil repels rodents so it is good to have it growing all over. We have mice, gophers, and other nasty rodents out in the country.

Basil improves pollination to tomatoes by attracting bees. It also repels horn-worms, aphids, spider mites, white-flies, and mosquitoes. These qualities make it great for companion planting.

Of course, we all know that basil tastes good and gives a lot of flavor to many dishes. You can make your own pesto with it, add it to spaghetti and pizza sauces, and add it into stir fry recipes.

Now you can make a delicious and refreshing beverage with your own garden fresh basil leaves. Are you ready for the basil tea recipe? Let's go!

Basil going to seed all over the farm. The pollinators love it when basil flowers! They are all over it.Basil going to seed all over the farm. The pollinators love it when basil flowers! They are all over it.

Basil Tea Recipe

You will need:

2 cups freshly picked, clean basil leaves

7 cups cold water

Honey (Add to taste. Locally sourced honey is best because it can help with allergies but grocery store honey is fine.)

Lemon juice (Add to taste. Fresh squeezed is best but bottled is fine.)

Basil Tea Recipe Directions

Place two cups of packed, fresh, clean basil leaves in a half gallon Mason jar or other glass jar. A sun tea jar would be great.

Boil seven cups of fresh water in your tea kettle or in a saucepan.

Pour the boiling water into the jar over the basil leaves. Let the leaves steep in the hot water for 20 to 30 minutes. The longer the leaves are left in the water, the stronger the taste will be.

Now you need to strain the basil leaves out of the tea. Get another jar or pitcher. Put a mesh strainer on the top of the pitcher. Pour the tea into the jar. The strainer should catch all of the leaves. You can give the leaves to your chickens or you can put them in your compost bin. Either way, they won't go to waste.

Before the tea goes to room temperature, add some honey and lemon, a little at a time to the jar until it tastes just right to you. Pour it over ice and enjoy. So much refreshment from your garden!

Store your basil tea with honey and lemon in the refrigerator.

Not Just Basil Tea

Last year, we dried basil leaves in our food dehydrator. We jarred some of those for later use. Then we ground some of the dried basil leaves up really fine and put those in spice jars to sell in our farm store. Finally, we put some fresh leaves in our oil extractor and we made basil essential oil to sell.

Basil is versatile and if you are on the fence about growing basil, let me encourage you to go ahead and grow some in your yard.

Return from Basil Tea to Favorite Recipes


Anything To Share On This Topic?

Would you like to share additional information about this topic with all of us?

[ ? ]

Upload 1-4 Pictures or Graphics (optional)[ ? ]

 

Click here to upload more images (optional)

Author Information (optional)

To receive credit as the author, enter your information below.

(first or full name)

(e.g., City, State, Country)

Submit Your Contribution

  •  submission guidelines.


(You can preview and edit on the next page)

Since 2009, over 1,500,000 home gardeners, all across the USA, have relied on David's Garden Seeds® to grow beautiful gardens. Trust is at the heart of it. Our customers know David's Garden Seeds® stocks only the highest quality seeds available. Our mission is to become your lifetime supplier of quality seeds. It isn't just to serve you once; we want to earn your trust as your primary supplier.


Watch Our 2022 TV Commercial!

Sing Along To Our Jingle

Matt with one of our Barred Rock chickens. The chickens adore him. ♪♫♪♪♫♫Matt with one of our Barred Rock chickens. The chickens adore him. ♪♫♪♪♫♫

 ♪♫♪♪ ♫ ♪ ♫♪♫♫

 ♪♫♪♪♫♫

Peppers and peas

And lots of yummy greens

You can't go wrong

With Squash This Long

At David's Garden Seeds

♪ ♫ ♪ ♫


Our New 2024 TV Ad


Please like and subscribe on YouTube and come visit us at our Farm Store! The music on our TV ad was written, played, and sung by our son, Matthew Schulze. You can meet him when you come to the farm. He just might give you a tour. Ask him to grab a guitar and sing our jingle that he wrote.


David's Garden Seeds BBB Business Review

David of David's Garden Seeds® zipping along on his little tractor across the farm. He is having a blast!David of David's Garden Seeds® zipping along on his little tractor across the farm. He is having a blast!

We are David's Garden Seeds®. If you need great seeds, we've got over 1,000 varieties to choose from.

Your second block of text...


Subscribe To Mrs. David's Garden Seeds® Newsletter For FREE!

Hi! I am Juanita aka Mrs. DGS. This photo was taken in our commercial kitchen during a potluck.Hi! I am Juanita aka Mrs. DGS. This photo was taken in our commercial kitchen during a potluck.
Mrs. David's Garden Seeds in the greenhouse with Lucy the lap dog.Mrs Davids Garden Seeds in the greenhouse with Lucy the lap dog.

Find out what is going on down on the farm by reading our blog and by subscribing to our free newsletter for all of the information going down at David's Garden Seeds® and on the farm. I love to share helpful information with you. Please let your friends know and y'all come on down for a visit when you get the chance. We would love to meet you!

seeds1
davidmatthives2Our bee hives
fishOur fish pond
chickensyardOur chickens
bunnynewdigsOur bunny rabbits
goats0924Our Nigerian Dwarf goats
gardenbedsgreenA few of our raised garden beds
orchardback40Our orchard and hoop houses
hightunnel2Inside our high tunnel
officialselfiespotTake a selfie at our official selfie spot!
zinniasbutterflies092523Flowers, bees, and butterflies are everywhere!

Watch Our TV Ads!