Lemon verbena is a woody shrub that produces shiny green leaves with a strong scent and taste of lemon. Leaves are strongest at the time of flowering. Both the leaves and flowers are used for culinary purposes (teas, desserts, fruit salads and jams), for perfumes and cosmetics, for potpourris and as herbal medicines. Winter hardy to USDA Zone 8-10 where it is best grown in moist, light, well-drained fertile loams in full sun. Where not winter hardy, it is grown in containers that may be overwintered indoors in bright, cool locations with minimal watering (plants lose leaves indoors) or as an annual that is replaced with new plants each spring.
Lemon Verbena (Aloysia triphylla)
Description
Lemon verbena is a woody shrub that produces shiny green leaves with a strong scent and taste of lemon. Leaves are strongest at the time of flowering. Both the leaves and flowers are used for culinary purposes (teas, desserts, fruit salads and jams), for perfumes and cosmetics, for potpourris and as herbal medicines. Winter hardy to USDA Zone 8-10 where it is best grown in moist, light, well-drained fertile loams in full sun. Where not winter hardy, it is grown in containers that may be overwintered indoors in bright, cool locations with minimal watering (plants lose leaves indoors) or as an annual that is replaced with new plants each spring.
