Planting Lemon Balm
Lemon Balm is a cool season herb in the Lamiaceae family. Getting the timing right is the difference between a strong stand and a disappointing one, so the windows below are given relative to your own last spring frost and first fall frost rather than a generic calendar date. Look up your local frost dates and count back or forward from there.
Lemon Balm is started indoors 6–8 weeks before your last spring frost date, giving seedlings a head start before they move outside.
You can sow Lemon Balm directly into the garden 0–2 weeks before your last frost.
Lemon Balm can be grown by starting indoors, direct sowing, and transplanting. Starting indoors gives the longest, most controlled season, while direct sowing is simplest where the season is long enough.
Spacing and Planting Depth
Give Lemon Balm room to mature. The figures below come from verified extension and seed-supplier data for typical varieties.
| Spacing in row | 12 inches |
|---|---|
| Row spacing | 18 inches |
| Plants per sq ft | 0.67 |
| Planting depth | 0 inches |
| Sun requirement | Partial sun |
Days to Maturity
Lemon Balm reaches maturity in 70–90 days from transplant.
Lemon Balm is ready to harvest after about 80 days. Harvest before summer heat or, for fall crops, before a hard freeze, to keep quality high.
Conditions and Care
As a cool-season herb, Lemon Balm does its best growing in the cooler weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat. It is frost hardy and can shrug off light freezes, so it can stay in the ground later into the season than tender crops.
Lemon Balm grows well in partial sun and tolerates some afternoon shade, which can help slow bolting in warm weather. Sow seed about 0 inches deep — small seed is sown shallow and barely covered, then keep the soil evenly moist until seedlings establish.
Lemon Balm belongs to the Lamiaceae family; rotating where you grow members of this family each year helps limit the build-up of soil-borne pests and disease. Lemon Balm is generally grown as a single planting each season rather than succession sown.
Companion Plants
Pairing Lemon Balm with the right neighbors can improve growth and deter pests; a few combinations are best avoided.
Grows well with: Tomato, Squash (Companion Reference)
Growing Notes
Perennial; surface-sow seeds.