German Chamomile Seed Pack

Women have often found chamomile helpful with painful periods and chamomile is a favourite for teething children or easing a mild seasonal fever. The essential oil that gives chamomile flowers their characteristic aroma and flavour contains sesquiterpenes and other constituents with a range of anti-inflammatory properties. On contact with hot steam or water, one of these, matricin, further generates a distinctive, blue volatile oil (chamazulene) that also has these properties. Chamomile also contains flavonoids including apigenin which is a particularly strong anti-inflammatory for the skin. These constituents have a particular effect on mucosal surfaces of the digestive system when swallowed, and on the airways when inhaled with steam. Chamomile also has confirmed activity in relieving anxiety. The ability of this plant to relieve psychological tension as well as underlying physiological symptoms of stress has made it one of the most effective remedies for the treatment of nervous upsets.

Can be sown from early spring onwards. If you want to get started early you can sow in pots or trays indoors and transplant them out, or you can wait a bit and sow the seed directly into its final growing position. Make sure you sow it on the surface and gently press into the soil – don’t cover it. Water the seeds and keep moist until they germinate, which normally takes between 1-2 weeks. They are very sensitive to having their roots exposed and can take a while to recover from being transplanted, so for best results sow into plug trays. The plants grow quite bushy so you can space them as wide as 30cm, but they will also do fine growing close together in tighter clumps. It prefers full sunshine. It does best in sandy soils but can tolerate most soil types. Once established, it is usually requires very little attention. It is drought tolerant and we have never seen any issues with pests. If you sowed the seed early, you should start seeing flowers by the end of June.

Harvest the flowers at the beginning of flowering when the essential oils are at their highest. Use the 5-finger method, using your hand as a ‘comb’ to gently pop the flower-heads from their centipedal stems. These flowers can then be used fresh or laid out on a drying rack to dry. Like most herbs they are best dried at a low temperature with good air-flow, around 35C for 12 hours and then stored in an air-tight container. Best used as a simple tea. Put seven fresh flower-heads or a tablespoon of the dried flowers in a cup of boiled water and infuse in a covered pot for 10-15 minutes. Inhaling steam containing chamomile soothes the discomfort caused by colds, sinusitis and earache. Use 2 tablespoons of loose chamomile with boiling water in a bowl. Once the tea has steeped for a few minutes put a towel over your head and place over the bowl. Breathe deeply through your nose and mouth for 5-10 minutes. For an infused oil, macerate 1 part of the freshly-dried flowers in 4 parts olive oil for two weeks.