Which one should you plant? Well, the answer depends on what you want to do with it. German chamomile tends to be a little sweeter than Roman chamomile, so it is a natural choice for your tea blends. We will concentrate on the German chamomile in this post.
The chamomile bush will produce small white flowers with large yellow centers. The blossoms have an apple-like aroma. You can start these plants as seeds indoors about 6 weeks before the last frost of the season. Sprinkle the seeds on top of the soil, but do not cover as the seeds need light to sprout. Keep the seeds moist and thin down to one plant per 12-inch pot. If planting outside, plant the seedlings 12 to 18 inches apart. Sunny locations are best, but they will tolerate partial shade.
Although German chamomile is a perennial, it will readily seed itself if you let the flowers go to seed. Otherwise, collect the seeds for the next year's planting. Since the seeds do so well on their own, gardeners tend to plant in pots and harvest all the blossoms and seeds before they drop to better control the plants.
Not many insects will bother your plants. They are even reputed to keep cucumber beetles away, so they are great for companion planting. If you find aphids on the plants you can spray them off with water from the garden hose.
Money-Saving Tip: You can use a spray bottle with a little liquid dish detergent and water to take care of soft-bodied insects. This solution is highly effective on aphids and the like. I put a few tablespoons of liquid dish soap into a clean spray bottle, which I purchased just for that purpose, and fill it up with tap water.
***Use caution if you are reusing a spray bottle that contained cleaners and the like. I would highly recommend buying a new spray bottle from the local dollar store instead as you will be spraying plants that you will be consuming.***
The soapy water is a contact control, not residual, so it will only work on the insects that you spray directly. I have even successfully used it on yellow jackets that tend to nest behind my shutters.
My fruit trees did not fair well when I left the soapy water on the leaves. I strongly recommend rinsing the soap off your fruit trees after about 20 or 30 minutes so you don't burn your leaves. My roses have never had any problems even without rinsing. You may want to test your plants using this solution to see how they react.Harvesting, Drying and Storing
Harvest the whole flower heads in the early morning after the dew is gone to dry for your tea. Shake the plants gently to remove any foreign material, dirty and insects, then pinch or snip off just below the flower head. The flowers open up in the morning and close as the sun goes down. You want the harvest the flowers at their peak; no stems or leaves. Dry the flowers using drying screens or a dehydrator. I prefer the dehydrator method for faster drying. Store in a sealed glass jar and keep out of sunlight. You may consider not crumbling the flowers until you are ready to use them to preserve the oils and aroma of the herb.
