There are many kinds of affordable herbs and places you can buy herbs for herbal remedies, herbal teas and even for cooking.
What Are Some Affordable Herbs?
There are many different herbs that are popular for herbal remedies, and they range from very inexpensive and commonly available herbs such as lavender, rosemary and thyme to more expensive and more rare options such as St. John's wort or kava kava.
The most affordable herbs are going to be the ones that you can buy locally and/or in bulk. For example, if your local natural foods store has bulk herbs, even though the prices per pound look like a lot, they're going to be less expensive than if you have to buy a prepackaged amount either in the shop or through mail order.
Some common herbs that you might want to have on hand include:
- Garlic
- Comfrey
- Echinacea
- Angelica
- Valerian
- Chamomile
- Calendula
- Rosemary
- Lavender
- Cayenne
- Ginseng
- Peppermint
- Catnip
- Licorice
- Yarrow
Certainly you are not going to be able to find all of these in the bulk section of your local Whole Foods, but if you happen to live somewhere with a good herbalist you may be able to buy herbs in bulk for your personal use there.
Herbs you buy in bulk will be cheaper than buying the individual amount you need prepackaged, but before you invest a lot of money in bulk herbs, make sure you are buying from a place with a reputation for quality. The place should be clean and have good turnover of product, meaning the herbs are being purchased quickly and replaced with fresh items often.
Affordable Herbs Online
For those herbs you can't find in your local stores, the next place to look is online. There are many online herbalists who are happy to send you affordable herbs. Here are a few places to look:
- Mountain Rose Herbs has organic bulk herbs and spices, teas, essential oils and other ingredients for healing.
- HerbalCom has more than 500 herbs sold in bulk at reasonable prices, some of which are organic. They also offer monthly specials, so check back often.
- Wild Weeds is a mail order and Internet company that sells books, essential oils and body care products as well as affordable herbs. They sell herbs in four-ounce and 16-ounce packages, depending on your needs.
- Bulk Herb Store sells herbs and herb blends, usually in half-pound bags, but some can be purchased in pound bags as well.
- Wild Roots specializes in organic and wild-crafted herbs and spices, as well as offering essential oils, books and herbal remedies.
- Leaves and Roots is an herbal store based in Florida that also sells online, offering about 300 different bulk herbs, as well as spices, teas, oils and more.
The Most Affordable Method
Of course the most affordable herbs you will ever find are those you grow yourself. Purchasing herb seeds is very inexpensive, and you can often find seeds at local grocery stores, home improvement stores and garden supply centers. You can also order unique, heirloom or organic plant seeds online and still won't pay as much as you would for a pound of finished product. Many herbs are very easy to grow provided you can give them plenty of sunlight and water them regularly. You can also sometimes purchase herb plants at garden centers in the spring.
The great thing about growing herbs is that they grow more the more you use them. They actually want to be trimmed back, and you can use those cuttings in your herbal remedies and teas.
Growing your own herbs assures that you have a ready supply throughout the growing months, and you can always dry your leftover herbs or put the plants in a sunny window for the winter months so that you can enjoy your homegrown, homemade herbal remedies all year long.
