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Bergamot [Citrus bergamia]

The herb Bergamot, better known as Bee Balm or Oswego Tea, is a family of herbs similar to lemon balm.

The wild purple flowering Bergamot was a typical Native American remedy for upper respiratory distress, digestive woes, and an active diaphoretic (sweat inducer) for ceremonial sweat lodges.

 

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Wild Bergamots seen on a Wildflower Walk held on Munch's Coulee National Recreation Hiking Trail at Des Lacs National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota.

The red variety of Bergamot became popularized as Oswego tea after the Boston Tea Party. After all of the classic English Tea was thrown in the harbor by the colonists, Oswego tea became the replacement beverage of choice.

In herbalism today, this family of herbs is most often used for their nervine or nerve-calming effects.

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