ISO: Suggestions for herbs to plant

[KValley]

I've just cleared a patch of weeds that once was a flowerbed next to the house. I'd like to devote a good portion of it to herbs.

It's a southwest facing plot, so these would have to be herbs that would do well in full sun. Our spring/summers are hot and dry- it's not unusual to go from May-September without any rain. (Yes, I live in Washington State, but the Central/Eastern half is arid shrub-steppe or meadow-steppe, not rain or temperate forest).

I'd welcome any suggestions for herbs and companion flowers/plants that would do well in full sun and with minimal watering.

Thanks in advance! Julie

[Kerri]

My rosemary and oregano has been really kicking some butt the past year in Dallas, while other herbs: cilantro(really could have used fresh cilantro around), basil(I thought basil was suppose to be easy to grow!), and parsley all died on me. Now, I am no kind of gardener, but this is what has worked for me. This year my apartment faces east instead of west and I am trying basil, parsley, and cilantro again, plus sage. Sage seems to get bugs while the rest of the plants haven't. Oh well, I am learning!

[JJeannette]

Annual herbs could be dill, basil, parsley. For more permnent plants you could have sage, thyme, oregano, chives.

[Gail]

Although I've sucessfully managed to grow oregano, mint, sorrel, basil, chives, parsley, thyme, sage, shallots and cilantro at one time or another, I've got to say the all-around winner for hassle-free herb went to rosemary. That sucker survived anything, and kept growing no matter what! Long after I had to let everything go since my herb bed was in the way of our remodel, rosemary went right on growing. Didn't care if I watered it, didn't mind blazing direct sun. If you like to cook with the stuff, I recommend it. highly.

[KValley]

Rosemary is just about my favorite herb, after garlic! It's such a pretty plant, as well. I think I'll try basil, oregano, flat
leaf parsley, a couple types of thyme, tomatoes, and some daisy varieties. I don't use sage much...

What about tarragon? I love tarragon.I'll give it a whirl. I'm afraid to do mint- I think it's just too dry here and I feel guilty doing too much watering- we're under drought status now.

Thanks for your suggestions!

[emilycat]

Hmm...you are referring to legal herbs, are you not? Sorry, it's the first thing that popped into my head http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[Gail]

...this from the person accusing me of sniffing paint! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Jewel]

Come on, you two, play nice! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif Regarding the herbs, I am a three time loser. Every time I try to grow those things in the "pretty little pre-made pots that sit on a sunny windowsill" I get them home and remember that I live in Seattle...what's a sunny windowsill?

The only two herbs I've grown successfully without them turning into crispy little dead bodies in my window are rosemary and chives. Chives are one of my favorite herbs anyway, one that I use most often. Rosemary is such a beautiful plant, too, and gets equally used since I cook so much poultry. Anything else, all I can tell you is how they look as they're drawing their last breath! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[KValley]

Originally posted by emilycat:
Hmm...you are referring to legal herbs, are you not? Sorry, it's the first thing that popped into my head http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/cool.gif ahemmmmp, emcat...well, that is supposedly the state's largest cash crop...think I could slip some in between the daisies?

[Gail]

Originally posted by Jewel:
Come on, you two, play nice! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif

But, Mommy, she PICKED on me! http://cwm.ragesofsanity.com/cwm/3dlil/cry.gif

Not to worry, Jewel. We're just horsin' around. (Insert Mamasue graphic of Mr. Ed)

[Chefmom]

I'm not sure how it happened, but herbs took me from a person who killed houseplants to a real gardener!! I wanted to grow my own fresh herbs in Culinary School, so...I bought some seeds the year after (I was home from work with my baby daughter at the time) and EVERYONE told me how you can't grow herbs from seed.

Needless to say I had my own supply of herbs that year, I gave about a flat of herb plants to every single person I knew who wanted them, and then I took the remaining 12 flats to the Culinary School for the students.

I have been growing herbs in pots and now in the ground since then, about 5 years. Here is what I know:

Cilantro is a cool weather herb. It likes semi shade (in the hottest part of the day) it HATES to be transplanted and will make you guilty if you try, and it likes the soil semi moist, not wet, not dry. Once it gets too warm BAM, it bolts to seed. Great if you want Corriander, but I have never had the huge leaves that I see Chefs on TV using. If you fertilize, use a high nitrogen to stimulate leaf growth. You can also find hybrids that are slow to bolt.

Rosemary great fresh, you will never use dry rosemary again. Don't bother with seed, even the best seed is only 5% viable, and can take MONTHS to germinate and years to grow. I propogate with moist pearlite and take cuttings, they even take a while, but I always have baby rosemary around if I don't get my plants in from the frost soon enough. Rosemary likes it hot, water when very dry, but rosemary likes it on the dry side, and if you are in a year round climate, you can plant in the ground. If not, do like I do, keep it in pots and bring them indoors. Even though some are to bloom, I have never had a rosemary bloom for me. I don't ever have a need to fertilize.

Basil likes it HOT and MOIST. The best basil I ever grew was in a greenhouse and I had to water the plant about 1/2 to 1 gallon PER DAY, making it a high maintenance plant. If you buy basil in the stores, you will get an old baby and it will bolt to seed on you after you plant it. So, grow from seed, about this time so you are setting out babies when the weather is warming up. It will germinate, but the babies won't grow until it really warms up. Pinch to keep it bushy and to keep it growing leaves, not flowers. But, once your basil decides to flower, no matter how much you pinch, it will flower. Basil likes rich soil and kept MOIST, not wet but water frequently.

Dill, another cool weather plant, and another quick to bolt when the weather warms up. I like the Dukat strain for it's small size and the fact that it doesn't bolt much for me. One plant is NOT enough, if you want to use dill, grow MANY plants. It self seeds for me now and I find it all over my garden. I don't start inside, I just sprinkle the seeds I saved from another plant in the general area I want it to grow.

Mint will take over, grow in pots. It's a "weed", so you really don't need to do much, just plant and it does the rest!!

Oregano, this is a perennial, so it comes back year after year. I like oregano in the spring the best, before the branches get too woody. I usually take a large harvest in June to dry for winter. Once again, once I grew it from seed I planted in the ground (sunny) and haven't done anything except harvest. I will need to divide the patch next year, it's getting tight.

Chives are also perennial, they come in the early spring and then bloom with pretty purple or white "balls" on the top. Snip as you need them, in the early summer I cut them all back and then again in the fall. Chives are best used fresh, freezing makes them mushy. I keep mine in the garden, sunny spot and really don't bother with them again. I don't fuss and they do great for me! This year I am adding garlic chives to my patch. I think after several years you need to divide the patches.

Thyme I keep in a large window box, I cut a full harvest about three times a year, when it is full and thick. About every third year I pull it out of the box, take three cuttings (more if anyone wants a cutting) replant the box and discard the rest. I have had the same box this way for 5 years. The year I grew from seed I forgot to plant thyme so my husband purchased me a plant for mothers day, that is the same plant I still grow. Thyme likes it sunny and water when I think it is really dry. It fills in QUICK.

Sage, I haven't grown this as much, my plants like it sunny and water when needed, I really don't fertilize sage either.

Nasturtiums, you can eat them, and they are pretty, plus they REALLY attract the big bumbler bees to fertilize the tomatoes so I keep a LOT of nast. around the plants. They like cool weather, so I grow in the spring and fall, I put them out early in pots and in the ground when I put out the peas and pansies. In pots they like water, but not too wet, I let them dry inbetween.

Um, what am I forgetting!? Savory is new this year for me, so is cammomil (sp??), I have grown Perilla, the purple one, and it's nice in the garden, the flowers are a heavenly cinnamon scent, perfect for poupouri, but I don't care for the leaves, they re-seed like the dickins, so I don't bother to collect the seed, I just gather the babies from the garden in the spring and put them where I want them.

Lavender, I love lavender and I have many strains around the yard and in pots. I usually buy what I want and then take cuttings, that way you get a true plant, but I have done seed. I keep the babies in pots for one year, then put them in the ground. It has worked good for me so far. I take the flowers before they open and dry them in kosher salt for a heavenly bath salt. I also just run my hands through every time I am in the garden and BREATH the scent. It really is the most relaxing scent around!! Lavender likes it dry, sweet (add a tiny touch of lime) and no fertilizer.

OH, my How can I forget parsley. I grow it as an annual, it will come back the next year, but it sets seed. I start indoors, the seed is hard, so I soak for a few days, changing the water and then sprout and plant. I plant large clumps and start to harvest once the leaves are coming on hard and fast. It likes it sunny and not too much water, I don't bother to fertilize. I take a full harvest before frost and dry it for winter. I really don't bother with freezing, I have so much in the freezer already.

Shallots and garlic are new for me this year, plus I'm going to grow the corn for early harvest, like the baby corns in stir frys. We'll see how that turns out!!

Of course I have sunflowers everywhere too, they bring the bees and then the birds!!

Tami

...if I think of anything else I'll come back....

[emilycat]

Oh my gosh, as I sit it here howling my boyfriend is wondering what the h*&% is wrong with me -- sorry, I didn't mean to start anything http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif

[KValley]

TAMIYou are now Herb Queen! I'm printing out your reply. This is awesome! Please add more...

Now, I'd better get out of here before Gail and Emily start slinging mud pies! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[This message has been edited by KValley (edited 04-27-2001).]

[breadmama]

Thanks, Tami! That is just the kind of info I was looking for. I am replanting my small herb garden this year - the only thing worth saving is the chives...everything else is scraggly and rootbound. Your advice is wonderful. Thanks for taking the time to share it!

[Beth]

I grew lemongrass last year for the first time. It would do well as a background plant for your herb garden. Unfortunatley, it was more tender than I realized and mine froze last year. I'll try again when I find it again.

If you like basil, it should do well and you may want a couple of varieties. There are so many good ones. It is an annual, but will reseed. I let some of mine go to seed late in the summer so I get volunteers in the spring. This is not true of the Sweet Aussie variety I posted about....it doesn't flower (which means no picking buds off before they bloom), so take cuttings to winter over.

I was given a pineapple sage one year and have grown it more for the red flowers (hummingbirds love it) and the wonderful smell when you water the garden than for cooking, but it is great.

I think Tami covered everything else I can think of. Good luck. Have fun.

[lindrusso]

Originally posted by Gail:
I've got to say the all-around winner for hassle-free herb went to rosemary. That sucker survived anything, and kept growing no matter what!

That is just too funny - rosemary was the only thing that did NOT do well in my garden last year! And it looks like it's not coming back this year either!

One tip - you don't need to plant much in the way of chives. They tend to do VERY well with very little effort and can take over. It's only April here in Indiana (Northern most spot) and my chives are full-size already! And I respectfully disagree about freezing them - I've been using them from the freezer all winter with great results, especially when using them in a hot dish where it won't really matter if they are a bit moist. So, here I am with another big crop of chives and I haven't used up last year's supply yet!

[Julie O]

Tami,

That was an awesome post!!! I've read three books on the subject AND taken two classes about herbs from master gardeners and I learned more from your post than all of those sources combined! Thanks for taking the time to give us all that great information!!!!

[mamacox]

I have tried to grow basil for years on my back deck. Usually it just dries up and dies, but last year I think the squirrels ate it! I put a pot out one day, and the next day it was eaten to the soil. Any idea what repels squirrels?

[Beth]

There is a book dedeicated to getting rid of squirrels (somewhat tongue in cheeck) that is sold in many book stores and bird related shops. The bottom line is that a determined squirrel is very hard to deter.

That said, I have never seen a squirrel in these parts go after basil. I've had several varieties each of the last 2 years, and none was touched. Do you get rabbits or deer? You could try growing it indoors or under a netting.

[Ed]

Originally posted by mamacox:
I have tried to grow basil for years on my back deck. Usually it just dries up and dies, but last year I think the squirrels ate it! I put a pot out one day, and the next day it was eaten to the soil. Any idea what repels squirrels?

A Dog.

Ed

[gabbyh]

Tami...thank you for a wonderful, informative post, and Julie, thanks for asking the original question...now maybe someone can start a topic for favorite recipes using individual "fresh" herbs...say, one for basil, rosemary, oregano, etc...I'm out the door to Frank's Nursery to buy some plants for my outdoor baker's rack...

[schuh]

Chefmom,
I'm in awe at your post!

I thought I'd add my far more limited experience. I'm in Western NY, which is a somewhat different climate.

I cut a tiny veggie/herb garden last year. I planted oregano and chives amid other veggies. Well, the tomato plants became HUGE and I could barely find the poor chives and oregano. But I still did use them and they are back this year. They must be hardy plants because although I amended the soil with composted manure and peat moss (probably not enough of either) last year, I did not fertilize.

This year, I'm starting various plants from seed (partially as a "back-to-nature" project with my kids). I've got basil and dill coming up but no parsley to be found. I also have broccoli and tomatoes coming up.

I have grown basil in the past and found that Japanese beetles devour them! I've heard that you can pick them off one at a time but don't have the stomach to do so. Now, my 6-year-old son loves bugs, so I may pay him a nickel a bug to pick them off. (I avoid pesticides as much as possible.)

I'm also growing marigolds. I've heard that if you line the garden with them, they repel pests (which pests I don't remember -- bunnies? bugs?).

Finally, beware of mint. It is very invasive.

Happy growing! Let us know what you decide/how it works.

[SusanT]

Plant herbs that you like and will use. Basil and parsley like richer soil and more water than the mediterranean herbs (oregano and tyme, for instance). Both are easy to grow from seed. Cilantro likes cool nights and I have trouble growing it in the mid-South.

Rosemary does well and may be evergreen in winter depending on the weather. I wouldn't plant chives in the ground - they self sow like crazy. I've got some chives growing in a large container that has withstood all the abuse and neglect I can heap upon it.

Nasturtium is pretty and should do well in your part of the country. I also like tarragon. Although it's supposed to be perinnial, it doesn't survive the winter around here.

Sage is also a hearty little herb. If you get oregano, make sure it's Greek oregano. Common oregano is pretty but doesn't quite have the same flavor.

There may be an herb society in your area. They'll be the best source of finding the types of herbs that do best in your area.

Enjoy your herb garden!

[KValley]

Thanks everyone for your fantastic advice, suggestions, wisdom. I got started yesterday on the little garden. I planted roma tomatoes and marigolds around those; also set in some rosemary, thyme, cilantro, green pepper. I've left space for basil, flat leaf parsley, oregano (SusanT, thank you- I will look for Greek oregano!) and nasturtia, which I couldn't find yesterday.

It felt so good to get out and dig in my little patch of earth. Regardless of the outcome, it was great for the soul http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif