Home Grown herbs

[Naomi]

Finally it's springtime!

I've been planting:

parsley

coriander

basil

majoram (oregano)

dill

herb fennel

borage

Anybody else feeling green fingered?

Also, does anyone have some ideas on how to actually use borage? (I have grown it for several years, but never really eaten it!)

[fifi]

I have added borage in a very fine chiffonade to salad dressing, especially one with a yogurt base. It adds a nice cucumber flavor. The texture of the leaves are too fuzzy for me to use it any other way. I do like to sprinkle the flowers on salad. Actually, I just used to grow it because it is pretty.

[ExtraMSG]

I have my herbs out front which include:

Sage

Rosemary (a couple types)

Lavender

Thyme (a couple types)

Oregano

Mint

These all made it through the winter, too, which is nice.

Plus, I have a bunch of strawberries in there that are already blossoming.

[memesuze]

As perennials that have consistently done well for me here in Austin, I have an immense Greek oregano, an English and a French thyme, Mexican oregano, Mexican marigold mint for my tarragon needs, chives, and parsley. Then I've replanted marjoram - just seems to crater every year or so, sage, this year's basil, and I'm waiting to find a Thai basil. One year I had lemon verbena, but only one year. I'm gonna try that one again in a different site. I have some bay laurel in a pot out back, but I suspect it's the California variety - so when I'm wanting depth of flavor, I use some dried Penzey's Turkish bay leaves.

Edited April 5, 2004 by memesuze (log)

[Anna N]

Too early to plant anything outside yet but I have basil, chives and parsley just sprouting in small pots indoors.

Paula Wolfert has a recipe for "Chilled Green Pea and Borage Soup" in her latest book, The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen.

[Carolyn Tillie]

I planted three weeks ago (about four weeks too late for the weather WE have been having, but better late than never!)

Italian Parsley

Tarragon

Chive

Thyme (three different kinds)

Rosemary

Oregano

Marjoram

Sage (two different kinds)

Basil

I still plan on getting some Dill, Fennel, various forms of Mint, and whatever else looks fabulous at my favorite herb farm, Morningside, in Vacaville...

[memesuze]

Can't forget my two rosemary bushes - with big fat leaves, unlike those thin ones - varieties "Tuscan Blue" and "Gorizia" - they're beautiful bushes

[balmagowry]

Anybody else feeling green fingered?

Also, does anyone have some ideas on how to actually use borage? (I have grown it for several years, but never really eaten it!)

So far the weather has smothered my green-fingered-ness - pity, because it means no peas for July 4th. Well, hell, it SNOWED on St. Patrick's Day, so what could I do? It's supposed to SNOW again tonight, which is outrageous - I'm just hoping it lets up soon or I'll be tempted to blow off the whole season.

Fortunately, my valiant bulbs and perennials don't give a damn - they will shame me into a better frame of mind soon, I hope.

Borage - here in Zone 7, too soon for me to plant it yet; I don't put it in until I set out my tomatoes (end of May), with which it is extremely compatible (like marigolds, it repels various nasty insect predators). Its other chief use in my view is that it is an essential ingredient in old-fashioned claret-cup (you can use a cucumber peel instead, but it just isn't the same). Also, the pretty blue blossoms are edible, though I never remember to use them; you can candy them (egg white & sugar) or put them in a salad.

Other herbs I generally grow - oof, I think the shorter list might be the ones I don't. Several varieties of basil (I'm taking the fifth on pronunciation!); dill; parsley; chervil; sage; three kinds of rosemary; French tarragon; savory; four kinds of thyme; oregano (Mexican and non-); chives; hyssop; lovage; rue; savory (winter & summer); melissa - then the decorative/flowering things that do double duty: nasturtium; centaury; lavender; artemisia; various scented pelargoniums; various violas; various marigolds. I think my saffron crocuses have almost died out, and I probably won't renew them - a cool thing to grow in theory, but not worth the trouble.

I'm trying to find gentian seeds or starts for this season, but they are proving rather difficult to come by.

Have a feeling I'm forgetting something....

[Dana]

I also have an immense oregano, as well as rosemary and chives. The chives survived another winter - I think I've had them for 10 years. Today, I put in some thyme and basil, lavender and sage. Also put some serrano peppers in pots, green beans and 12 tomato plants. We had a beautiful weekend here in SE TX. Too bad about the snow.......

[JPW]

As this is only my second year of having an herb garden, I am just starting to figure out what works well in my little bed. I'm outside DC and can only get a few hours of direct sunlight a day due to the large number of massive trees around the yard. This year I am planning on:

Thyme, Basil, Sage, and oregano (which almost took over the whole bed last year)

Also, rosemary in a giant pot on the deck.

Hopefully, I'll be able to plant next week.

I'm too lazy to grow from seed and generally buy seedlings at the farmer's market.

[beccaboo]

parsley (lots--it volunteers all over)

Greek oregano

marjoram

thyme, English (in a pot--it doesn't like our dirt) and a lemony ground cover

rosemary (several kinds--it really likes our bad sandy dirt)

sage (Berggarten, I think)

anise hyssop

hyssop

cherval

angelica

basil, which I haven't planted yet and must grow in a pot

[eugie]

in my herb garden I also have a small bay tree-- the fresh bay leaves have a quite different aroma from dried. I like to add them as flavor for creme brulee.

[melkor]

parsley (flat leaf)

basil

oregano (mexican and italian)

chives

bay

rosemary

thyme

marjoram

tarragon

dill

cilantro

mint (in a pot)

and catnip

[balmagowry]

Catnip! Yes! and also catmint - nepeta cataria.

I used to have a little bay tree, but it died - it died - it died.

I used to have lemon grass in a pot, but the cats ate it all.

[howard88]

Love my herbs:

I have a huge patch of thyme and chives.

Plant or use last years parsley, and rosemary if it winters over.

Always do multiple plantings of cilantro.

I have peppermint, spearmint, orange mint and lemon balm which spreads nicely and always winters over.

[elion_84]

We grow:

basil - it grows almost wild, reseeding itself

thyme

sage

parsley

oregano

3 kinds of rosemary, just because it looks pretty

mint - for a while it took over the whole herb garden so now we grow it only in a pot. There are still little sprigs that come out here and there that we pluck out.

In the past we've grown chives and dill, but not this year.

[jackal10]

The herb garden is laid out as three concentric squares, with a sundial in the middle, and paths crossing top to bottom and left to right.

The herbs are interplanted with old roses, such as Rosa Gloria Mundi.

Outer borders, clockwide from the house

Parsley (if the rabbits leave any)

Chives

Garlic Chives

Dill

Borage

Feverfew

Violets

Woodruff

curry plant

(trellis with loganberries, roses, and a fig tree)

Bay

Scented geraniums

Primroses

Another BAy

Lavender

Marjoram

Middle borders

Oregano

Alewort

Fennels

Thyme

Mints (3 sorts)

Sage (3 sorts)

Thyme (lemon)

Varigated lemon balm

Soapwort

Roesemary

Valerian

More mints (peppermint etc)

Thyme

Lovage

Inner square - 4 big box balls on the corners

Alliums

Sweet Cicely

Salad burnet

Comfrey

Verbena

[alacarte]

My lovely windowsill herb plants were over-run by aphids, so I don't grow anything these days.

[gus_tatory]

i am severely limited by both climate (montreal is in hardiness zone 5b) and space (2nd floor large balcony, but it faces south-west) .

and yet every year i have great luck with:

rosemary

several types of basil (purple ruffled, thai or holy basil, etc.)

several mints

lemon balm, verbena

coriander

parsley

out of whimsy and naivete, we tried sugar-baby watermelons, cherry bomb hot peppers, etc., in the past, and were disappointed. no convincing these plants it's warm enough.

my Mom has managed to keep a laurel/bay tree going (it winters indoors) for about 7 years now in the warmer parts of nova scotia. it is a gorgeous specimen of a plant.

[bleudauvergne]

On the window sill: Mint, rosemary, thyme, sage, lavender ( guess you can't eat that)

That's it. Not bad for about .2 m2.

-Lucy

[Amuse Bouche]

Another windowsill garden -- mint, rosemary, sage, chives, and basil, plus a small lychee tree my husband coaxed from a seed. We're moving to a place with a small terrace, and hoping to expand soon.

[woodburner]

Sweet Basil

Purple Basil

Chives

Rosemary

Oregano

Parsley

I was able to sow 8 different varigants of leaf lettuce/ arugala and mesclan mixtures 2 weeks ago in my cold frame.

All the rows have now germinated, allowing me to replant more rows this coming weekend.

woodburner

[edsel]

I used to have a little bay tree, but it died - it died - it died.

Don't grieve for your bay - plant another! You're in the DC area, right? My mother planted bay in the garden when we moved to MacLean when I was a kid. She took great pleasure (rightly so!) in going out to the garden to pluck a couple of leaves when preparing stews or sauces that call for bay. Then one year there was a nasty late frost followed by weeks of dismal rainy weather. The bay plants died. All of them. The roses took quite a beating that year as well, as did the famous ornamental cherries at the Tidal Basin.

I have a bay laurel that I drag in every winter (the pot gets bigger and heavier by the year). The fresh bay leaves are marvelously aromatic, and fresh-dried leaves are vastly superior to the usual supermarket mummified remains. (Penzey's is an exception).

Memesuze: you mentioned having the California variety - a lovely plant, but for culinary purposes you want the Mediterranean bay. It seems that it's propagated by cuttings and is fussy to get started. Same goes for tarragon. If anyone tries to sell you "French tarragon" seed, shop elsewhere.

I used to have lemon grass in a pot, but the cats ate it all.

My dear departed cat Lila was mostly indifferent to catnip, but lemon grass made her crazy. For those who don't know, lemon grass is dead easy to grow. When you get the fresh stalks from the asian grocer, look at the ends to be sure that there's a bit of the root at the base. Don't worry if the roots have all been trimmed off - just look for little vestigial nubs at the end of the stalk. Cut the ends off and plant them in wet soil (use the rest for the usual culinary purposes).

[edsel]

Oh yes, forgot to add:

Greek oregano ,marjoram, spearmint, peppermint, chives (regular and garlic), French thyme, lemon verbena, lavender, dill, fennel, borage - all come back as perennials or self-seed. The oregano and chives are already poking up through the late snow.

Parsley, cilantro, and basil have to be started fresh every year. I brought in some curly parsley this winter but it dried out quickly in the forced heat. Rosemary and sage are iffy in my climactic zone. Some years they make it, some years they don't. I've had bad luck growing chervil and chamomile.

Jackal10: Your herb garden sounds lovely. Is the curry plant the one that yields the "curry leaves" used in Indian cooking?

[Susan in FL]

This is the time of year that the herbs do best for us. It will be more difficult when it's hotter. I'll post some photos later. So far...

Rosemary (Grows so well, we use it as shrubs and trees.)

Bay Laurel (It's about 10 years old, and has traveled from town to town in Delaware and then to Florida and has had at least two resurrections.)

Sage

Italian Flat Leaf Parsley

Thyme

Lemon Thyme

Chives

Basil

Oregano

Mint

Cilantro

Not herbs, but in amongst the herbs, is a pineapple and an aloe.