Spice Up Your Garden With Herbs

No garden should be without herbs. If you like to cook, you already know what a difference using fresh instead of dried herbs makes to a dish, and growing and harvesting your own herbs to use in cooking adds a dimension of pleasure to the whole cooking experience.

Even if you're not into cooking, or planning to use herbs in your kitchen, herbs are worth growing. Many herbs are attractive garden plants and add textures and fragrances to your garden that no other plants can provide. Every time I move, for instance, one of the first plants I bed is wooly thyme. I love its gray-green wooly appearance, and once it's established, the pleasure of walking on the soft wooly mats and smelling the release of the thymey scent is indescribable.

Herbs are also useful for solving particular garden problems. If, for example, your garden is plagued by deer, you'll be thrilled to know that all herbs except basil are on the lists of plants that deer don't like. Herbs such as lavender, borage, calendula (pot marigold), feverfew, and sage will provide you with pretty flowers that deer will leave alone. Many herbs such as sage, oregano and thyme have been hybridized to create variegated versions that have an astonishing range of colored foliage.

Other herbs are renowned as companion plants that protect or enhance the growth of some of the best-loved garden favorites. Planting basil with tomatoes, for example, is supposed to enhance the growth and flavor of the tomatoes, while planting garlic around roses is supposed to provide protection from insects. You can havest bigger, juicier strawberries if you plant borage in their bed.

Even if you're not trying to protect or enhance a particular flower or food crop, you'll want to have a variety of herbs throughout your garden because of their attractant qualities. Herbs are particularly attractive to bees and butterflies and many also attract beneficial insects such as ladybugs. Is there anything as pleasurable as working in your garden on a fine, warm day surrounded by the drowsy hum of bees while butterflies flutter around you?

Fennel, dill and parsley are the favorite host plants for black swallowtail butterfiles. You can think of dill as a super-herb for attracting beneficial insects; it also attracts spiders, lacewings, hover flies and parasitic wasps which feed on caterpillars, beetles and aphids. Members of the mint family, such as lavender, bee balm, catmints, basil, and mint (of course)! also have great appeal to bees and beneficial insects.

You don't need to have a separate herb garden to grow herbs. If you have the time and the space, you can certainly create an individual herb bed. The Victorians loved their round or octogonal herb gardens, usually with a central features such as a fountain, with the herbs neatly arranged around it in discrete beds. If you want your herb garden to be so orderly, the easiest way is to dig out a prepared bed, and then lay down an old ladder to provide individual plots for different herbs. A classic kitchen garden, for instance, would contain parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, dill, oregano, mint and basil. If you're serious about cooking, you'll also want to grow chevril, fennel, tarragon, and chives. (How would you make an omelette if you didn't have any Fines Herbes, a mixture of chevril, parsley, chives and French tarragon, on hand?)

Because so many herbs are such lovely plants, and because the key to attracting beneficial insects such as bees and butterflies is diversity, I prefer to intercrop my herbs, scattering them throughout my garden beds where they can companionably co-exist with shrubs, flowers, and vegetables, and perhaps even provide some protection. Why not have marjoram and chives growing amongst your lilies, or the brilliant blue flowers of borage providing some early summer color in your flowerbed ? The only proviso here is to remember that many herbs are much more robust than some of our overly-hybridized flowers; if you want to put mint into a bed that contains any other species, for example, you'll want to put the mint in a pot and plant the pot in the ground to keep the plant contained. Otherwise, the mint will overrun everything else and completely take over. Oregano, dill, mustard, and even chives are other herbs that may turn rampant if they're happy; you may wish to bed these in pots as well to be on the safe side.

If you're just starting to experiment with herbs, or are putting in your first herb garden, here are a few of the most popular herbs you may wish to include.

Basil (Ocimum basilicum). Basil originated in India, where it was regarded as a sacred herb. The name comes from the Greek basileus meaning 'king.' Sweet basil, an annual, grows up to 2 feet tall and prefers moist, well-drained, rich soil and full sun. Basil must have warm conditions and is very susceptible to temperature fluctuations. The fragrant leaves have a mildly spicy flavor. Use fresh basil leaves for maximum flavor in tomato sauces, salads, vinegars, and eggs, and on lamb, fish, and poultry. Dried leaves may be used in potpourris and sachets for indoor fragrance. There are many other species of basil, such as cinnamon basil, lemon basil, and purple ruffles basil which vary greatly in color, form, flavor, and fragrance.

Chervil (Arthriscus cerefolium). Once called myrrhis for its volatile oil, which has an aroma similar to the resinous substance of myrrh, chervil has a light parsley-like flavor with a hint of myrrh. Used during the middle ages to treat various ailments, chervil's main use today is culinary. It's one of the traditional fine herbes in French cuisine and fresh leaves and stems are used to flavor soups, casseroles, salads, sauces, eggs (particularly omelettes), carrots, spinach, sorrel, fish, and cheese. Sprigs are popular as a garnish. A hardy annual with fern-like leaves, chervil grows10 to 28 inches tall and 12 inches wide, and bears small, white flowers from May to August. Grow chervil in partial shade in moist soil with ample quantities of organic matter.

Chives (Allium schoenoprasum). Chives have very tight clumps of long, grass-like hollow leaves and produce purple globe-shaped flowers. A perennial that grows 12 to 18 inches tall, chives form clumps that have to be divided periodically. While chives prefer an average to rich, moist soil and full sun, they'll thrive in almost any soil if kept moist. The fresh, minced leaves of chives have a mild onion flavor and are used to season many cooked vegetables and to flavor poultry, fish, eggs, and cheese sauces.The fresh flowers can be used in vinegars, salads and as garnishes.

Dill (Anethum graveolens). The name dill comes from the Norse dilla meaning "to lull," and it was once used to induce sleep. In America, dill and fennel seed became known as "meetin' seed" because they were given to children to eat during long Sunday sermons. Dill is a biennial plant with blue-green feathery leaves that grows 2 to 3 feet tall and up to 2 feet wide; it bears numerous flat, compound umbel, yellow flower heads up to 6 inches across from July through September. Preferring well-drained, moist soil and full sun, dill has many culinary uses. Its leaves are used in fresh salads, while its seeds can be ground or used whole to flavor various meats, eggs, cheese, and vegetable dishes. The dried foliage and flowers add an airy touch to plant arrangements.

Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare). Historically, fennel was considered to be a magical herb that could ward off evil. A perennial often grown as an annual, the blue-green plant has erect, smooth stems that often reach a height of 3 to 4 feet, and ferny foliage. It bears small, yellow flowers in a compound umbel from July to October. Grow fennel in well-drained soil and full sun. Use its fresh, licorice-flavored leaves in salads, herb butters, and on vegetables, fish, cheese, and eggs. The tender stems can be eaten like celery, the roots can be boiled as a vegetable, and the seeds can be ground or used whole for flavoring in desserts, breads, cakes, cookies, teas, and beverages. Fennel adds fragrance to creams, perfumes, soaps, liqueurs, and potpourris. An infusion of ground stems can be used for cleansing and medicating the skin.

Garlic (Allium sativum). Early Romans, Greeks,and Egyptians all enjoyed garlic as part of their diet, and we all know about garlic's supposed ability to ward off vampires. In the garden, garlic has long been used as a protective companion plant; it's supposed to drive off pests such as aphids and encourage the growth of roses and tomatoes. A hardy perennial, the flat, solid leaves of garlic grow 2 feet tall. The segmented bulbs, composed of 5-16 cloves, are enclosed in a white or purplish parchment-like outer sheath. Garlic prefers well-drained, rich soil and full sun to partial shade. Harvest the bulbs about 6 months after planting when the flowers are fading and the leaves begin to turn yellow and shrivel. Garlic adds a vibrant, oniony flavor to dishes such as spaghetti sauce, poultry, pork roast, herb butter, fresh salads, beans, stuffings, dressings, stews, soups, and marinades.

Marjoram (Origanum majorana). As marjoram was treasured by Aphrodite, the goddess of love, the Greeks used this herb to make wreaths and garlands for weddings and funerals. In Europe in the Middle Ages, marjoram was used in nosegays to ward off the plague. A close relative to oregano, marjoram is similar, but has a finer texture. As marjoram is a tender perennial, it's usually propagated as an annual. Grown in sandy loam soil and full sun to partial shade, marjoram will grow 10 to 12 inches tall and spread 10 inches wide. Marjoram has pale green leaves and square, branched stems with gray hairs; it bears spikes of tiny white, pink, and red flowers from July through September. Use the leaves and flowers fresh or dried with meat, fish, poultry, salads, eggs, stews, soups, and vegetables.

Oregano (Origanum vulgare), commonly called wild marjoram, was used by the Greeks as a poultice for wounds. It's a bushy, spreading perennial that grows 12 to 24 inches tall and spreads 10 to 20 inches wide with abundant oval leaves and purple blooms July to September. Grow oregano in full sun, in average to sandy soil. The fresh or dried leaves impart a delicious flavor to tomato sauce, vinegar, butter, omelets, quiche, cheeses, bread, marinated vegetables, beef, poultry, game, shellfish, onions, black beans, potatoes and zucchini. Use the dried flowers in decorative arrangements and for fragrance in potpourris.

Parsley (Petroselinum crispum). English folklore holds that you should never move into a house where parsley did not grow well; the Romans made garlands for banquet guests out of it to discourage intoxication and counter strong odors. Today parsley is famed as a garnish and condiment. Both the flat and curled varieties should be grown in fertile, well-drained, moist soil in full sun to partial shade. This biennial plant will grow 18 to 24 inches and spread to 16 inches wide. It's an excellent source of vitamin C, calcium, and iron.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Rosemary is for remembrance; in one legend, it's what wakes Sleeping Beauty! In ancient Greece and Rome, rosemary was the incense of the poor; the upper classes and the nobility could afford the costly frankincense or myrrh-based incenses. Many superstitions have become attached to this herb over time. Putting a sprig of rosemary beneath your pillow is supposed to drive away nightmares and wearing a necklace of rosemary will preserve your youth. The word "rosemary" means "dew of the sea", a reference to the sweet scent that greets sailors as they return to shore. Myths aside, rosemary is a perennial evergreen that varies in height from 2 to 5 feet depending on the cultivar. It has green, needle-like leaves and pale blue flowers in summer. The leaves have a pungent, pine-like fragrance and are used for tea and as flavoring for beef, pork, poultry, fish, lamb, tomatoes, mushrooms, cheese, eggs, potatoes, vinegars, and herbal butters. Other uses for rosemary leaves include sachets and potpourris as well as in herbal baths, facial steams, hair rinses, and dyes. The plant's aromatic oil is added to soaps, creams, lotions, perfumes, and toilet waters.

Sage (Saliva officinalis). Sage is traditionally associated with a long life. In ancient times, it was associated with immortality and was thought to increase mental capacity. In the garden, sage supposedly repels cabbage butterfiles, attracts bees, and is an excellent ornamental. The leaves of this woody-stemmed perennial are grayish green with a velvet-like texture. Purple, blue or white flowers are borne in June. Sage has a compact, spreading growth habit, growing 12 to 30 inches tall and 24 inches wide. It prefers full sun and well-drained, sandy, alkaline soil. Use sage leaves to flavor salads, soups, stews, stuffings, sausage, roasted meats, poultry, pork, fish, and vegetables. Dried branches can be used for baths, lotions and herbal wreaths. Sage is also available in variegated and purple-leaved varieties.

Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus). "Dracunculus" means little dragon; historically, tarragon was believed to heal the bites of snakes and other venomous creatures. If you're interested in growing herbs to cook with, French tarragon is the herb you want to grow, rather than Russian tarragon, (Artemisia dracunculoides), which is much coarser, and has a bitter taste. French tarragon is a perennial with very aromatic leaves that grows 24 to 36 inches tall and spreads up to 24 inches wide. Panicles of small, yellow flowers are borne in summer. Grow tarragon in well-drained, fertile, sandy loam soil in full sun. Tarragon is used to flavor vinegars, herbal butter, shellfish, pork, beef, poultry, leeks, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, onions, asparagus, mushrooms, broccoli, peas, and rice. It's the main ingredient in Sauce Bernaise and used to make tartar sauce and French dressing.

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris). Historically, thyme had a myriad of uses. The ancient Greeks and Romans burned thyme to purify their rooms, while in the Middle Ages, thyme was used to help people see fairies. The Scots drank thyme tea to gain strength and courage and to prevent nightmares. A perennial, thyme is a many-branched, aromatic shrub that bears lilac to pink flowers in early summer. It grows 12 inches tall and may spread 12 inches wide. Grow thyme in full sun to partial shade in light, dry, well-drained soil. Use thyme leaves in salads as garnishes and as flavoring for poultry, fish, beef, lamb, soups, herb butters, vinegars, beans, and vegetables. The dried flowers and leaves may also be used to scent potpourris and sachets. Thyme is also used as an antiseptic and stimulant in herb lotions and baths, and to flavor cough medicines.

While there are many other herbs that would be attractive and useful additions to your garden, these thirteen are an excellent starting point for anyone who wants to use fresh herbs in the kitchen or who wants to attract more bees and beneficial insects to the garden. Adding some or all of these will spice up your garden this season!

Sources:

Stell, Elizabeth. (1995). Rodale's successful organic gardening: landscaping with perennials. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press.

Arnoldsen, Keppy and Voisin, Aimée (under the guidance of Dr. Michael Orzolek). (1996). Directory of herbs [online]. Available: http://hortweb.cas.psu.edu/vegcrops/herbs.html (May 25, 2000).

Dickerson, George W. (1999). Spices and herbs for the home garden: Guide H-221 [online]. Available: http://www.cahe.nmsu.edu/pubs/_h/h-221.html (May 25, 2000).

McVicar, Jekka. (1994). Jekka's complete herb book. Vancouver, B.C.: Raincoast Books.

Michalak, Patricia S. (1993). Rodale's successful organic gardening:herbs. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press.