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Herbs - Non-Traditional
Care Guide
Herbs
ROSEMARY Rosmarinus officinalis, Mint family, Herbal flavor, Tender perennial
shrub. Well-drained, evenly moist soil. Full sun to partial shade.
Grow rosemary in full sun or partial shade in alkaline, well-drained, evenly
moist soil.
Rosemary is native to the rocky coasts of France and Spain, but is now
cultivated as a culinary herb throughout the world. It is an excellent plant to
include in seaside gardens.
Rosemary is a tender perennial shrub that can grow three to six feet tall. Hardy
only to zone 7-8, it is grown as an annual in many areas of the country. It is
evergreen with needle like leaves. In warm climates it makes a very attractive
low hedge.
The pale blue flowers (occasionally white-rose, pale lavender or dark blue)
appear in mid to late spring, and sometimes again in summer. The flowers have a
flavor reminiscent of the leaves, but much less pungent.
Rosemary is happily cultivated as a container plant. It can easily be trained as
topiary, commonly in a tree form, a rounded form or a circular wreath form.
GARLIC CHIVES Allium tuberosum, Onion flavor, Perennial, self-seeding.
Well-drained soil, full sun.
Garlic chives are a perennial, hardy to zone 4. The long, flat, marrow,
gray-green leaves grow about twelve inches tall. The leaves are grass like in
appearance, but solid enough to be upright. The edible leaves have a strong
garlic flavor.
Besides its use as an edible herb, this is an attractive plant in the perennial
border. The flowers are bright, showing up well against a dark background.
The flower stems reach eighteen to thirty inches high, topped with a flat-headed
cluster of white flowers in summer. Each individual flower has a piquant
garlic-onion flavor with a slight crunch.
Garlic chives grow best in full sun. Plant mid-spring through summer. Allow
twelve inches between plants.
Garlic chives can be aggressive. Plants can be divided and thinned whenever
necessary. It also self seeds. Keep picking the flower heads as they mature and
before they drop seeds.
If the plant starts getting too woody looking, trim the foliage back to within
an inch of the ground. As traumatic as it may seem, it will benefit from such a
severe pruning.
These pretty little flowers pack a lot of flavor. Use individual florets for
garnish, not the entire flower cluster.
CHOCOLATE MINT
Mints grow best in rich, moist, well-drained soil. Although they prefer partial
shade, a sunny location will do. There are not many growing conditions that
deter mint. Allow at least twelve to eighteen inches between plants. If mint
starts crowding the garden, simply pull up stems, you can always replant them
elsewhere, but be aware that the stem is usually attached to an under ground
runner, so it will continue to flourish.
Mints are very aggressive in the garden, spreading by underground runners. Once
established in a garden they can be difficult to keep within bounds. One way to
control them is to grow them in containers rather than in the ground. Be careful
where you place the container. After several years, a container of mint can root
into the ground and spread.
LEMON THYME, CARAWAY THYME.
Thyme thrives in poor, rocky, alkaline soil. Although it can grow in a range of
soils, it is ironic that the richer the soil, the less flavorful the thyme.
Thyme must have, above all, full sun and good drainage. Allow fifteen inches
between plants. Because of its low, creeping habit, thyme is perfect planted
between flagstones in a pathway, at the edge of a garden or in a rock garden
LAVENDER
Lavandula, a member of the mint family (Labiate or Lamiaceae), is native to the
Mediterranean region but is cultivated in many other parts of the world.
Full sun is a prerequisite for the most productive lavender cultivation,
although there are reports of lavender growing successfully with as little as
four hours of sun a day.
A neutral to slightly alkaline soil is optimal. Lavenders are more particular
about soil acidity than many other herbs, but they grow well in soils of pH 6.4
to 8.2. If you suspect that your soil is very acidic, have a soil test done and
add lime as necessary.
Excellent drainage is crucial. Adding humus in the form of peat moss, manure, or
compost will improve the drainage of both sticky clay and sandy soil. Raised
beds or mounds will keep root systems out of soggy soil. Lavenders are good
candidates for rock gardens.
Good air circulation around the plants will minimize the fungus diseases that
attach lavender in humid climates. Space the plants 2 to 3 feet apart and avoid
jamming them close to other perennials or structures.
Avoid dark mulches, particularly in hot and humid climates. Wood chips and
sawdust tend to harbor fungus diseases. Arthur O. Tucker, a research professor
at Delaware State College, places 1 to 2 inches of sterile white sand atop the
soil to reflect light and heat back into the interior of the plant where fungus
diseases start; he has found that the sand mulch substantially boosts flower
production.
Sufficient water is particularly important in the first season after planting.
Once established lavenders are generally fairly drought-tolerant, but inadequate
water may discourage the new growth necessary for a second flowering in
recurrent-blooming varieties. The optimum amount of water is 33 inches a year,
but lavenders can survive with as little as 12 inches a year.
Prune old wood hard in spring to stimulate new growth; snip back unruly branches
during the summer to keep it shapely. Pruning late in summer cold climates is
likely to stimulate new growth that will winter-kill. If a plant becomes woody
and untidy with age, consider replacing it with a young plant.
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