Why do you grow herbs?

I love the smell of them, and the taste gives my food a better flavor.

cactus Pete...Can you suggest a lavender for my area? That is one plant that I haven't tried.

I voted other, because I grow them for several reasons-although mostly in truth-the aromas!

Mostly, I love to squeeze the stems as I go by, or break off some and rub them between my palms or under my nose . lol

The kitties love the catnip, the butterflies love the plants, we love the butterflies-it's a circle isn't it?

Love, love, love herbs.

Sasha

Like others, I put down "for their flavor in cooking" though I also love using them as companion plants and to attract pollinators in my veggie garden. Ultimately, it's because of their cheerful sturdiness, their willingness to be useful, and their sensory delights. Herbs just make me happy! I love stepping out onto the deck off my kitchen and snipping off whatever I need.

Now that I have learned to grow and use fresh herbs, I would really hate to live without them. To be at full strength they really need to be fresh or at least dried not too long ago. I don't use them medicinally, but they do add lots of healthy nutrients to food. In fact, all those spices in Indian foods are mostly there for medicinal reasons. I try to add as many as possible to my husband's and my food.
I also plant some to attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds, but I was only allowed to check one box.
And yes, I love their fragrance. Especially when I step on some escaped mint.

This message was edited Sep 16, 2008 8:19 AM

Hey Sheila - I'm over in Plano and have had luck with 'Goodwin Creek', especially, but all of the lavenders I've tried do pretty well around DFW. The key is the soil - if you have clay soil (like I do), you MUST amend it with something like expanded shale to drastically improve drainage. After adding expanded shale and some compost to the soil, I plant my lavender on a little mound, and then mulch underneath and around it with more expanded shale. Ditto for my rosemarys, and all do really, really well. They love full sun and hate wet feet.





This message was edited Sep 16, 2008 10:14 AM

SheilaFW, i think most lavenders would grow where you are? We have winters dont to the 30s ans sometimes 20's, and a horrid summer heat, I have 3 different ones that do well here; French, an English and a hybrid I have lost the name of...
As annuals, plenty of water and great drainage; protection from the Sun in the Hottest part of the day (Over 100 is what i am saying they would need shade, For even lots of 90s afternoon's would be good too, if possible but they DO love sun for most of the daynot all day shade!) but one tree will do the trick if it has ample leaves. Make sure the soil is right, and you are good to go! I too love the smell of lavender a a bit of the flower or one or two leaves added to a pot of herbal tea is fantastic!
:D

Lavender grows very well in Northern New Mexico with temperatures down to about zero -- that I know of. Can't answer for the heat. That we don't have. And our lavender doesn't really get all that much water, but lots and lots of sun.
I went to a lecture last week where the herbalist said that lavender doesn't like to be planted in the fall -- just in case you were planning to put some in right away.

I voted 'other', as I grow them for seasoning, fragrance, and simply for the fact that many of them are BEAUTIFUL plants!

PAJARITOMT~ GOOD POINTS AND PESPECTIVE ! :D
Spring planting is best!~depending on temps winter can be O.K. too, lol...here anyhoo. Trimming all year round but winter is OK from what I heard on one forum, and about how I do it, heaviest in the Spring...
:Darren

Worth a try, Darren. Haven't tried it myself.

When I lived with my parents in Alamogordo NM (near El Paso TX) we had sheer dumb luck with the lavender we planted. I was just getting into gardening after my mom passed. Dad and I ripped out a long half dead evergreen hedge that ran directly infront of the porch. Full sun most of the year except for a few months in the summer where it got a little relief from the two non bearing mulberry trees in the yard.

I planted TB purple iris (which ended up almost 4 ft tall with huge flowers and between them we parked these itsy bitsy plugs of lavender by dad ordered from one of those cheesy cheap plant order forms stuffed in the Sunday paper--20 lavender plants for $9.99:lol: They looked like dead things but within a couple of years they were 1 1/2 ft-2 ft mounds with 18" flower spikes. I didn't think that they would live let alone end up so big and healthy. Soaker hose once a week or less if we were on water restrictions and I'd usually forget to trim back until spring. I haven't tried one here yet...wonder if dumb luck will work for me again:lol:

Let us hope it will work out well for you again. My observation is that iris does well in rather poor soil and rather dry climates -- it grows famously in Provence which is rather dry and is warm, but not hot. Don't know what there soil is like, but I would bet it is alkaline as Southern New Mexico is. Just a guess.
In North Carolina the soil is likely acid and wet. It might work anyhow though. Ask the locals.

Just wanted to add one point about lavender. It likes well drained soil. With all my rocks it gets it here. LOL
Vickie

I hadn't thought much about it, but all the places where I have seen lavender growing happily are rather dry climates. That tells me you are right and that those of you in wet climates need to make sure it has good drainage.

Something else I thought I would point out is that there exists a Herb Society of America. We have a local chapter here in New Mexico which I will probably join. I attended their Herbfest last weekend and really enjoyed the info and the garden tour that they put on. There were people from all over the country and were lectures on making creams and salves for the skin, planting and growing herbs, and cooking with herbs from a local chef. You might try to find out if there is an HSA in your area.

I've been able to get lavender munstead to overwinter in my zone. I amended the soil in that bed by adding grit and sand. My soil is slightly on the alkaline side and its dry, dry, dry here. Now if I could just find a rosemary that will overwinter sigh.

Yes, I am working on the rosemary situation as well. I just bought some Arp and another one, that, as I recall, was named Marie Hamilton. Both are supposed to overwinter. I have tried to overwinter Arp before without success, but I had it in a flower pot. This time I am going to dig and ammend a bed on the south side of my house and mulch it really will with whatever is at hand. Rosemary can be overwintered here, but it has to be very well protected.

I've tried 3 times - Arp, and 2 others I can't recall at the moment. I grew mine from seed cuz I'm a firm believer that homegrown is hardier. I think I might buy a bush next year and eat it down to sticks so I won't care if it dies LOL. On the up side my newly transplanted french tarragon has settled in very well ^_^

Yes, I have had a French tarragon outdoors for several years. Unfortunately it isn't my favorite flavor.

Smells nice though

My tarragon is a perrenial here, dies backa bit in winter of course but comes back stron every summer~ GREAT in cream of potato soup!

I grow herbs for use in the kitchen and give bundles tied with ribbon to friends. I plant basil, parsley, tarragon, thyme, rosemary, oregano, lavender and mint. The only one that seems to get nibbled by pests is the basil. Any suggestions to keep it pest free?

Thanks those of you that suggested Lavender for me. I will look for them in the spring. I don't have too much full sun areas, but may try a large deck planting so I can enjoy the aroma. We water a lot too, that is why rosemary doesn't like me!!

Why, oh why, wasn't there either an "all of the above" or "more than one of the above" option? Not only do I cook with my herbs, but we revel in watching what we've come to call our "busy basil bees" who also visit the sage, oregano and rosemary in their turn. This was a tough call for me, but selfishness won out and I voted with my taste buds!

EXACTLY mgpaquin. I'm always an 'other' voter cuz I often do more than one choice. I'm going to put a post on the DG thread and ask if we can have an 'all of the above' and 'more than one of the above' button on the polls that aren't technically specific.

lavender lemonade and lavender iced tea. YUM

In the cubes? Fine grind? How do you add it Janiejoy? Inquiring snoopy minds need to know all the details please ^_^

I voted other, but it is all of the above,plus making herbal wreaths,Tussie-mussie, and for aroma therapy♥

O herbal wreaths way cool. Have you posted info on that in another forum that I might check out posyblossom? We herbies on the Herb forum would DEFINITELY be interested in that. ps how did you make the heart symbol? Note to all: I posted a request that 'all of the above' and 'more than one choice' options be added to polls that don't have a specific answer. Hopefully that won't be too hard to do and we will see it show up on future polls.

Hi Dahlianut, I must take time to go to the Herb forum soon. The little heart symbol is one of many you can make by putting num lock on and hitting the Alt key at the same time as the numbers on key pad. ex. Alt 1 is☺ some folks say it doesn't work for them,but it works great on my key pad.Alt3♥

alt 15☼The wreaths are wonderful and quite easy to do.Use a straw wreath form or a wire or wood wreath frame. Tie bunches of herbs on to the form,all the stems going in the same direction and keep wreath in a dry,dark,airy spot to dry for a week or so. Grapevine wreath,so fun and so fragrant, the Concord grapes that I did not eat ,dried and hung so beautiful and fragrant. It is all in a book,The Pleasure of Herbs by Phyllis Shaudys.♫♪♫Alt14♫Alt13♪

I have a lovely marble mortar and pestle. I get about 3 tbsp of flowers and leaves and stems, add a tsp of granulated sugar, and grind it up together. Then I pour hot water into the bowl to release all the oils, then just dump it into a 2.5 quart container with either lemons squeezed and splenda or green tea. I like the tea fine without sweetener other than the tsp to help grind the herbs... but DH prefers it like sweet tea.

Can be made with sugar, of course. Turbinado sugar works best for grinding but any granulated sugar will work.

I love the flavor of the lavender and it is so aromatic when served hot as tea it will lull even the most insomniac person to lullabye land.

Sounds heavenly!

Yep, I could really use that tea! Seems like I can't fall asleep 'til 4am these days. Even most DGers are asleep then, so I have nobody to talk to, lol.

KyWoods I too am not sleeping. There are so many things to be stressed about these days. I fall asleep and then wake up at 1 or 2 am and can't go back to sleep until 5. I'm going to try that lavender tea!

Thanks so much posyb for the wreath info and the symbol info. We'd luv to have you post on the Herb Forum. If you don't get a chance would you mind if I copy and paste your method to the Herb Forum?

Janiejoy my morter and pestle live on my counter. How fabby! I can do that. I'm not a sweet fan for tea myself either. I'll just brew up a pot of my Lousiana tea and work from there and work the same for lemonade! Thamks muchly

Once I got started cooking with fresh herbs, there was just no going back. The flavor and fragrance are out-of-this world, and they are such easy, low-maintenance plants to grow! Funny how far we as a country have come from our roots--now people are all impressed at all the "green bits" in my cooking, and act like it is some real accomplishment to cook with fresh herbs. It is so easy (and theraputic) to just step outside with kitchen shears and snip off a little of whatever I need. I usually end up humming "Scarborough Fair," too. I dry or freeze my own, when I know I won't have fresh over the winter. Sad that little bottles on the grocery store shelf, who knows how old, are the norm now. Not that I don't have an overflowing spice rack, too. . .there are so many that I can't or just don't grow. But life just wouldn't be the same without fresh basil, oregano, dill, chives, thyme, and sage! I'd have a lot less butterflies and bees, for one!

I'm votin' other! For the pleasure of its' company! LOL

Lavender doesn't like the southern humidity. There are strains that do better in the south but am not sure which. OTOH, rosemary in ground is not a problem here.

Dmac ~ LOL! I agree with you..

Podster-that ornamental oregano is beautiful:) I've seen that offered in catalogs and have considered it--may break down and do it next season:lol:

It's started cooling off a bit here, at least for now, so I've been easing back into cooking since I don't have to crank up the AC in order to turn on the oven:lol:

Dahlianut, I have been over there lurking,great Forum.I am flattered and you are more than welcome to copy and paste the info♥The book I referenced is a Month-by-Month Guide to Growing,Using, and Enjoying Herbs. Right now my big fascination is Apple Mint and Chocolate Mint☺My Fish eat the roots of Water Mint (Spearmint conditioned to water) all winter long and stay healthy and fat from it. It is fun to see it growing under the ice,even in sub zero weather and watch the fish munching away, what a tough,wonderful Herb it is and the fragrance,mmmm,good♥