Another harbinger of Spring is the new growth on woody herb plants. My favorite perennial herbs are on the mark and growing like it was summer already. And what would a potager be without herbs?
I rarely use oregano,but this particular plant, is several generations removed from a plant that grew in Nana & Papa's backyard. Every winter is dies back completely, but every spring it starts its next incarnation. I love seeing it and breaking off a leaf now and again to smell its fragrance.
Two other Italian herbs a potager should not be without are rosemary, in this particular case a Tuscan Blue; and nepatella, a mint more associated with catnip than peppermint, that grows wild in Italy and is used in artichoke dishes. I planted it last year but it didn't really take off until last month. If I didn't know better I'd say it was oregano; compare the two leaf structures. Tuscan Blue is the most fragrant rosemary I have found and in my research it ranks as the best culinary rosemary. During trial and error planting, I have discovered that it creates more fragrance the more stressed it becomes. I planted some in shade which made it a bit straggly, but it was very strong in scent.
Besides thyme, sage is my favorite culinary herb and Bergarten is the best cultivar. In the first photo you can see the new growth peeking out from underneath last year's overwintered branches. As soon as I trim and shape it, it should look like the second photo. The Bergarten cultivar has rounder and thicker leaves than common sage.
I rarely use oregano,but this particular plant, is several generations removed from a plant that grew in Nana & Papa's backyard. Every winter is dies back completely, but every spring it starts its next incarnation. I love seeing it and breaking off a leaf now and again to smell its fragrance.
Two other Italian herbs a potager should not be without are rosemary, in this particular case a Tuscan Blue; and nepatella, a mint more associated with catnip than peppermint, that grows wild in Italy and is used in artichoke dishes. I planted it last year but it didn't really take off until last month. If I didn't know better I'd say it was oregano; compare the two leaf structures. Tuscan Blue is the most fragrant rosemary I have found and in my research it ranks as the best culinary rosemary. During trial and error planting, I have discovered that it creates more fragrance the more stressed it becomes. I planted some in shade which made it a bit straggly, but it was very strong in scent.
Besides thyme, sage is my favorite culinary herb and Bergarten is the best cultivar. In the first photo you can see the new growth peeking out from underneath last year's overwintered branches. As soon as I trim and shape it, it should look like the second photo. The Bergarten cultivar has rounder and thicker leaves than common sage.
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