Growing Wise : herbs

Nasturtiums on my mind

Elisabeth — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 11:44:00 GMT

Even as the grape hyacinths come into bloom and the last of the daffodils open up in my yard, I, like other gardeners am thinking ahead. That's why I am planting nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) seeds. The closest that many people get to nasturtiums is seeing them as part of the packaged "edible flower mixes" sold in the specialty produce sections of many supermarkets. The flowers taste peppery and are good in salads, but I think they lend even more spice to the summer garden.

The blooms have five petals apiece (double-flowered varieties are also widely available) and are vaguely trumpet shaped. They grow profusely and stay close to the rounded green leaves. My favorite nasturtiums are the old-fashioned ground hugging varieties that are great for the front of the border, flourish in pots and make a colorful edging for vegetable or herb gardens. I am especially fond of 'Peach Melba', a cultivar with cream petals and a red throat. This year I may try one of the climbing varieties as well.

Nasturtiums have big, pea-like seeds that are easy to handle. Soak them in water for about eight hours before planting to loosen the hard outer covering.

Perhaps the most wonderful thing about nasturtiums is that they absolutely love lean soil and don't mind drought. Put them in rich soil and overfertilize and you will get an exuberant crop of leaves but few flowers. But if you plant them in sunny space, water until they are established and pretty much forget about them thereafter, they will generally reward you with lots of flowers. Pick a few for a salad, but enjoy the rest in the garden. Nasturtiums are about as close as most of us will get to a horticultural free lunch.

Free Range Chives

Elisabeth — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 12:29:00 GMT

All of my chives are organic, because I never use pesticides or herbicides or, indeed, anything on them. Even if I wasn't an organic gardener by choice, the chives are so healthy that there is no need to even think about it. I refer to them as "free range" because they also spread all over the place with no encouragement at all.

In my gardening career I have never actually had to plant chives. They seem to show up on their own wherever I go. This was true at our summer cottage (where I suspect the original plants were installed at least fifty yeas ago by my aunt) and at both the houses where I have lived since being on my own. Usually they grow somewhere near the back door, which is perfect, as they are always available to cut for salads, biscuits, herb butter or baked potatoes. I also use the round purple flowers in small arrangements, as they are pretty in their own right.

Like other members of the onion family, chives are relatively impervious to garden varmints. They look grassy and grow low enough so that you could use them to edge an herb or vegetable garden. Their only flaw, if you can call it that, is their tendency to spread at will. This is not really much of a problem, as you can easily grow them in pots or dig up the wayward plants in your garden. I suggest giving your surplus plants to friends or neighbors. Suggest that they install them somewhere near the back door. You never know when you will need some for a hot baked potato.

Container Herbs

Elisabeth — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 12:41:00 GMT

On a recent trip to the garden center, I saw a variety of large pots planted with herbs. These assortments were billed as "Herb Garden in a Pot" or, more evocatively, "Veranda Herb Basket." Each one contained four or five common herbs and each sold for a premium price.

The container herb gardens made me think about how easy it would be to create your own herb assortment in any kind of container--from a standard pot to an old roasting pan. All you really need is good drainage, which you supply by putting holes in the bottom of the container. After that you cover the bottom with a layer of drainage material. Thrifty gardeners used to use bits of broken terra cotta posts for this. I vary that theme by using pieces of old plastic nursery pots, which I cut up and save for the purpose.

Most of the garden center herb assortments contained at least one basil, plus thyme, oregano, parsley and a mint of some variety. In your own container, the sky's the limit. Plant several different basils, using one of the purple-leafed varieties for color contrast. You might also create and all-thyme assortment or one combining different mints. Chives make a nice addition to the center of an herb arrangement, with the added bonus of producing lovely purple flowers.

Most herbs do best in the sun, so make sure yours receive four to six hours of direct sunlight per day. When you plant your container, leave expansion room for the young specimens. Water regularly and remember to harvest the herbs. Once you have used fresh herbs in your cooking, you'll find it hard to go back to the dried variety.