I have a patch of Greek oregano that is five years old and thriving. Just dies back in the winter (Ohio-brrrr) and comes back in the summer.
Basil likes full sun and a bit of rain now and then, and kept weeded. We just sow seed and let it come up. I like sweet basil, but we've also grown Thai or holy basil, chocolate basil, etc. Basil is an annual.
Rosemary seems to be an annual. I keep trimming it back. I brought mine in this winter but it died around Christmas.
Cilantro is an annual. Try to find a packet of seeds that says "slow to bolt" because bolt it eventually will. This means that it will start shooting upward, make skinny leaves, and produce little white flowers that will eventually become coriander seed. Give it a bit more water than the others, a bit of shade, and keep it trimmed well back for best results.
Thyme - Regular old fashioned thyme is a perennial, as I think they all are to one degree or another. It makes an incredible border plant. Creeping thyme is nice as a ground cover, and I have variegated lemon thyme in between the stepping stones in the perennial bed.
If you have room, you might consider tarragon, which is awesome with fish. It is a big bushy perennial and you don't have to do much to it other than cut off what you need to make it happy.
IF you grow any kind of mint, use a big container and watch out for it, as it will run rampant over your garden and choke out everything else. And of course, it's a perennial and hard to get rid of once you've got it.
All of the above grow well in CA - I had an herb garden in San Diego growing all in your list. Careful of the rosemary - it grows like a weed and you need to keep it trimmed or it gets a woody texture. Try sage as well. You can also plant a bay tree in CA - grows well. Keep them in full light - moderately watered - DO NOT PLANT MINT in CA - it will supplant all of your other herbs
I would like to plant a small herb garden for the common ones I use; basil, rosemary, thyme, parsley, cilantro, oregano.
Do they live through cold weather [California], do they need full sun etc. I'm looking for something easy to manage.
There are several kinds of rosemary and as has been written it grows year round in California and certain varieties can gain the size of a small tree 10-12 feet high in just a couple of years. If you want a start of this kind let me know I am in California and can pop a bit in the mail to you if you want. you just shove it in the ground and you have a bush of it.
If you do want to grow mint a good spot for it is in a place where you have untenable ground (solid clay works excellent for this)
it will grow happily but be kept some what in check. For best results plant it off by itself so you can keep it from spreading all over the place.
Lemon Balm on the other hand truely will take over the garden if left to it's own devices and even when you try to cantain it.. IT's soul runneth over.
If you do do a herb garden plant it close to your house so you have easy access to it. Preferably near the kitchen
or in pots on your back porch.
You can also mix the annuals amongst your vegetables too. and the perennials amongst your flowers. (this is where my garlic chives and rosemary and mint grow)
Rejoice, check with your local university extension program. They are a wealth of help and information suited just for your area. They will talk to you on the phone and even come out to your home. They do in my area anyway.
Consider container planting since you have questions about cold and sunlight. Artificial sunlight (lightbulbs) can be used. Plants respond to heat and light no matter the source.
Mint, oh, the glories of mint. I knew it was invasive but I planted it in a spot in the yard anyway. Prolific growers, yes siree!!!! I have to tell you the aroma it produced in the neighborhood when we continued to mow right over it had folks asking what were we growing!!! Ha! Ha! That was the one upside of growing mint in the ground. It has died off. There is one patch left. I think I will leave it. The aroma is heavenly. Besides, we need it for mint julep!
My resident Rosemary monstrosity is the focal point in one part of a garden. She was one little sprig when I planted her just 3 years ago. She is beautiful and grand. I clip her stems, bring them into the house, put in a vase of water, then snip several leaves in half. The aroma it produces permeates the entire house. The aroma begins to fade and I clip more leaves in half. Google Rosemary. The many wonderful properties are amazing.
I don't have any added advice, but I will add to your list of herbs; Dill. I love making dill butter for carrots (only thing that comes to mind right now :) ) When I lived in New Orleans area I grew flat parsley, it did great and would self seed in the same patch.
Have fun with your new garden patch!
I guess I do have some advice, take leafy up on her offer of a rosemary, will be faster than from seed. I love cuttings from people!
We grow most of our herbs and find them easy to grow in our short Rocky Mtn season. Stevia doesn't grow well for us, the wrong soil ph, and I've not been successful with lavender from seed, so bought seedlings.
Regular Basil grows really well, so we make tons of pesto. SOme of our oregano had no flavor so we replanted with Greek? Spanish? Not sure, but this one is flavorful. I keep trying to grow purple basil so I can make red basil vinegar for presents but no luck with that 3 years running.
Chives are perinneal and are useable early in the season which is nice. I find chives don't give me heart burn like onions do.
I grow chamomile( watch out, it can reseed and be a nuisance) for tea, and motherwort as a medicinal tea mostly for myself. We have echinacia but it takes 4 years to harvest and I like the flowers so much I'm not sure I will harvest.
We grow alot of garlic, ( 3 twenty foot rows.) which we plant in the fall and water through out the winter when it gets above 40. That is harvested in July, and then we use the plot for greens. So many people we know think it so hard to grow and it isn't at all.
I like to keep a pot of cilantro and basil in the sunny window.
We dry ours in brown paper bags, then store them in the freezer.
Seriously rejoice if you want some starts of stuff let me know and I will put a package together for you.
I have the rosemary actually two kinds
and I also have some other succulents if you would like.. not to mention some mint, lemon balm, some irises(peach colored) and other assorted goodies I can throw together for you if you let me know and PM an address to me.
AS every gardener knows there are always starts and bulbs to share.
You could add some lavender too - smells lovely. Harvest the blooms in the early morning. Can go in a border, not necessarily your herb garden. Can get leggy, looks better after a bit of a trim but not too viciously.
Rejoice, basil is an annual, but it is a prolific producer. Pinch back when it seeds on top and it will branch out. I have clipped it near the ground and it comes back during its growing season. Fresh basil is the absolute must in tomato pie.
In my area thyme and oregano does not die back. Although, they do not produce new growth I will sneak a few clips. I clip enough during the growing season to dry and use them during the winter. So do that with your herbs if they produce more than you may be in need of using at the time. Dry them out. Use them during the winter.
You can do the same with Italian parsley, curly parsley and Cilantro. Clip them babies back (the same with the perennials) and they will keep on producing during the growing season.
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Watered Garden
I have a patch of Greek oregano that is five years old and thriving. Just dies back in the winter (Ohio-brrrr) and comes back in the summer.
Basil likes full sun and a bit of rain now and then, and kept weeded. We just sow seed and let it come up. I like sweet basil, but we've also grown Thai or holy basil, chocolate basil, etc. Basil is an annual.
Rosemary seems to be an annual. I keep trimming it back. I brought mine in this winter but it died around Christmas.
Cilantro is an annual. Try to find a packet of seeds that says "slow to bolt" because bolt it eventually will. This means that it will start shooting upward, make skinny leaves, and produce little white flowers that will eventually become coriander seed. Give it a bit more water than the others, a bit of shade, and keep it trimmed well back for best results.
Thyme - Regular old fashioned thyme is a perennial, as I think they all are to one degree or another. It makes an incredible border plant. Creeping thyme is nice as a ground cover, and I have variegated lemon thyme in between the stepping stones in the perennial bed.
If you have room, you might consider tarragon, which is awesome with fish. It is a big bushy perennial and you don't have to do much to it other than cut off what you need to make it happy.
IF you grow any kind of mint, use a big container and watch out for it, as it will run rampant over your garden and choke out everything else. And of course, it's a perennial and hard to get rid of once you've got it.
WG
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RumRunner
All of the above grow well in CA - I had an herb garden in San Diego growing all in your list. Careful of the rosemary - it grows like a weed and you need to keep it trimmed or it gets a woody texture. Try sage as well. You can also plant a bay tree in CA - grows well. Keep them in full light - moderately watered - DO NOT PLANT MINT in CA - it will supplant all of your other herbs
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Rejoice
Wow...thanks for all the tips!! Yes, my friend bought a house where the owner planted rosemary...we thought it was a type of juniper HEDGE!!
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leafytwiglet
There are several kinds of rosemary and as has been written it grows year round in California and certain varieties can gain the size of a small tree 10-12 feet high in just a couple of years. If you want a start of this kind let me know I am in California and can pop a bit in the mail to you if you want. you just shove it in the ground and you have a bush of it.
If you do want to grow mint a good spot for it is in a place where you have untenable ground (solid clay works excellent for this)
it will grow happily but be kept some what in check. For best results plant it off by itself so you can keep it from spreading all over the place.
Lemon Balm on the other hand truely will take over the garden if left to it's own devices and even when you try to cantain it.. IT's soul runneth over.
If you do do a herb garden plant it close to your house so you have easy access to it. Preferably near the kitchen
or in pots on your back porch.
You can also mix the annuals amongst your vegetables too. and the perennials amongst your flowers. (this is where my garlic chives and rosemary and mint grow)
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kimberly
Rejoice, check with your local university extension program. They are a wealth of help and information suited just for your area. They will talk to you on the phone and even come out to your home. They do in my area anyway.
Consider container planting since you have questions about cold and sunlight. Artificial sunlight (lightbulbs) can be used. Plants respond to heat and light no matter the source.
Mint, oh, the glories of mint. I knew it was invasive but I planted it in a spot in the yard anyway. Prolific growers, yes siree!!!! I have to tell you the aroma it produced in the neighborhood when we continued to mow right over it had folks asking what were we growing!!! Ha! Ha! That was the one upside of growing mint in the ground. It has died off. There is one patch left. I think I will leave it. The aroma is heavenly. Besides, we need it for mint julep!
My resident Rosemary monstrosity is the focal point in one part of a garden. She was one little sprig when I planted her just 3 years ago. She is beautiful and grand. I clip her stems, bring them into the house, put in a vase of water, then snip several leaves in half. The aroma it produces permeates the entire house. The aroma begins to fade and I clip more leaves in half. Google Rosemary. The many wonderful properties are amazing.
Happy Gardening!!!
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gc
I don't have any added advice, but I will add to your list of herbs; Dill. I love making dill butter for carrots (only thing that comes to mind right now :) ) When I lived in New Orleans area I grew flat parsley, it did great and would self seed in the same patch.
Have fun with your new garden patch!
I guess I do have some advice, take leafy up on her offer of a rosemary, will be faster than from seed. I love cuttings from people!
gc
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Bramble
We grow most of our herbs and find them easy to grow in our short Rocky Mtn season. Stevia doesn't grow well for us, the wrong soil ph, and I've not been successful with lavender from seed, so bought seedlings.
Regular Basil grows really well, so we make tons of pesto. SOme of our oregano had no flavor so we replanted with Greek? Spanish? Not sure, but this one is flavorful. I keep trying to grow purple basil so I can make red basil vinegar for presents but no luck with that 3 years running.
Chives are perinneal and are useable early in the season which is nice. I find chives don't give me heart burn like onions do.
I grow chamomile( watch out, it can reseed and be a nuisance) for tea, and motherwort as a medicinal tea mostly for myself. We have echinacia but it takes 4 years to harvest and I like the flowers so much I'm not sure I will harvest.
We grow alot of garlic, ( 3 twenty foot rows.) which we plant in the fall and water through out the winter when it gets above 40. That is harvested in July, and then we use the plot for greens. So many people we know think it so hard to grow and it isn't at all.
I like to keep a pot of cilantro and basil in the sunny window.
We dry ours in brown paper bags, then store them in the freezer.
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leafytwiglet
Seriously rejoice if you want some starts of stuff let me know and I will put a package together for you.
I have the rosemary actually two kinds
and I also have some other succulents if you would like.. not to mention some mint, lemon balm, some irises(peach colored) and other assorted goodies I can throw together for you if you let me know and PM an address to me.
AS every gardener knows there are always starts and bulbs to share.
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gc
rejoice, how is the herb garden coming along?
gc
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Twinky
You could add some lavender too - smells lovely. Harvest the blooms in the early morning. Can go in a border, not necessarily your herb garden. Can get leggy, looks better after a bit of a trim but not too viciously.
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kimberly
Rejoice, basil is an annual, but it is a prolific producer. Pinch back when it seeds on top and it will branch out. I have clipped it near the ground and it comes back during its growing season. Fresh basil is the absolute must in tomato pie.
In my area thyme and oregano does not die back. Although, they do not produce new growth I will sneak a few clips. I clip enough during the growing season to dry and use them during the winter. So do that with your herbs if they produce more than you may be in need of using at the time. Dry them out. Use them during the winter.
You can do the same with Italian parsley, curly parsley and Cilantro. Clip them babies back (the same with the perennials) and they will keep on producing during the growing season.
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