Growing Herbs

[lilibet]

I'm a bit of a novice in the garden but have decided that I would like to grow some herbs. What sort should I be looking for? I need things that are hardy, and look pretty!!

we have a monster (in the good sense) rosemary bush in our front garden. thrives on neglect, gets scorched by sun and never watered. full of lovely lilac flowers atm and i trot out there every time we have lamb

dunno if its jsut me but I planted out three sage palnts last summer (raised them in pots form seed the year before) and they are thriving. Water them once in a blue moon and thats about te extent of it so they might be good.

Also have parsley in pots outside.

Is basil hard to grow?

I bought a small pot of basil from Tesco's and then replanted it into a bigger pot as it was all squashed up - it lives on my kitchen window sill, I only water it when it completely wilts (better flavour that way apparantely!) and it seems to be thriving! despite me pulling it apart every few days!

I grew basil the year before last and it grew brillaintly but diead cos I left it out in the winter and you need to take them in. Didnt ahve any success alst year with it tho cos I left it late to plant and didnt water it so entirely my own fault. hopefully this years craop will be good Ive planted the seeds on Monday in an egg carton and then will moce te individual plants to pots later (if they come up that is )

Chives are dead easy to grow too and great in salad and stuff too.

And mint is a doddle but be careful or itll take over your garden so apparently best in pots

we grow rosemary, sage, thyme and oregano in the garden, also have a large bay tree. None of these appear to need any maintenance.

i have a pot of basil on the kitchen windowsill - we buy a pot from Tescos every so often and throw it away when it gets really straggly - this needs daily watering.

If you grow mint, keep it confined.

parsley and coriander only have short seasons when they are at their best so we dont bother with these

oooh a bay tree - I fancy a bay tree with herbs round the bottom!

see - this is my problem - I'm far more concerend with things looking pretty than with putting any work in!

lavender also v good and low-maintenance

Get a bay standard (about £30 for a three foot clear stem) and underplant.

Lemon Verbena (Aloysia triphylla) smells divine when crushed.

Miss Jessop's Upright is a 'non sprawling' erect rosemary if you like 'pretty' / 'tidy'

Mint for tea (there are hundreds of mentha to get addicted to !)

can't believe I'm about to post advice on a gardening thread

I've got morrocan mint and its fabulous

also haven't managed to kill off my sage, thyme, rosemary or oregano yet but the dill and basil died

Moroccan mint plus 'fleur d'oranger' (Orange blossom water) plus 'verveine' (dried verbena) plus smidge of sugar.... Allow to brew... Poured from a great height this'll take you to Marrakech !

basil only really works well in the summer as it needs a lot of light.

I'm very keen on flat leaf parsley (it tastes better than curled leaf)- it really flourishes in our garden and lasts for ever; then it self seeds so that I always have tons to put in salads and all the other things you chuck parsley in.

Folk legend has it apparently that you can only manage to grow parsley if you 'wear the trousers in the house' .

Unusually for a herb, it's quite happy in semi-shade, so it likes growing places where you can't grow that many other easy edibles.

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ok pruni - stop showing off and speak to me in words of one syllable

pinch out the tops???

cutting back???

As winne the pooh once said - I am a bear of very little brain!

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