Herb gardening is gaining popularity more and more as cookbooks, television chefs and other media are touting the flavor and health benefits of fresh herbs over dried. Indeed, it is certainly true that fresh herbs have a far superior flavor, aroma and appearance over their dried counterparts, and they probably do have more vitamins and minerals. Another great reason to grow your own herbs is the lack of availability of fresh herbs in many areas, as well as the price. Some stores sell very small packages of fresh herbs for $3 or $4 per package! You could probably grow a small patch of the herb at home for that price and get dozens of bunches!
Growing your own herbs may seem like a daunting task, but it is really no more difficult than growing tomatoes or squash. And the benefits are well worth it for most people.
Basil is my number one recommendation for the beginner. It is a fairly hardy annual plant, grows fairly quickly and without a lot of special care, and has many uses in the home kitchen. It can be used to make basil pesto and caprese salad. It can be shredded in a chiffonade and sprinkled over salads, pasta or bread. It tastes wonderful in Italian soups and spaghetti sauces. It even makes a very good salad green when added whole to a salad! It will also grow in most zones, making it a very good choice for almost anyone.
Dill is another easy choice. This annual requires very little special care, grows well in almost every zone, and it remarkably hardy. Dill is most widely known for use in making dill pickles, but it has a myriad of other uses. It can be used to flavor almost any fish, especially salmon. And it is a very popular addition to scrambled eggs and macaroni and cheese.
Mint is a perennial plant that has to be one of the easiest plants to grow in the world! It grows well in zones 3 to 9. It is extremely hardy, comes back year after year, and requires practically no care whatsoever. Once planted, it can almost be left completely alone and will continue to grow and even spread! In fact, this plant spreads so rapidly it can take over your garden if you don’t watch it! There are many varieties of mint available. Just choose one or more varieties that you prefer. Mint is an excellent addition to salads, iced tea, mojito cocktails, and much more. In a pinch, you can even chew a fresh mint leaf or two as a breath freshener, and it’s pretty tasty like that, too!
Oregano is another extremely easy perennial herb. This one pretty much grows unattended in zones 3 to 9. It is hearty and long-lasting. This herb is a must, along with basil, if you really love Italian food. Oregano is fantastic with poultry and is almost always added to marinara or meat spaghetti sauces.
Sage is a lovely perennial plant that is hardy in zones 3 to 8. It has greyish green leaves that look slightly hairy and pretty purple or white flowers. The smell is simply heavenly and the flavor goes incredibly well with any type of poultry. Sage is the main ingredient in poultry seasoning and is an important ingredient in poultry stuffings. It also goes well with pork.
Parsley is a fast growing perennial, grows easily from seed, and will grow in almost any zone, from 2 to 10. It is very high in vitamins, is a beautiful and tasty addition to salads, and will also freshen your breath! It can be chopped and added as a finishing touch to almost any savory dish. I love flat leaf parsley, but there are curly varieties available if you prefer.
Rosemary is actually a shrub. It grows well in most zones, but in zones 8 to 10 it can grow 5 or 6 feet tall! If you don’t live in zones 8 to 10, you might consider planting your rosemary in containers and bringing it indoors when cool weather hits. Rosemary does not do very well in cold weather. It is an exceptional herb in poultry dishes, but also goes very well with pork and many types of vegetables. It is a tasty addition to many types of soup, especially poultry broth-based soups.
Thyme is a great companion to rosemary. It is a perennial that grows best in zones 4 to 9. The plants are fairly small, and have tiny green leaves. These leaves should be stripped off the woody stems just before use. Thyme can be used in most dishes that would contain rosemary, oregano or basil. Thyme also works very well with sage.
Cilantro is a fast growing herb that will grow in most zones. Its leaves are a tasty addition to tomato and mango salsas, guacamole, seafood dishes, seafood chowders and lots more. This herb has a bright, tangy flavor and is common in many types of cuisine, from asian to middle eastern to latin. It grows very well from seed, and in fact it does not transplant well at all. Cilantro is a very nice herb to brighten the flavor of many types of dishes. When the herb is sold in its fresh leaf format, it is called cilantro, but when the dried seeds are sold it is known as coriander. Coriander seeds taste similar to cilantro, but cilantro has a much brighter, fresher flavor and coriander is a little more woodsy.
These herbs are a great start to a well-rounded herb garden and are not hard to grow, even for beginners. In fact, many of these herbs are so easy to grow that they can even be grown by people who have no gardening experience at all! Many herbs can also be grown indoors, so if you live in an area where you don’t have space for a garden, or if you don’t like getting outdoors much, you can still grow your own herbs indoors!
