Friday, June 21, 1991 — North Shore News - 13

Herbal gardens marry form and function

AS YOU have probably noticed, [| am an ornamental kind

near a south-facing wall or in x

of guy. By that |] mean that my interest lies mostly in the ‘ckery can produce the added

realm of ornamental gardening rather than that of food

produ:tion.

This does not arise from a dis-
dain of vegetable gardening, for |
do have interests here as well.
Somebody’s got to do it; what
would I do with all those croutons
if they didn’t?

} just prefer the visual aspects
of the garden rather than those of
a culinary nature. Some take to
this as proof that [ have no taste.

Be that as it muy, there is one
garden that seems to marry these
two facets very nicely. This is the
herb garden. The large variety of
colors, shapes, habits, and tex-
tures which members of the herb
family make available provide to
us a nice array of materials to
work into an attractive, as well as
tasty garden.

Herbs have been used to create
formal patterns such as those
found in the gardens of
Renaissance France, as well as the
informal beauty found in the
English cottage garden. They also
appear well placed in rhe rockery,
the miniature garden or simply as
an attractive and useful addition
to the landscape.

As a general rule herbs do best

Geoff
Tobiasson

OVER THE GARDEN GATE

in Italy or Greece. If moving is
out of the question and you would
still try your hand at herb garden-
ing, you had best attempt to
duplicate the conditions which you
would expect to prevail in those
countries.

The more sun and heat they get,
the more flavor and pungent
aroma they will produce. Planting

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benefit of providing radiated heat
which was trapped during the day.

The soil should be a sandy, rich
loam; just the kind produced with
a well-developed compost. This
will both provide the necessary
fast drainage and a balanced
release of the nutrients and water
needed for optimum growth dur-
ing the drier seasons.

Most varieties of herbs require
regular watering throughout the
growing season to ward off ex-
cessively thin growth and leg-
giness. In addition, drought con-
ditions can cause the too strang
and even bitter flavors in affected
plants.

Legginess can also be avoided
with the judicious use of thumb
and fore finger. Regular pinching
and pruning will not only help
you maintain a more attractive
shape to your plant, but it will
also increase your supplies of
fresh herbs, and you can dry what
you can't use now.

Herbs come to us in the form
of perennials, those which survive
from year to year, or as annuals
which die off each year. Some of
the perennial plants are known as
half-hardy as they are not hardy
enough to withstand our coldest
winters; these must be either pro-

tected or replaced from year to
year.

The following is a list of some
of the more common herbs, some
of their characteristics, an indica-
tion as to how many plants would
be considered suitable for a family
of four and some cultura! con-
siderations:

Basil (ocimum _ basilicum)
annual, from seed, six plants per
household, water and pinch regu-
Jarly, cut to within one inch of
ground as flowering begins, start a
second crop in mid August.

Chives (allium spp.) — peren-
nial, from divisions, 10 to 15
plants per household, divide every
three or four years, remove flower
heads.

Dill

(anethum § graveolens) —
annual, from seed, five to 10
plants per household, let flower
and seed ripen for use in pickling,
remove flower if leaves only are
wanted.

Garlic (allium spp.) — peren-
nial, from divisions, 30 to 40 per
household, pjant in late winter or
very early spring, good drainage,
harvest in fall after leaves die.

Sweet Marjoram (origanum
marjorana) — half-hardy peren-
nial, from seed, five per house-
hold.

Mint (mentha spp.) — peren-
nial, from division, likes cool,

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moist, slightly shaded location,
can be invasive.

Parsley — perennial, from seed, *
15 to 20 per household.

Rosemary (rosemarinus of-
ficinalis) — halt-hardy perennial,
from cuttings, one per household.

Sage (salvia officinalis)
perennial, from seed, two per
household, harvest leaves when in
flower and dry in shade, divide
every three to four years.

Savory, Summer (satureja
hortensis) — annual, from seed,
five per household, milder than
perennial form.

Savory, Winter (satureja mon-
tana) — perennial, from division
or cuttings, five per household,
replace as plant becomes woody.

Thyme — perennial, from seed,
cuttings, and division, two per
household, divide every three to
four years, prune after flowering
to keep dense.

Of course, there are many other
herbs available and many other
forms of those mentioned; try
some of thein as well and enjoy.

Once again, | should encourage
you to buy a copy of Noel
Richardson's book, Summer
Delights: Cooking With Fresh
Herbs. You will find it as tasty an
addition as some of the herbs |
mentioned.

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