Winter is always a time to think ahead and plan for the upcoming growing season. I’m sure any gardener can agree that during the cold months of winter, there is something exciting about picturing the summer garden in all its glory (and it always has fewer weeds in my imagination!).
This growing year, I am planning to simplify a little. As with all things growing in the garden, I have realized that a wide variety of herbs matters less than growing herbs you will actually use. Just as it doesn’t make sense to grow vegetables you rarely use in the kitchen; it also does not make sense to grow herbs you do not utilize in your home. By simplifying, I can do fewer things well rather than lots of things done poorly. And to add to that, I also hope that as I start doing fewer things really well, I can add to our herbal garden in later years (there are more herbs that I would love to add someday!) Here is our plan for culinary and medicinal herbs for the 2024 growing season.
Culinary herbs will include:
- basil (Ocimum basilicum) – I went with Genovese this year for pesto making, and I’ll plant some sweet basil as well
- chives (Allium schoenoprasum) – regular chives as well as “Profusion” (Allium schoenoprasum ‘Sterile’)
- cilantro (Coriandrum sativum)
- dill (Anethum graveolens)
- sweet marjoram (Origanum majorana)
- mint (Mentha x piperita piperita and Mentha aquatica ‘Citrata’) – peppermint and orange mint
- oregano (Origanum vulgare hirtum) – Greek oregano
- parsley (Petroselinum crispum neapolitanum) – Italian parsley
- rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) – I’ve planted Rex Rosemary before and have been happy with it
- sage (Salvia officinalis) – garden sage
- thyme (Thymus vulgaris) – English thyme
Of course, like all herbs, these also have many therapeutic properties. I’m labelling them culinary because that is my primary intention for these herbs. I will aim to dry and preserve significantly more herbs this year than in previous years and create my own “blends” outside their growing season (for example, an Italian seasoning blend). I also plan to replace a few of our established herbs (the sage and chives) as I need to re-do both existing herb boxes. As an added experiment this year, I will plant a few winter hardy herbs in our greenhouse’s 2025 location and hopefully be able to harvest a few fresh herbs all winter long (hello oregano, rosemary, parsley and thyme!)
Medicinal herbs this year will include:
- bee balm (Monarda fistulosa) – also commonly referred to as wild bergamot
- borage (Borago officinalis)
- calendula (Calendula officinalis) – I’ll be planting a few varieties this year: Pacific Beauty Mix, Pink Surprise, Sunset Buff, Touch of Red Buff
- catnip (Nepeta cataria)
- chamomile (Matricaria recutita) – German chamomile
- comfrey (Symphytum Officinale)
- lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)
- echinacea (Echinacea purpurea, also Echinacea angustifolia)
- eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus)
- elder (Sambucus canadensis) – American elder
- Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) – English lavender; I may plant some Sweet Dreams lavender as well, as I’ve been happy with this variety in the past
- motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca)
- marshmallow (Althaea officinalis)
- valerian (Valeriana officinalis)
I have a few established valerian and marshmallow plants whose roots I plan to harvest in the spring. I will replace the valerian with new plants and hope there is enough marshmallow to keep the plant going. I am very hopeful I will have some elderflowers and elderberries this year. My elder bushes are coming into their third year, and they’ve grown well. Catnip is an herb I’ve attempted the last couple of years, but the barn cats have quickly destroyed it, so fingers crossed I can protect it this year. The echinacea will go in a new location, as will the lavender, bee balm, and borage. I plan to establish these four herbals in areas where they can be more permanent and not over-grow the herbs I have in my garden boxes.
Another way I am simplifying this year is by ordering a lot of these herbs as starter plants. Usually, I start my plants from seed. While there are still a few seeds I will have to start, I will cut back considerably for this season (and possibly the next couple) due to time and space limitations. We are fortunate here in Ontario to have Richter’s fairly close by. They offer a vast selection of herbs and vegetables and ship to our door, ready to plant. I recommend them to anyone finding themselves in a similar situation as us this year!
This is most of what is happening in our herbal garden this year. A lot of these are familiar to us, so there should be no surprises. The focus this year is to clean up some of the herbal garden boxes I have and to be better at drying herbs throughout the season. As the season unfolds, I’ll continue to share how these herbs are working in the garden for me!
