Presented by
The Webster Groves Herb Society
at Missouri Botanical Garden
April 16, 2016
Easy herbs for beginners to grow include basil, chives, lemon balm, parsley, sage, and
thyme.
Basil (Ocimum basilicum)
Basil is an annual in the St. Louis area and easily grows in full sun in the ground or in containers. Basil can be culinary, ornamental, and medicinal. Basil is a warm weather herb that thrives in the heat of the summer, but is cold-sensitive, fading in the early fall as the temperatures drop. Snip the leaves for use and you will have basil until frost. Sweet basil adds delicious flavors to pesto, tomato dishes, soups, salads, salad dressings, cheeses, eggs, and meat dishes. Other basils include Thai basils with an anise scent, lemon basil, and holy basil.
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
Perennial drought tolerant chives grow about 12 inches tall. Their pretty light purple
flowers look like clover blossoms and attract bees and butterflies. Chives are a flavorful garnish for pork, lamb, and chicken, pastas, salads, dips, cheeses, herb butters, and sour cream. Add chives at the last minute as overheating destroys the flavor.
Toss the edible flowers in salads, sprinkle them over omelets, and enjoy them in pasta dishes. For a special treat, make chive blossom vinegar. The purple flowers dry nicely and add texture to dried flower arrangements and wreaths.
Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)
Perennial Lemon balm has a strong, but pleasant lemon scent. Enjoy lemon balm leaves in hot or iced teas, salads, soups, sauces, and vegetables. Lemon balm grows well in full sun to partial shade and grows about two to three feet tall and wide.
Parsley (Petroselinum crispum)
Parsley is a biennial; it will grow for two seasons. The first year parsley has the tastiest and most tender leaves. The second year parsley bolts and produces seeds. Fresh parsley is tastier than dried. Parsley freezes well, is easily chopped when partially frozen, and may be a substitute for fresh parsley, but it is not as tasty.
Parsley enhances the taste of dishes without overpowering the other flavors in meatloaf, potatoes, soups, stews, omelets, salads, fish, yogurt, sour cream, butter, and cream cheese. Combine parsley with other herbs for tabbouleh, bouquet garnish, or fine herbs.
The black swallowtail caterpillar likes parsley so plant extra for them. Your reward is
swallowtail butterfly visits all summer. Both curly and flat leaf parsley provide texture
in your gardens.
Sage (Salvia officinalis)
Common sage is a hardy perennial plant that can grow two feet tall in sun. Common sage’s beautiful blue flowers are edible and make wonderful garnishes for salads and other dishes. Most sage flowers are attractive to bees and butterflies.
Culinary favorites include perennial ‘Berggarten’ sage, tender perennial Tricolor sage, purple sage, and tender perennial Golden sage. Common sage (including golden and
purple) flavors pizza, omelettes, and pasta.
Pineapple sage, an annual, is both culinary and ornamental with a delicious pineapple
fragrance. The beautiful scarlet flowers bloom in autumn and attract migrating
hummingbirds. The leaves and flowers flavor teas, herbal vinegars, jellies, and syrups.
Thyme (Thymus vulgaris)
The thyme family includes perennial upright compact thymes, creeping thymes,
variegated thymes, and lemon thymes. Snip fresh thyme to enjoy all summer. The
sweet, warm, spicy flavor complements chicken, fish, soups, stews, vegetables,
breads, and desserts. Thymes can also be part of Italian seasoning herb mix, Cajun
herb mix, classic herbs de Provence, and bouquets garnis. Thymes can also combine
with other herbs in potpourri, room fresheners, moth repellants, and sleep sachets.
Thyme dries easily. Store in tins or glass jars away from light and heat. Creeping
thymes soften the edges of retaining walls, stepping stones, and containers.