Growing Herbs: Edible Ornamentals

In addition to the plants traditionally grown as herbs, there are also a number of plants many gardeners grow as ornamental plants that are edible as well. Who doesn't like a plant that does double duty? The only caution is to make sure you are not eating any plants that you use any kind of pesticides on or fertilizers not suitable for edible plants. The following is not a comprehensive list of edible ornamental plants but includes some of the most common.

Edible Annuals

Marigold (Tagetes teniufolia, Tegetes signata)- While many cultivars of marigolds can be eaten, most are bitter and better left in the garden. The Gem hybrids (Lemon Gem and Orange Gem) are single flowered marigolds that add a citrus flavor to salads. Use the flowers fresh throughout the season as they don't dry or freeze well. 

Curry Plant (Helichrysum italicum) - This plant is generally grown for its striking silvery-gray foliage. It is not what is traditionally thought of as curry as that is a blend of several spices. However, this plant has a flavor reminiscent of curry and can be added to rice and vegetable dishes to give it a hint of curry-like flavor. It's also great to dry for use in potpourri. 

Nasturtium - Not only is this easy-to-grow annual gorgeous in the garden, but it's gorgeous in food as well. Use the flowers and leaves in salads, sandwiches or in dips. Make sure flowers are washed thoroughly to get rid of hiding insects. Too much nasturtium can cause stomach upset due to the high amount of mustard oil in the plant. However, more than an ounce a day would need to be eaten for problems to occur. The strong peppery-taste means a little goes a long way so the chances of overeating this plant is unlikely. Nasturtium is especially gorgeous when planted with Bright Lights or Rainbow Swiss Chard. Use these two plants together for a colorful and delicious salad. 

Perilla - Even Magilla Perilla, the very popular, gorgeously colored foliage plant is edible! The plant is commonly used in  Asian cuisine. Its leaves have a cinnamon-lemon flavor. Use them whole or chopped for garnish, in tempura or sushi. Use the flower spikes fresh in salads. 

Calendula - This is another easy-to-grow annual that's not too fussy about growing conditions and handles our cool weather. Known as "poor man's saffron", calendula flowers can be added to stews, pasta, rice and potatoes as well as cakes and muffins. Fresh calendula can be bitter but mellows with cooking. Petals can also be added to herbal teas. 

Edible Perennials

Bee Balm (Monarda) - This popular perennial is easy to grow and attracts bees, butterflies and if you're in the right area, hummingbirds. Use the leaves to make a minty, citrus-scented tea or add leaves to salads and summer beverages. Bee Balm, part of the mint family, can be used interchangeably with mint. 

Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii) - Catmint is another popular perennial in this region. It's a drought-tolerant plant with beautiful silver foliage and violet-blue flowers. Use the leaves to brew tea which is thought to reduce anxiety and induce sleep. It's also a good source of magnesium and manganese. Fresh leaves can also be used in soups, sauces, pasta and vegetable dishes. Use the youngest shoots chopped and sprinkled in salads. 

Rose - Both the flowers and the rose hips of this plant are edible although the best rose hips come from rosa rugosa plants. Rose hips are a great source of vitamin C. All roses are edible but the best for eating are those that don't need to be sprayed. If roses are being treated for insects or other diseases, do not eat. Rose petals can be sprinkled in salads or preserved in butter or vinegar. They can also be crystallized in sugar for gorgeous decorative edibles. Use both the flowers and rose hips in herbal teas. Use rose hips dried or fresh as a fruit or in preserves or desserts.

For a lot of gardener's, these plants are already in their gardens. How wonderful to discover that in addition to beautifying the garden, they can also beautify your food. 

Next week: My favorite annuals of 2010

Growing Herbs: Dill

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Dill is easily one of my very favorite herbs. I have, in fact, been accused of over-dilling food by my children on more than one occasion. Strangely though, I have no affinity for dill pickles. In addition to tasting great, smelling good and adding a pretty, airy texture to the garden, dill is incredibly easy to grow. It's listed as an annual here but is really a biennial. I haven't had dill reseed, but many people claim they've planted it once and never had to plant it again. At any rate, this is a must have herb for the garden. 

Growing and Harvesting Dill

The one downside to dill, particularly here on the plains of the windy Midwest, is that tall, wispy dill needs to be in a spot protected from strong winds. Other than that, dill isn't too fussy. Grow dill in full sun and average, well-drained soil. If you are also growing fennel, keep these two plants apart to prevent cross-pollination. If that happens, the seeds of each plant will lose their own unique flavor. 

Many varieties of dill grow anywhere from 2-5 feet tall so give it a place in the back of the garden. Those that get up to 5 feet tall may require staking. Compact varieties will still be 24-36 inches high. 

Use fresh dill leaves throughout the season. For the most flavorful dried dill, cut leafy stalks before flower heads appear. Dry stalks on drying racks in a cool location. When dry, separate leaves from the stalks and store in an airtight container. Fresh dill can also be frozen in ice cubes for use throughout the winter. 

Dill seed can be collected in the fall as it begins to fall from the seed heads. Remove the entire seed head and dry on a tray in the sun. When dry, seeds can be shaken from the seed heads and stored in an air-tight container. 

Using Dill

Of course we know dill is used in canning pickles but it's also excellent in egg salad and other egg dishes, on potatoes, in dressings, dips and on vegetables. My favorite is butter and dill on green beans. Divine! It's also great on carrots. Add dill to butter and bread mixes or use on fish. The seeds are commonly used for pickling or can be used as a substitute for the leaves. 

Allrecipes.com has an incredible collection of recipes featuring dill from dips to potatoes to fish to vegetables. I want to try them all!

Next week: Plants you may already be growing that are edible!

Growing Herbs: Mint

Image: Michelle Meiklejohn / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

There are many things you can say about mint. It's a great tasting and versatile herb to have in the kitchen. It's a fragrant plant to have in the garden. It makes a great ground cover. And...it's invasive. Tell a gardener that any plant they plan to put in the garden is mint and watch them drop it like a hot potato. Mint and many other plants in this family are notoriously invasive. So much so that there is invasive and then there is mint invasive. With a reputation like that, why in the world would any gardener want it? Well, for all the reasons listed ahead of invasive--great tasting herb and fantastic smelling garden plant. There are easy ways to keep this herb in check and enjoy it's great taste and fantastic fragrance. 

Growing and Harvesting Mint

Mint is perennial here in Minnesota and there are several different cultivars you can grow. The most common are peppermint (mentha piperita) which is hardy to zone 3 or Spearmint (mentha spicata) which is hardy to zone 4. Others include orange mint, applemint, gingermint and many others. My personal favorite is chocolate mint (zone 4 or 3 depending on the source) because it tastes and smells great and also has great ornamental qualities with dark veined foliage. 

Since mint's hardiness actually translates into extreme invasive-ness, what's a gardener to do? There are a couple of options. One, grow mint as a container plant which you then bring inside during the winter months. Fresh mint all year! I've used chocolate mint as a trailing ornamental in container combos (looks great with ruby red geraniums and other dark foliage). It did go wild and was all over the ground but didn't plant itself. This is because mint spreads by rhizomes which are shoots that come off of the roots. If the roots are contained, the plant will behave.

Which bring us to option two. I really don't recommend that you plant it in the garden unless you are prepared for it to take over. I read one comment by a gardener who threw it out in what she called the north 40 where she assumed it would die because of competition from other plants and lack of attention. She now has only mint back there. If you wish to grow mint as a perennial in the garden without the worry of it taking over everything, this can be easily done by planting the mint in a large bottomless container that is then planted in the garden with the edge of the container at least 3 inches above the soil. Control the roots, and you control the plant. 

Mint grows in full sun or partial shade and average soil. They are easily prone to dehydration and prefer moist soil. In addition to being a great herb for kitchen use, mint attracts bees and butterflies to the garden. However, mint tastes better before it flowers so you might want to plant some for yourself to keep pinched back and some for the pollinators that you let go to flower. 

Pinch leaves off throughout the season for fresh use. If your plant is spending the winter months outside, mint can be preserved in a variety of ways. Chopped leaves can be added to water to be frozen in ice cube trays or full stems will keep for several weeks in the freezer in zip top storage bags. Mint does very well dried. It can either be hung to dry or on drying racks. When completely dry, strip stems from leaves and store in an airtight container. 

Using Mint

What can't you use mint in? Use it in refreshing summer beverages such as lemonade, iced tea or mojitos (chocolate mint is a customer favorite in this drink). Add chopped leaves to butter for use on toast and crackers. For an easy and delicious dessert, add chopped fresh mint to softened ice cream. Refreeze for 30 minutes and serve. Divine! The leaves can also be brewed into tea which is known to soothe an upset stomach and promote sleep. I love this idea for mint ice cubes! I'm going to have those on hand all year. Check allrecipes.com for more mint recipes.

Next week:  Dill
 

Photo Friday: Blooming Succulent!

It doesn't take much blooming to excite this Minnesota gardener in January. Especially when we've already had 45 inches of snow fall making for 5, 6, 7, 8 foot snow piles everywhere you go. We've gone from winter wonderland to arctic tundra. Ah, well. So you can see where this little beauty is a pleasant surprise. This is a crassula and I'm fairly certain this is called 'Springtime'. Misnamed apparently, or at least hopefully named because it's normal bloom time is in the winter. I planted it in a terracotta strawberry pot last spring to replace one my cat over-frolicked so this is it's first year and voila! Blooms! And the cat isn't the slightest bit interested in it. Success! After adorning my kitchen window for the winter, I'll put this container back outside for the summer. I hope I get many more blooms next season.

Growing Herbs: Tarragon

Tarragon is one of many herbs that's perennial here in the Midwest (zones 3-7), growing up to 5 feet tall and up to 2 feet wide. Don't let it's large size fool you though! A little goes a long way as the sweet anise or licorice flavor can overwhelm dishes if too much is used. That said, tarragon is a drought resistant perennial with fine-leafed foliage that combines well with other perennials such as iris, daylilies and shrubs. Edible and beautiful!

Growing and Harvesting Tarragon

Because tarragon grows so large and is a full sun plant, it's not suitable for indoor container gardens. It can be grown outdoors in containers easily but would most likely need to be treated as an annual in this part of the country (tarragon is propagated by cuttings, plant some in your garden and take cuttings for your containers). I suggest finding a permanent spot in either your perennial bed or vegetable garden. 

For culinary purposes, make sure you are planting French tarragon (artemisia dracunculus) rather than Russian tarragon (artemisia drancunuloides) as the Russian tarragon is bitter and can become weedy. French Tarragon is propagated by cuttings or root divisions so if you find seed, it's the Russian variety. Pass on by!

Although tarragon will grow well in partial sun, for best flavor plant this herb in full sun. It needs fertile, well-drained soil and will benefit greatly from mulching in the fall for winter protection. 

Use fresh leaves throughout the season for use in the kitchen. At the end of the growing season, strip leaves from stems, chop and mix with water to freeze in ice cube trays. Whole stems can also be stored in airtight containers and frozen or preserved in vinegar. As with most herbs, tarragon's flavor is greatly diminished by drying, however, they are useful in a pinch. Hang stems upside down and strip leaves from stems when they are dry. Store in an airtight container. 

Using Tarragon

Tarragon, in addition to being a strong tasting herb, is one that's greatly enhanced by blending with other herbs. It's is one of the four herbs in the fines herbes blend along with chervil, chives and parsley (although some fines herbes blends may vary, sometimes including marjoram, thyme and other herbs). Tarragon is an excellent addition to herb butters or combined with mint for use in tea. It blends well with eggs, seafood, fruits, poultry, vegetables and is the main ingredient in Bearnaise sauce. Heat intensifies the flavor of tarragon, so in addition to being mindful of how much is used, it should be added at the end of the cooking process so as not to overwhelm the dish. 

My favorite tarragon dish is an easy dipping sauce for shrimp or fish. Combine 1/2  cup of mayonnaise, 2 tbs. of Dijon mustard and 2 tbs. of fresh, chopped tarragon. Unbelievably good and so easy! Other easy recipes include Orange Roughy and Vegetables and Tarragon Green Beans. See allrecipes.com for more recipes featuring tarragon. 

Next week: Mint. Invasive? Yes, but delicious...