Chapter 12: Growing Berries and Herbs for an Edible Landscape

In This Chapter

Growing berries and other fruits in your edible landscape

Planting, harvesting, and preserving herbs

Discovering flowers that you can eat

In previous chapters, I mostly talk about your vegetable garden as a separate entity in the yard. That setup is great, especially if you're trying to grow lots of vegetables to reduce your food costs. However, another way to grow vegetables, and any other food crops for that matter, is to integrate them into your existing landscape. This is called edible landscaping. The concept is simple: Instead of planting an ornamental shrub, tree, or flower, why not grow a similar, attractive vegetable, fruit, or herb that can double as a food crop?

With concerns about carbon footprints, pollution, food safety, and energy consumption, many gardeners across the country are ripping out their lawns and creating edible landscapes that are both beautiful and functional. My front yard is made up of all fruits, veggies, and herbs. I love to look at it and eat from it.

Many vegetables such as kale, Swiss chard, eggplant, and okra are beautiful plants in their own right. They deserve places in both the flower garden as well as the vegetable garden. Start looking at your vegetables from a different viewpoint, and you'll see the beauty of their flowers, leaves, and shapes. But why stop with veggies in an edible landscape? You may want to grow other foods as well. For example, in this chapter, I describe some favorite fruits, herbs, and edible flowers that you can grow in place of ornamentals in your yard; see Chapter 3 for a sample edible landscape design.

When substituting an edible for an ornamental, the rules of selection remain the same as with any plant: Pick an edible plant that suits the growing conditions in the yard with respect to sun, soil, and climate (see Chapter 3 for details). Also, select an edible plant that grows to the proper size for the spot. For example, instead of a burning bush grow a blueberry bush. The size and shape of the shrub are similar, and it has great fall foliage color like a burning bush. However, the blueberry yields mouthwatering fruits, too.

Sweetening Your Landscape with Berries and Fruits

Many gardeners avoid planting fruits in the yard because they think that growing them is complicated. Actually, it isn't difficult at all. If you select the right fruits and varieties for your location and climate, these plants can be low maintenance and very rewarding to grow. In the following sections, I describe several popular berry types and other unusual fruits that work well in edible landscapes.

Strawberries

Strawberry plants have a nice compact habit that fits perfectly into a raised bed like you use for vegetables. You can grow these perennials in a bed along the house, in the front of a flower garden, or in a container. They're also a fast crop that provides a delicious harvest within a year of planting. And because you should replant the plantings every few years (they develop diseases or become unproductive if you don't), you can move strawberry plants around if you want.

Space the plants 12 to 18 inches apart in full sun and keep them well watered. Strawberries spread by sending out little runners that end with new baby plants. After these young plants have formed obvious roots, usually in a few weeks, cut the runners and move these young plants around to start new beds. It's important to thin the plants so the young plants don't fill in around the older plants and crowd them (refer to Chapter 13 for details on thinning). Make sure to plant varieties adapted to your area, and mulch heavily in cold-winter areas.

While most strawberry varieties are called June-bearing because they bear fruit in early summer, some newer varieties are day-neutral or everbearing (they produce fruit throughout the summer). One of my favorite everbearing varieties is the alpine strawberry. These berries don't produce runners; they stay compact and bushy and produce small, sweet berries from summer until frost. They're great for eating out of hand or tossing on cereal in the morning. These small plants make excellent container plants and often are planted in a strawberry barrel (a container with holes on the side for growing strawberry plants).

Blueberries

I don't know why more people don't grow blueberries. What's not to like? They thrive in full sun and grow on handsome, perennial shrubs that range in height from 2 to 6 feet, depending on the type that you grow. You can choose from low-bush (1 to 2 feet tall), half-high (2 to 4 feet tall), and high-bush varieties (5 to 6 feet tall) that can fit into many locations in your yard. They have pretty white flowers followed by large clusters of tasty, blue fruit. Berries appear the second year after planting. The attractive green leaves turn bright shades of red, orange, and yellow before dropping in the fall. Blueberries make an excellent foundation plant grown up against the house or grouped to form a hedge between properties.

Blueberries must be grown in acidic soil (with a pH level between 4.5 and 5.5), so if you don't have that kind of soil, you need to make some adjustments. Amending your soil with a lot of peat moss and some sulfur is one easy way to lower the soil pH; see Chapter 14 for more on soil pH and amending your soil.

Plant at least two different blueberry varieties to ensure good pollination and fruit set. Variety selection is the key to success. Blueberries grow best in areas with cold winters and mild summers. In hot-summer areas of the South, grow blueberry types that are adapted to the heat, such as Southern blueberries or rabbit-eye blueberries. In cooler climates, all other blueberry types are fine to plant.

Blackberries and raspberries

If you're looking for an edible plant to double as a barrier for animals and people, grow some blackberry or raspberry brambles. Both are fast-growing, thorny plants. They grow to 6 feet tall and spread wildly from suckers (new shoots) off their roots. If you don't watch out, the plants can easily get out of control. However, if you train them to a sturdy trellis and are diligent about pruning them, blackberries and raspberries can be very productive, hedgelike plantings.

In the first year, most blackberry and raspberry canes (shoots) produce only leaves; they bear fruit in the second year (see Figure 12-1). Plant brambles in spring, spacing the plants 1 foot apart in rows in well-drained soil in a partly-to-mostly-sunny location. Amend the soil with compost and mulch yearly with hay or straw. Bramble roots love it cool and moist, but not too wet.

Even though most blackberry and raspberry varieties produce only one crop a year like strawberries, everbearing varieties produce a summer and fall crop of delicious fruits. Choose varieties that are adapted to your area and that produce the colored berries you want. Raspberries come in varieties that produce red-, yellow-, black-, and purple-colored fruits. Blackberries come in black-colored fruit only, but you also can find varieties without thorns.

Unusual fruits

The berries in the previous sections are the most popular fruits grown in edible landscapes, but you also can get a little wild and try other unusual fruits, too. You can experiment with a wealth of exotic fruits from around the world that may grow well in your edible landscape. Expand your taste horizons and try some exotic-flavored fruits. At the very least, they'll be a conversation piece! Here are a few examples:

Gooseberries: These woody shrubs grow 2- to 4-feet tall and wide. They're widely adapted and produce green or red, round juicy fruits that are great eaten fresh or made into pies and preserves.

Currants: These bushes, which are a size similar to gooseberry bushes, produce small red, white, or black berries depending on the variety. The fruits are juicy and tart, so they're primarily used for preserves, pies, and juices. In fact, currant juice is touted as an elixir that's high in health-promoting antioxidants. (Chapter 2 has more on the health benefits of fruits and vegetables.) Like blueberries, these shrubs bear fruit the second year after planting.

Dwarf fruit trees: While berry crops are the easiest to grow, don't shy away from trying a dwarf apple or cherry tree, too. Tree fruits definitely require more study, but many new varieties are disease resistant and dwarf, making them perfect additions to an edible landscape. Fruit trees generally produce fruit a few years after planting, depending on the type you're growing.

Some other unusual fruits to try depending on your sense of adventure and climate are figs, citrus, cranberry, elderberry, lingonberry, kiwi, and banana. For more information on where to find some unusual fruits for your landscape, flip to the appendix.

Spicing Up Your Landscape with Herbs

How could you plant a vegetable garden without herbs? My mamma's pasta sauce wouldn't taste half as good without fresh basil, oregano, and thyme from the garden; my burritos wouldn't pop with flavor without fresh cilantro. Herbs are easy to grow and take up little space, and many have attractive foliage and flowers — the perfect edible landscape plant. Even if you don't use all the herbs fresh, you can add them to vinegar and oils, or dry them for future use (see the nearby sidebar for details).

I like to plant herbs close to the house for easy access when I'm cooking. The best place for herbs that you often need for cooking is in a container on a deck or patio. Most herbs are compact enough to grow well in containers, yet still give you the yields for fresh eating.

Many herbs produce attractive flowers that bees and other pollinating insects love. A healthy garden should be a-buzz with bee activity, and herbs help keep our insect friends happy. I mix herbs in the vegetable garden, around flowers, and in containers. Creeping herbs, like thyme and oregano, grow great in windowboxes and containers. Taller herbs, like rosemary and basil, make beautiful additions to a flower garden.

While herbs vary in their flavors, smells, and growth habits, most require the same growing conditions: a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight per day, excellent soil drainage, and moderately rich, loose soil. If you don't have fertile soil, a simple addition of compost in spring is probably enough in most cases. Too much fertilizer makes for a bushy plant that doesn't produce the proper amount of essential oils and flavor. And that's what you want from your herbs — great flavor.

The following sections take an alphabetical look at my favorite herbs.

Basil

My mother would kick me out of the family if I didn't talk about one of the classic Italian herbs: basil (Ocimum basilicum and other species). She's 85 years old and doesn't vegetable garden any longer, except for the pot of basil on the back deck. She and I can't live without it!

While the ‘Genovese' or Italian basil is essential for tomato sauces and pesto, you also can choose from varieties with different tastes for Greek, Thai, Indian, and Chinese cooking (among other cuisines). You can grow basil with flavors such as licorice, lemon, lime, and cinnamon. Plus, these annual plants grow 6 to 18 inches tall depending on the variety, making them perfect container plants. Some varieties have gorgeous all-purple leaves or purple and green leaves with ruffles, making this an attractive plant in the garden.

Even though you can't plant basil until after the last frost date (check the appendix for the last date in your area), it produces abundantly in the heat of the summer. Start basil seeds indoors about 6 weeks before the last frost date or sow the seeds directly in your garden (1/4-inch deep) after the last frost date when the soil is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition to seeds, most nurseries also carry basil transplants. Set transplants or thin seedlings to stand at least 10 to 12 inches apart; more room (16 to 24 inches) is even better because it encourages low, bushy plants to develop. Plant in full sun.

After the plants have grown for 6 weeks, pinch the center stalks of the basil to force side growth and prevent early flowering — flowers take energy away from the leaves that you eat. If flower stalks do develop, cut or pinch them off early. Mulch the soil and maintain consistent moisture levels. Basil is generally pest-free.

Basil makes an excellent container plant. Some tall varieties, such as ‘Siam Queen' Thai basil, have attractive purple coloring on the leaves and stems. ‘Spicy Globe' basil forms a small, compact, 8- to 12-inch-tall and round plant that fits easily in a small container.

The best time to harvest basil is just before the formed flower buds open. In the morning, snip the leaves and branches and pinch off the flower buds to keep the plant productive. You also can cut the entire plant about 6 to 8 inches above the ground, leaving at least one node (where a leaf was) with two young shoots attached. The plant should produce a second, smaller harvest a few weeks later. As the plants mature, early cold weather can ruin your crop, so be sure to harvest if temperatures dip into the 30s.

After you harvest your basil, you can

Store it fresh: The best way to store fresh basil is to place the stem ends in water like a small bouquet. You can put the leaves in the refrigerator, but they won't last long.

Freeze it: Because the leaves lose some of their flavor when dried, freezing is the best method for winter storage. To quick-freeze basil, clean and dry whole sprigs (stem pieces with 3 to 4 leaves) and pack them in plastic bags with the air pressed out.

Dry it: To dry basil, pinch off the leaves at the stem, and dry them in a shady, well-ventilated area. Check the leaves in 3 or 4 days, and if they aren't totally dry, finish drying them in an oven; otherwise, the leaves may turn brown and black. Use the lowest heat setting possible with the oven door slightly open; turn the leaves for even drying and check them frequently until they're dry and crumbly. They should dry in 10 minutes.

Chives

Chives are one of the easiest plants to grow. After you plant chives in your garden, you always have them because they're a hardy perennial — one of the first harvests each year. You can easily dig the plants up, divide them, and move them as your garden evolves. And you need only a few plants to harvest all the chives you'll ever need.

Common chives (Allium schoenoprasum) grow to 1 foot tall and have narrow, hollow green leaves and spherical pink or purple flowers; the plants are quite pretty. You can use the leaves in all kinds of sauces and salads to lend a delicate onion flavor. And, of course, what would baked potatoes be without chives? The flowers, when added to white vinegar, impart a lovely pink or purple color. You also can add the flower buds to salads.

Garlic chives (Allium tuberosum) are close relatives of common chives, but they differ slightly in appearance and flavor. Garlic chives have flat leaves, and their white flowers, which are highly attractive to bees, appear in the summer. The seed heads are excellent for decorating wreaths, but be careful not to let the seeds fall; garlic chives can become a weedy nuisance. Sometimes called Oriental chives, you can use garlic chives in soups, salads, sauces, and meat dishes to impart their garlicky flavor.

You can start chive plants from seed, purchase a plant or two, or dig up part of a clump from a neighbor's garden (with her permission, of course). If you're seeding, plant in mid to late spring in a sunny or slightly shady area. Chives prefer rich soil, and after they're established, they'll tolerate either moist or dry conditions. Sow the seeds in clusters that are 1 to 1 1/2 feet apart. Remove the flower stalks after they bloom in early summer. Divide the plants (dig up and separate the small plants) every 3 to 4 years.

Small clumps of chives planted in pots will grow in a sunny spot outdoors. These pots can be brought indoors in fall, and the chives will continue to grow as a windowsill plant into the winter.

You can begin harvesting chives 6 weeks after planting or as soon as the established plants resume growth in the spring. As you need leaves, cut the outer ones near the base. New leaves will keep forming all summer. Use the leaves fresh or frozen in soups, on baked potatoes, or in salads. Chives also retain their flavor well when dried using the technique for drying basil.

Cilantro

Now considered one of the top culinary herbs in the United States, cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) has gained in popularity due to the influx of Mexican and Asian cooking. This annual herb is actually two herbs in one. When the green, ferny foliage is eaten fresh it's called cilantro. If allowed to go to seed, the seeds are called coriander. Both are essential for ethnic cooking.

Cilantro is a cool-season herb that can quickly bolt (go to flower and seed) when the weather becomes hot. After the plant has bolted, the foliage becomes tough and the flavor less pronounced. Select varieties that are slow to bolt, such as ‘Slo Bolt,' and grow cilantro in spring and fall while the weather is cool.

Direct sow seeds after the last frost and thin plants to 2 to 4 inches apart. Most varieties grow 12 to 18 inches tall. Sow successive crops every 3 weeks to have a continuous supply of cilantro throughout the season. To harvest, pinch the leaves about 2 months after seeding or as needed. Snip off the flower stalk as it forms to prolong the leaf growth. If interested in harvesting coriander seeds, allow the plant to bolt and form seeds (after you let the plants go to seed, you'll have cilantro seedlings for years to come). Cilantro is best used fresh; the leaves aren't as tasty dried or frozen. You can harvest fresh cilantro and keep stems in water for a few days using it as needed.

Dill

Common dill (Anethum graveolens) grows to a height of about 3 to 5 feet. It grows best toward the back of your garden where it has plenty of room. It also looks beautiful mixed with annual flowers such as salvia. ‘Dukat' is an improved new variety with high oil content and, therefore, more flavor.

Dill does poorly when transplanted, so start from seed sown directly into your garden. The annual plants thrive in rich, loose soil in a sunny location. Plant the seeds 1 to 2 weeks before the last spring frost date if you want the crop to mature when you do your first cucumber pickling. Sow seeds 1/4-inch-deep in rows that are 18 to 24 inches part; or broadcast seeds over a 2-square-foot bed and gently rake the seeds into the soil. Plants should emerge in 10 to 14 days; let them grow for another 10 to 14 days and then thin them to 12 to 18 inches apart. Make small sowings a few weeks apart in different 2-square-foot areas in your garden until midsummer to get a supply of fresh leaves throughout the season.

Let a few plants mature their seed (let the seed form and drop from the flower naturally); if left undisturbed, they'll provide many new plants next season.

‘Fernleaf' is a dwarf variety of dill that reaches only 18 inches tall, is slow to go to seed, and is great in containers. Taller varieties tend to flop over in a pot, so low-growing varieties like ‘Fernleaf' are better choices for a container.

You can start harvesting the fernlike leaves about 8 weeks after planting by pinching the outer leaves close to the stem. The leaves have the strongest flavor just when the flower heads are opening. Store fresh dill by wrapping the cut ends with a moistened paper towel and placing the dill in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. To dry the leaves, place them in a dark place on a window screen; after they're dry, seal them in an airtight jar. Freezing the leaves in bunches in freezer bags retains even more of their flavor.

For pickling, cut off the seed heads when they're light brown. Dry them for a few days in paper bags with air holes in the sides, and then shake the seeds loose in the bottom of the bags. You can use then use these seeds for cooking. Dill seeds are great not only for pickles but also for beans and fish.

French tarragon

French tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus sativa) is an essential herb for many cooks, but it can cause some confusion for the first-time grower. You must know exactly what you're buying when you purchase a French tarragon plant because it's often confused with similar-looking Russian tarragon, a weedy plant that has little value in cooking. French tarragon is a hardy perennial that can be grown only from root cuttings, divisions, or tip cuttings of new growth.

If you find tarragon seed for sale, it's probably Russian tarragon. If you're buying plants at a nursery, rub some of the leaves together and then smell them to determine the variety; the French variety will have the strong licorice scent that you want.

Because seeds can be difficult to find, I suggest that you purchase plants. Or if you have a friend with an established tarragon bed, ask if he can divide his plants in early spring. You want to divide each established plant into two or three plants. You divide by digging up the entire plant, cutting it evenly into two or three smaller plants, and then replanting one plant and giving away the rest. Space tarragon plants 2 to 3 feet apart and give them room to spread. Divide the plants every 2 to 3 years to keep them vigorous and healthy. Tarragon does best in full sun or partial shade, and it needs well-drained soil.

Cut back plants to 2 feet when flower buds start to form (midsummer) to prevent flowering and to keep the plants from getting floppy. In cold-winter climates, apply a layer of thick organic mulch — such as straw — over the roots in the winter.

Tarragon's aniselike flavor makes it a wonderful addition to salads, fish, chicken, sauces, and vinegar. Tarragon leaves have the best flavor if you use them fresh in early summer or freeze them for later use. Store fresh tarragon in the refrigerator in a plastic bag with a moist paper towel wrapped around the base. Freeze stems with leaves attached in small plastic bags. Drying some of the harvest is also an option, but the leaves can lose a lot of their flavor if you let them dry too long. To dry, hang in bunches in a warm, well-ventilated room out of direct sunlight. They should dry within a week. Pack them in an airtight container as soon as they're dry.

Mint

The mint family offers a tremendous diversity of refreshing scents and tastes for cooking, beverages, and potpourris. Consider these varieties:

Spearmint (Menthe spicata) is most commonly used in the kitchen for mint juleps, sauces, jellies, and teas, or to highlight flavor in a fruit salad. It's very fragrant and grows 2 to 3 feet tall with pale violet blooms in mid to late summer.

Peppermint (M. piperita) is another popular mint with a strong aroma; it grows 3 feet tall with smooth, 1- to 3-inch-long leaves and blooms in midsummer.

Another dozen or so mint varieties include some interesting types such as orange, ginger, chocolate, and apple mint. They're available from garden centers or mail-order herb suppliers (see the appendix for addresses).

Start with one or two plants and set them 2 feet apart in a sunny or shady location with rich, moist soil. These perennial plants will quickly fill in the open area between them. Use a light mulch to maintain soil moisture and to keep the leaves dry and off the ground. You can easily propagate mint plants by dividing the clumps, so you can share your plants with friends.

Many types of mint are very invasive, growing into other garden space, especially in rich, moist soil. So unless you grow them in pots or with some kind of confinement, such as metal or plastic (to a depth of 14 inches), they can become a very troublesome weed. I once had mint take over my herb garden in just a year, crowding out all the other herbs. So beware! Figure 12-2 shows you how to plant mint in pots buried in the ground; make sure that the lip of each pot is above the soil line. And remember: Don't let the plants get too thick. Cut them back frequently to promote fresh growth.

Pick young or old mint leaves as soon as you need them throughout the growing season. You can easily dry mint leaves on trays or by hanging bunched branches upside down in a dark, warm, well-ventilated area. The leaves are easy to freeze too; just place the leaves in plastic bags. Store fresh mint in the refrigerator similar to how you would dill.

Oregano

You can grow several types of oregano; I recommend only one for kitchen use. Others do have a mild oregano flavor, but they taste like hay; they're best used as border plantings or for wreathmaking.

The oregano most often used in cooking is Oreganum heracleoticum, and it goes by the common names Greek oregano, winter sweet marjoram, and Italian oregano. It's a hardy, perennial plant that establishes quickly, getting no taller than 6 to 8 inches, making it perfect for container growing. I prefer it over common oregano (O. vulgare), which isn't as flavorful. However, common oregano is lovely; it's covered with ornamental lavender-colored flowers in summer that dry well, are often used in wreaths, and are irresistible to bees.

You can start oregano from seed planted after the last spring frost, divide established beds to get new plants, or buy transplants at a garden center. Planting in rich, fertile soil and full sun is best. When the plants are 3 to 4 inches tall and wide (a few weeks after planting), thin them to stand 8 to 10 inches apart. Trim back or prune the plants before they flower (about 5 to 6 weeks after planting).

Harvest oregano leaves as you need them, but remember that you'll get optimal flavor just before the flowers bloom. Use the trimmings in your cooking. After trimming, wait for new growth and use as needed. Oregano leaves dry easily and store well, and you also can freeze them. Dry and freeze the leaves similar to how you would mint.

Parsley

Parsley deserves recognition for more than just its role as a garnish. It's also a good breath freshener that's rich in iron and vitamin C. The curly leafed parsley (Petroselinum crispum), which comes in many varieties, is the most common type because it makes such an attractive garnish. For cooking, the flat-leafed parsley or Italian parsley (P. crispum neapolitanum) is preferable; it's easier to work with and has better flavor than curly leafed parsley. I use both to make a delicious and healthful green shake consisting of parsley, bananas, and water! It's not for everyone, but I love it. You also can use parsley as a substitution for basil when making pesto.

Although parsley is a biennial (it grows leaves the first year and goes to flower and seed the second), it grows best if you sow seeds every year because the flavor is diminished in the second season. Growing parsley from seed, however, requires patience because the seedlings can take up to 4 weeks to emerge from the soil. Soaking seeds overnight in warm water before planting speeds germination.

Sow seeds in individual pots indoors, plant seeds outside in your garden after the first frost, or purchase transplants from a local garden center (the easiest way to go). Plants do well in sun or partial shade, and they prefer rich, moist soil. Choose a weed-free area when sowing seeds in your garden — you don't want a jungle to grow while you wait for your seeds to germinate. Parsley can handle cold weather, so start seeding 3 to 4 weeks before the last spring frost. In mild-winter areas, you can plant seeds in fall for a winter harvest, but plants will go to seed early the next spring. When the plants have four leaves, thin them to stand 6 to 10 inches apart. Provide the plants an even supply of water throughout the summer.

To harvest parsley, cut the outer leaves from the plant as you need them. To dry parsley, cut the plant at the soil level (you can cut as much of the plant as you want to dry; it will grow back from a complete cutting) and hang it in a shady, warm, well-ventilated area. After it's thoroughly dried, crumble the parsley and store it in an airtight container. I also like to freeze the fresh leaves to use in the winter, adding them to soups and stews. To keep parsley fresh as long as possible, store it in the refrigerator, with the leaf stalks in water.

Rosemary

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a perennial herb that can be low-growing and spreading or 3 to 5 feet tall and wide, depending on the selection. Most varieties are only reliably hardy to USDA zone 9 (see the appendix for more on zones), so gardeners in cold climates need to grow the plant in a pot and move it to a protected spot in winter (and replant in spring) or grow it like an annual herb. ‘Arp' is a cold-tolerant variety that can be grown in USDA zone 6 if protected in the winter with light mulch. Where rosemary plants are kept as perennials year-round, they can be trimmed into hedges or made into topiaries.

The blue-green rosemary leaves are highly aromatic and great roasted with potatoes and used in soups, stews, and casseroles. I've even used the branches as shish kebab skewers, giving the vegetables a super rosemary flavor. The attractive plant also produces beautiful blue flowers in summer that bees adore.

Purchase rosemary transplants at your local garden center; seeds germinate slowly and erratically. Usually one or two plants are plenty for typical family use. Drought-tolerant rosemary thrives in full sun on well-drained soil. Plant rosemary in spring about 1 to 2 feet apart depending on the variety. Amend the soil lightly with compost. Periodically pinch back any errant branches in summer to keep the plant bushy. Leaves can be dried and stems frozen for winter use similar to French tarragon.

Rosemary makes an excellent container plant — especially the low-growing prostrate varieties, such as ‘Collingwood Ingram'. Keep the soil moist but not wet. In cold areas in fall, bring the plant indoors to a sunny, well-ventilated location. Cut back on watering, but mist weekly with tepid water; the plant should survive the winter to be planted in spring.

Sage

Sage encompasses a large group of plants, although only a few are really considered good culinary herbs. Most types of sage are perennials in all but the coldest winter areas. First and foremost among the culinary herbs is garden sage (Salvia officinalis), a hardy perennial recognized by its gray-green foliage and beautiful blue flowers in the spring. Plants can get quite tall (more than 2 feet) and leggy, so the dwarf type (such as S. o. ‘Nana') is a better, more compact form. The dwarf type has equally good flavor but isn't quite as hardy as its garden counterpart.

Several varieties of garden sage have ornamental leaf color. Purple sage (S. o. ‘Purpurescens'), golden sage (S. o. ‘Aurea'), and tricolor sage (S. o. ‘Tricolor') can add beautiful color to your garden and your dishes.

You can easily start sage plants indoors from seed or in your garden in early spring. However, plants grown from seed may not have the same leaf shape and color as their parent. A better way to grow true-to-form, high-quality sage is to grow cuttings from a friend's best-looking plants. Or opt to purchase plants from a nursery.

Set plants or thin seedlings to stand 24 to 30 inches apart. Sage thrives in full sun and well-drained soil. After the plants are established (a few weeks), they prefer the soil to be on the dry side. Each spring prune the heavier, woody stems from the plants. The leaf production and vigor of the plants drop off after 4 or 5 years, so dig up older plants and replace them with new ones every couple of years.

You can harvest the leaves at any time and use them in a variety of meat-based dishes, such as chicken marsala and veal scaloppini. The leaves keep well dried or frozen. Dry and freeze sage leaves similar to French tarragon. Sage leaves intensify in flavor when frozen.

Don't harvest sage plants too heavily the first year; leave at least half of each plant intact to give the plants time to get established.

Thyme

The thyme family of herbs is aromatic, versatile, and plentiful — more than 50 varieties are grown for culinary or ornamental use. Creeping varieties of thyme are good as edging plants and in rock gardens. Most thymes are perennial and reliably hardy, except in cold-winter areas. Here are a few common varieties:

Cooking thyme: The thyme most often used in cooking is known as English thyme (Thymus vulgaris). Like the other thymes, English thyme has woody stems with small oval leaves. It grows only 8 to 12 inches high (many other thymes are even shorter). Thyme is used in many dishes including fish and meats.

Lemon thyme: Loved for its lemony scent, lemon thyme (T. citriodorus) is a delightful plant for both your garden and kitchen. Some varieties have both silver and yellow variegated leaves (leaves that sport two or more colors). Lemon thyme is a wonderful ground cover and an excellent container plant.

Caraway thyme: Caraway thyme (T. herba-barona) is a low-growing plant that combines the fragrance of caraway and thyme; it has dark green leaves.

Thyme seeds are troublesome to start because they germinate slowly and unevenly. Instead of starting from seed, buy a plant or two from a nursery, and plant them in the spring in light, well-drained soil that receives full sun. You also can start plants from cuttings if a friend is willing to part with some. Space plants 9 inches apart. Where winters are cold, mulch the thyme plants after the ground freezes with a light mulch, such as pine needles. Trim the plants back a bit in the spring and summer to contain them and prevent the buildup of woody growth.

Like oregano, thyme makes an excellent container plant. Creeping varieties grow well in windowboxes and hanging pots. Taller varieties look great combined with annual flowers such as lobelia. You can harvest thyme leaves and sprigs all summer. In early fall, cut the sprigs, tie them together, and hang them upside down in a warm, dark, well-ventilated place to dry. You also can dry stemless leaves on a tray or freeze them. Freeze stems of thyme in plastic bags. Store fresh thyme in the refrigerator as you would dill.

Making Your Landscape Blossom with Edible Flowers

With your edible landscape it seems that you could be eating almost anything in your yard, so why not the flowers? That's right, many flowers are edible. Now I'm not saying that all edible flowers pack a huge flavor punch, but putting a few in a salad adds pizazz and color.

Plant edible flowers anywhere you'd naturally plant other flowers. They look great in containers, in the vegetable garden, along a walkway, or mixed with other annual flowers. Even though you'll be picking some of the flowers, the beauty of these plants is that they produce an abundance of flowers so they'll still look good even after a harvest.

Here are some edible flowers to munch on. Remember that flowers should be washed before eating, and don't harvest flowers that have been sprayed with pesticides. Some people may be allergic to the pollen-bearing parts of a flower so eat only the flower petals.

Apples

Bee balm

Calendulas

Borage

Dandelions

Daylilies

Hibiscus

Lavender

Lilacs

Signet marigolds

Nasturtium

Pansies

Red clover

Roses

Tulips

Violets

Although some flowers are edible, many others are poisonous. Make sure that you know what you're picking before you eat it. And don't let young children or pets eat flowers unattended.

For more information on edible flowers, check out the book Edible Flowers: From Garden to Kitchen by Kathy Brown (Aquamarine Publishers, 2008). A good publication on edible flowers and poisonous plants can be found at attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/PDF/edibleflowers.pdf.