Fresh herbs in garden. Anything to add?

me too.

Oh, and shiso, shiso, shiso. Love it and it grows well here.

Yes to Shiso!

For cocktails and tea, I also grow lemon verbena, lemon balm, and pineapple sage (it gets huge by end of Summer). I also grow lavender and lemongrass for drinks and food.

I grow as much and as many different types of thyme and rosemary as I can as I use those the most. I also have a bed just for regular chives, garlic chives, and scallions. I have to severely trim back my Italian and Golden Oregano every year as it’ll take over the herb bed if I don’t.

If I plant Shiso seeds now, do I have a chance of a crop.

Garlic chives AND onion chives
Sorrel
(And most of the above)

And micro greens, edible flowers, etc.

Some of us go deep . . .
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We have cilantro, parsley, basil, oregano, thyme, sage. A few types of each.

And rosemary.

The basil, cilantro, and parsley doesn’t like serious heat. I can keep the basil going by constant pruning, but I just let the rest go to seed and let those grow when it’s a bit cooler. I would definitely plant fennel but don’t have a lot of space. May try to do some anyway.

Rosemary doesn’t really belong in an herb garden though - it gets really huge so it’s used as a hedge. Fresh rosemary skewers for lamb kabobs are pretty good though.

The other thing you can grow Jay, are scallions. When you buy some at the store, snip off about a half inch from the bottom where the roots are and stick those in the ground. I haven’t purchased any for years - we use them in scrambled eggs and plenty of other things. Just keep harvesting the green parts and they keep growing back. Actually all the alliums do - in addition to herbs and tomatoes, we have shallots, red onions, and a few different kinds of garlic. We use the scapes and the bulbs. They can grow close together so you don’t need a lot of space.

I’d look for starts rather than seeds at this point.

This is the first yr for Borage, looking forward to using it, I added as a ground cover, whoa this thing grows and now the flowers are beginning to bloom

Shiso is in the mint/basil family and the plants can grow rather large when unchecked, but you should be able to get some tender plants if you plant now. They self sow and will grow back next year. If you want to swing by, I can give you some plants.

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I use my Shiso as a ground cover :slight_smile: , its like mint propagates everywhere

My herbs are in direct sunlight for a pretty significant part of the day. Wondering if I should move the basil to a shadier area as it can wilt a bit. It refreshes itself with water and overnight.

I love purple basil varieties. Try them as a substitute for cilantro. Excellent key ingredient in herb jelly.

Syrian oregano (Origanum syriacum) which is a bolder substitute for the common Italian oregano.

If you want a mint for jelly, look for applemint. Very distinct, attractive taller growth. Mellower in its mintiness with a prominent appley taste.

Where I am, I found basil does better in an area that gets dappled sunlight through the day (through tree canopies). They grow bigger, more healthy and abundantly leafy, than grown in the partial shade of my tomatoes, and aren’t trying to bolt there.

Traded mint and basil plants with Christine for two shiso plants. What do I do with the shiso once it gets big enough to harvest?

Jay,

I like it as a digestive finish for sushi, usually wrapped in daikon and carrot noddle’s and a bit of soy

Pinch off the top tender leaves like you do basil. Eat it with sushi. Chiffonade it and sprinkle it on dishes. Quick pickle the bigger leaves. Marinated Perilla Leaves (Kkaennip-jangajji) | Saveur