5 Amazing Herbs To Start Your Own Herb Garden

Hello friends I hope this blog post is finding you all well and good on the journey this evening!

Have you ever wanted to grow an herb garden?  I am sure many of you have and I am betting some of you want to but haven’t yet….this blog post is meant to meet you where you are.  For example I loved herbs from an early age but they were such a mystery to me and we mostly grew tomatoes and cucumbers in our little garden when I was a child.  I then learned that herbs were these mysterious ingredients that rocked my palate when I got older and went out to eat and I also learned it was yummy oregano and basil that I so enjoyed on my pizza’s and in italian sauces over the years.  I got a little bit older and realized “Oh my goodness!  I can grow all this yummy goodness myself!” and I do!.  That being said I did have a few failures initially.  My first failure was treating herbs like vegetables and they aren’t vegetables.  As a matter of fact most herbs will do just fine with out much help from you unless you are experiencing a drought or a freeze for the most part they just want to grow and do their thing so I was just over thinking the whole thing to begin with.

I always wanted to be a backyard herbalist and then one day it finally happened…….you know what made the difference was how I thought of myself!
I bet you are a backyard herbalist to or at least well on your way.   Herbs are in particularly forgiving overall you really don’t need to be much of an expert to grow many of them….shhhhh that”s a trade secret! As an herb gardener I go out to the garden in the winter and sometimes….I just hold my breath in anticipation of all the beautiful herbs that will abound in the Spring. Sigh so close yet so far away….

What attracted me to herbs in the beginning was the fact that they literally completely changed the flavor of a dish but now I am also attracted to the the health benefits of herbs.  Although one of my favorite thing about herbs is their sweet and savory fragrances.  Thyme rocks a chicken soup or pot pie like nobody’s business.  Basil is to a tomato as Elvis is and was to Rock’ n Roll.

You get the idea…..I’m old school so old comparisons LOL!

Click all the links below to read more about each of these herbs!

Basil – Basil is so easy for us to grow here in Coastal North Carolina.  Did you know that basil is a member of the mint family?  I didn’t either and it serves more than just making a fabulous caprese salad and other recipes.  It actually has medicinal properties as well…..did you know that basil can settle your tummy and has anti-inflammation properties and the honeybees love the African Blue Basil!

I love pesto so check our my basil garlic scape pesto here it is so delicious!  In particular I love pesto over spaghetti squash…yum!

Comfrey – Comfrey was one of my first medicinal herbs and we have used it at our homestead for poultices and I can vouch it is very soothing.  I haven’t actually mended any bones but it is nice to know that I could if I needed to.  One important note is to never take comfrey internally!

Rosemary – Rosemary is one of my absolute favorite herbs….it’s fragrance truly does evoke memories for me and I will often rub it on the back of my neck and or inside my wrists and while its fabulous on a steak ….the fragrance indeed is mesmerizing to this gal.

We love to season our meats with rosemary and I never miss an opportunity!  I also make our dog River’s bath concoction with rosemary too….click here for the recipe!

Cuban Oregano – This herb can not only be used for cooking but is medicinal as well and all of these herbs including this one are fairly hardy although you will want to bring this one in when the weather gets cold but no worries it will thrive.

Check out this recipe from Feral Kitchen Grilled Cuban Oregano Chicken...YUM!

Yarrow – Yarrow is indeed the infection fighter and so easy to grow in North Carolina, not only that it grows all year-long outside in our area.  An extremely hardy plant with powerful properties.

Check out this recipe here from Forager Chef on cooking with yarrow…looks delish!

I also haven’t added it to my official list yet but fennel grows very well for us in our area too.  Just for a reminder we are in gardening Zone 8b if you are wondering and we can grow pretty much for three seasons and we can grow some items in the winter as well.

Research your opportunities to use these herbs and see how you might use them on your homestead.  What are your favorite herbs whether they are for recipes or medicinal in my opinion herbs are a necessary component and a pleasurable one at that for every homestead no matter what size.  Although some of these will grow out of control so be mindful of that when planting.  Herbs just have so many delicious and practical uses I actually can’t stop singing their praises.

What herbs do you plan to grown in 2017?  I am hoping to add some chocolate mint for one and maybe some lavender this year.  I would like to grow more edible flower as well.

I wish you all a beautiful week! Until next time…..

Fondly,

Disclaimer:

A note regarding Herbal Remedies or Home Apothecary Segments Any herbal remedies I share are just that….Yes I use them….but any items I post in regards to Home Apothecary or Herbal Remedies should be regarded as folk lore and not replace any information you get from your Medical Provider. To be a healer in ancient days took much knowledge and learning and any herbal remedy used improperly or without proper knowledge can cause an adverse reaction, mix improperly with other medications or even cause death so please always consult a medical provider.