Herbs are a group of plants that are as useful today as they were centuries ago, and thank goodness for that. Their good looks, easy care, and delicious tastes and smells make them stars in gardens and landscapes. Mid-summer is the prime time for eating fresh, homegrown fruits and vegetables, and a great time to use herbs to zhuzh up what’s on your plate now and to preserve for later use.
A simple definition of herbs are plants that are grown for their fresh and dried leaves for use in the culinary, medicinal, and cosmetic worlds, that also can be used to make crafts, dyes and home care products. Herbs encompass a broad group of plants, including woody perennial plants (lavender, rosemary), nonwoody perennials (chives, lemon balm), annuals (dill, basil), and biennials (parsley, angelica). There are many more in each category. Herbs grow well together in garden landscapes but can have subtle differences when it comes to pruning back in spring, timing of harvests, uses and preservation (drying, freezing, etc).
Spices, on the other hand, are the bark, roots, leaves and seeds from mostly tropical plants. One common plant we know as an herb also produces a spice: Cilantro leaves are used in dozens of dishes while the seeds of its plant are the spice coriander.
Many gardeners include herbs in their landscapes for their foliage and flowers, and to draw in pollinators and other beneficial insects. But they might be missing out on using those herbs in traditional ways. Get beyond the pretty and start using them in food and for feeling and looking good!
Mark Angelos knows herbs well; he has been growing them for decades at his Denver metro home. He started out growing perennials at a young age, but had a mid-life plant crisis to the point where he was losing interest until he discovered herbs and their many benefits. Mark started out reading about herbs, then joined The Rocky Mountain Unit of The Herb Society of America to learn more and meet other herb enthusiasts.
Mark became smitten with herbs and remains so today.
“Every herb is magical — take a tomato and add oregano or basil or thyme and it makes culinary magic,” he says. He describes herbs as magical medicine, too. “They aren’t an illusion, herbs can have positive effects on our bodies.”
The first herb he grew was basil, but now he grows scores of herbs and at one point had an entire front and back yard full of herbs.
Members of the local herb society and Mark have maintained the herb garden at The Hudson Gardens and Event Center for twenty years. The herbs, which include over one hundred species, are well labeled and organized under culinary, medicinal, local native and Mediterranean origin categories. Be sure to visit this beautiful free-admission garden in Littleton off South Santa Fe Drive, which is open from sunrise to sunset daily.
Mark’s herbal tips include drying tulsi basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum) and nettle (Urtica dioica) leaves to make a calming, restorative tea. “Lemon grass also makes wonderful-tasting tea combined with chamomile leaves.”
His go-to herbs for Mediterranean, Italian and Greek cooking include dill, mint, basil and cayenne. Mark makes fresh ice cream and cookies combining coriander seeds and cinnamon for unexpected, tasty treats. He calls coriander seeds his secret ingredient. He uses tarragon leaves, as many people do, for chicken, fish and sauce dishes. However, one of his favorite uses for the leaves is in floral arrangements, especially combined with aster and daisy plants. Tarragon adds attractive color contrast and phenomenal filler texture.
A handful of Mark’s favorite herbs
Spanish Sage, also called lavender sage (Salvia lavandulifolia), is a perennial. A wonderful alternative to traditional garden sage, Spanish sage doesn’t have the strong camphor taste, so it is pleasing for tea and any recipe calling for culinary sage. It is suitable for Zone 5 and needs a compact growth habit. It is very aromatic with beautiful blue booms and grows to 2’ x 2’. It is very drought tolerant when established and works in any garden style. Purchase established plants in spring.
Dill (Anethum graveolens) is an annual. No potato salad is complete without dill. Use it fresh on fish, vegetables, eggs, cucumbers, cottage cheese, or in dips. Try baking the leaves into bread for a savory taste. Sprinkle seeds anywhere in the landscape for a pop of yellow in mid-summer. Dill grows to 4 feet and re-seeds easily. It attracts honeybees and beneficial parasitic wasps and is a host for swallowtail butterfly caterpillars (Let them eat the plant, they won’t do much damage!). Hot weather causes dill to flower. Collect seeds for pickles as soon as flowers open and freeze leaves in airtight containers where it will hold its flavor. Dill also can be grown indoors for winter use.
Coriander (Coriandrum sativum), also known as cilantro in its leaf form, is an annual. Resembling flat-leaf parsley, the flavor is often said to be an acquired taste. The plant produces lacy clusters of tiny white, pink or purple flowers two to three months after sowing. The seeds follow flowering and have a sweet, peppery overtone with a hint of orange. The seeds, leaves and roots are all edible. Pick fresh leaves starting when the plant is about six or more inches tall. Cilantro keeps in the refrigerator for ten days or so if wrapped in a damp towel and enclosed in a plastic bag. It does not dry well. Use the leaves in salsa, tomato sauce, guacamole, and on beans, poultry, salads and vegetables.
French tarragon (Artemesia dracunculus) is a perennial. Plants are large, shrubby, dark, shiny gray-green leaves with smooth edges. It might look similar to rosemary, but it has a more open growth habit and is much hardier than rosemary in zone 5 growing areas. It produces loose clusters of small yellow flowers in mid-summer. Like dill, it can be grown indoors. Its flavor is described as anise-like. Tarragon is essential in making bearnaise and hollandaise sauces, and also is commonly used in salad dressings and vinaigrettes. Use it to flavor fish, meat, veal, omelets, quiche, and mushroom and spinach dishes. Try adding it to grilled or steamed vegetables. Tarragon is best picked just prior to use. To dry, cut whole branches and hang them in an airy, dark location or strip the leaves off the branches and place on a cookie sheet to dry. Freezing preserves the flavor better than drying. Freeze leaves in ice cubes, oil or butter.
For additional herb use ideas and preservation tips, check on the links. Happy herb gardening!
Betty Cahill speaks and writes about gardening in the Rocky Mountain Region.
Learn more
Dietary Supplements: Herbals and Botanicals https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/nutrition-food-safety-health/dietary-supplements-herbals-and-botanicals-9-370/
Herbs: Preserving and Using https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/nutrition-food-safety-health/herbs-preserving-and-using-9-335/
“Homegrown Herbs” by Tammi Hartung, a Colorado author
Making Favored Vinegars: https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/nutrition-food-safety-health/flavored-vinegars-and-oils-9-340/
The Hudson Gardens and Event Center: hudsongardens.org
The Rocky Mountain Unit of the Herb Society of America: herbsociety.org/about/hsa-units-and-districts/hsa-units/hsa-rocky-mountain.html
