Fresh herbs are delicious. They stimulate our senses with their flavor, color, and magic.

Adding freshly harvested herbs to your garden salsa, savory dill sauce, and homemade marinara will get rave reviews from family and guests.

Why not plant an herb garden? It doesn't have to be of a grand scale.

It can be a small garden consisting of three or four pots. You can fill a strawberry pot, or plant in a window box.

It doesn't matter what size your garden is. Enjoyment is the purpose of an herb garden, whether it is using the herbs or appreciating their fragrance, textures and blooms.

Botanically, “herb” means a non-woody plant that dies down to the ground after flowering.

However, the term herb also includes plants with qualities that make them useful for cooking, personal care or medicinal purposes.

Herbs are annual, such as basil; biennial, such as parsley; or perennial, such as oregano.

In our USDA plant hardiness Zones 5 to 6 we can grow many perennial and biennial herbs with winter protection.

Our growing season is long enough to allow for a large variety of annual herbs as well.

Soil

Soil quality is one of the most important factors in successful herb gardening. Herbs do not like soggy soil, so good drainage is important.

If your soil is poor, adding organic matter over a period of time will improve drainage.

Soil fertility is also important. You should perform a soil test every three years to determine the soil's nutrient needs. Most herbs like slightly acidic soil (pH level of approximately 5.5 to 7.0).

Do not over-fertilize your herbs. Highly fertile soils tend to produce excessive leaf growth, which dilutes the essential oil and flavor components of the herb.

If you plan to grow your herbs in pots, strawberry jars, or window boxes use a good quality potting soil.

Make sure the pots or boxes have drainage holes. To prevent soil from running out of the bottom, cover the drainage holes with clean gravel or pot shards.

Check your soil moisture daily to ensure the plants don't dry out. In extremely hot weather, check your herb pots a few times a day for watering needs.

Garden ideas

You can incorporate herbs in your vegetable garden and flower beds, or create a special herb garden.

For design ideas for formal herb areas, such as a knot garden, research patterns through the Herb Society of America, which has a Western Pennsylvania chapter.

To create an informal garden, first plant and label your perennial herbs, then fill in with annuals and biennials.

This will help you remember which plants will winter over and which can be thrown in the compost heap in the fall.

Most herbs can be grown from seed. Others, such as rosemary and bay laurel, should be purchased as plants as they are considered tender woody perennials in our hardiness zones.

Annual seeds can be sown directly into the ground. These are basil, dill, coriander (cilantro), chervil, some fennels, cumin, anise or borage, to name a few. Perennial and biennial seeds can also be sown directly into the ground.

Winter watch

Winter protection is essential to your biennials and perennials.

Mulch your plants with shredded leaves, loose straw, or any method you would normally use to protect your perennial plants or flowers. As with other perennials, wait until the ground has frozen before mulching. When new growth appears in the spring remove the mulch.

You can bring rosemary and bay laurel into the house in early fall.

Be careful to ”harden off” your plant to the temperature of your home by bringing it in for a few hours the first day, then a bit more over a period of a week.

With proper care, you will have a healthy plant that will live all winter.

When the planting season arrives, you can plant your prized herbs outside again. Just follow the same procedure to adjust your plant to the outdoors as you did when you brought it inside.

Remember that biennials and perennials do not typically bloom the first year. However, most herbs are grown for their leaves, which can be harvested once the plants have enough foliage to maintain growth.

When to pick

Pick the leaves or seeds after the morning dew has disappeared and before the sun becomes too hot. This method ensures good oil content.

If you want to dry your herbs for winter use, harvest the leaves before the plants flower. Seeds develop after the plant flowers and should be harvested at this time. Dill and coriander are prime examples of harvested and dried seed.

Typically, the herb leaves are used to flavor oils, vinegars and for culinary purposes.

You can preserve herbs by air-drying, oven drying, freezing or using a dehydrator. Wash the leaves with cold water, and drain thoroughly before drying.

Herbs have played many roles throughout history. They have been used to address gods, purify air and water, reward heroes, flavor foods and for a variety of medicinal purposes.

If you have questions about growing herbs or other gardening topic, contact the Master Gardener Greenline at 724-287-4761, Ext. 229.