A few weeks ago, I wrote a column about growing herbs in containers. Containers are, however, just a part of the herb gardening story. In fact, container gardening is just a very small part of the story. If you visit historic gardens – the plantation gardens here in South Carolina and the European Monastic Gardens of the 12th and 13th century for example – you will almost always encounter gardens devoted to growing herbs. Herbs have been used for seasonings, medicine and sorcery for thousands of years.

Some herb gardens are very formal in style, the classic knot garden and geometric beds of carefully clipped herbs being examples. Other herb gardens consist of carefully labeled specimen plants and could be called collectors’ gardens. Some herb gardens are highly ornamental while others are purely practical.

A common definition used to describe herbs is “a plant or plant part valued for its medicinal, savory or aromatic qualities.” If an herb is a plant with a use as a seasoning, fragrance, dye, fiber or medicine, then an herb garden is a garden of useful plants. However, today’s herb garden often contains plants that have not or are not now considered useful herbs in this traditional sense. The modern herb garden, like other home gardens takes many forms and can be an attractive part of the home landscape.

A few culinary herbs in a small bed by the back door are a common place where herb gardeners get started. Fresh basil, sage, thyme, chives, oregano and rosemary are welcome additions to home cooking. Mint is a great addition to ice tea and absolutely required for a Mint Julep.

Most herb gardens today include some useful culinary herbs and many include some of the historic medicinal herbs. Some of the most common culinary herbs include thyme, basil, oregano, mint and rosemary. Common medicinal herbs include rue, feverfew, chamomile and purple coneflower (Echinacea). However, these are just a few – there are literally thousands of different plants that can be and are included in herb gardens. Some common herbs, thyme and basil for example, have many varieties, with more appearing in the garden catalogs every year.

Some herbs such as rue (Ruta graveolens) can repel some obnoxious insects from the garden. Rue is just one herb that is said to deter insects in the garden. Peppermint is said to repel ants, the white cabbage moth, aphids and the flea beetle. Garlic discourages aphids, the flea and Japanese beetles as well as spider mites. Perennial chives also repel aphids and spider mites. Chives are often planted among roses to keep aphids away and to resist the disease, black spot. Basil drives away both flies and mosquitoes. Borage is said to deter the tomato hornworm and rosemary and sage to repel cabbage moths, bean beetles and carrot flies.

Herbs can also be used to attract beneficial insects to your garden. Perennial yarrow for example, attracts ladybugs that consume masses of aphids. Basil really adds to the flavor of cooked tomatoes and basil and tomatoes seem to grow better when they are planted in close proximity to each other.

Annual marigolds can be used anywhere to deter the Mexican bean beetle, squash bug, thrips, tomato hornworm and whiteflies. They are also known to repel harmful root knot nematodes (soil-dwelling microscopic white worms) that attack tomatoes, potatoes, roses and strawberries.

Most herbs need sandy, dry, fertile soil and many will withstand the heat of a South Carolina summer.

Mints are very popular herbs with many different varieties, but can be a problem for the home gardener. They can be invasive and this can become a problem. Most authorities recommend containing them in sunken pots or using some type of barrier. My mother had a bed of mint by the patio, which had invaded the lawn bordering the bed. Every time the grass was mowed we enjoyed the strong fragrance of the fresh cut mint and considered this invasion a plus rather than a problem.

Most garden centers include a few herb plants, enough to get started, but nowhere near enough to satisfy the serious herb gardener. Fortunately many herbs are easy to start from seed and others can be started from cuttings. Pete’s Herbs, on John’s Island is worth a visit. Pete has hundreds of varieties available as small plants. There are also many mail-order sources of herb seeds and plants.

By Jim Lang
©2002 Times Publishing, Inc.
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