Herbs ripe with history

Scents of rosemary, basil and thyme send your nose into a tailspin when you enter the herb garden behind historic Shields Tavern in Colonial Williamsburg.

Fennel, tansy, germander and comfrey bloom in shades of white, yellow and pink, adding touches of color to the otherwise green surroundings.

“Herbs are useful plants,” explained Linda Lucas, a garden programs volunteer for the historic area.

She also is a Williamsburg/James City County master gardener with Virginia Cooperative Extension and a member of the Colonial Triangle of Virginia Unit, Herb Society of America.

“They are used for culinary purposes mostly but were also used for medicinal purposes during the colonists’ time.”

“Many herbs are native to the Mediterranean area where it’s hilly, rocky and dry with good drainage, so they need special treatment when we grow them here,” she said.

Root rot from too much water is a major problem for herbs. To combat that, plant them in containers or raised beds with good drainage, she advises.

You also can add a little perlite or vermulite to the soil to create more holes for better drainage.

Foliar fungus, often caused by rain kicking up soil-borne spores onto leaves, is another big headache that can be helped when plants are spaced for better air circulation.

To keep herbal plants healthy, in general, avoid using hardwood mulch because it keeps the soil too moist.

Instead, mulch with pine straw, tiny pebbles or crushed shells, which provide better aeration and drainage.

When it comes to routine care, herbs are minimalists. They require little fertilizer, benefitting from a light application of compost in the fall. In spring, give herbs a light feeding of something natural like fish emulsion or seaweed extract mixed with water.

Herbs do, however, thrive on regular cuttings.

“I have lots of creeping thyme, the very low-growing kind, at home,” Lucas said. “I don’t do much to it, just prune out the dead stuff and let it go.

“Grab it by the handful, cut a third of the length and then it develops new growth along the stems,” she said, pointing to the ground where creeping thyme grows at the edge.

“Rosemary does better if you remove one-third of the branches all the way down in the spring. This thins it out to let breezes keep it dry. You want to keep the leaves dry to avoid foliar fungus. Then you can trim about one third off the height.

“Bee balm, on the other hand, should be deadheaded and pruned back to the ground when the blooming stops in the fall. It will return in spring.”

While many herbs are perennials, returning year after year from their root stock, some like basil are annuals, meaning they live for only a growing season.

Prized for the subtle peppery taste of its leaves, basil should not be allowed to flower because the plant will think its work is done and die. Instead, prune basil, which thrives in warm weather, to where you still have four to five rows of leaves.

“This keeps basil from getting woody, and it spreads out, making more leaves for you to harvest,” Lucas said.

“And, although parsley is a biannual (grows for two years), treat it as an annual because the flavor is bitter when it puts up a flower stalk.”

Reverse your thinking when you grow cilantro, also an annual but a cool-weather lover.

Grown for its citrus-tasting leaves, cilantro quickly bolts in warm weather, which is a good thing because you then get coriander seeds from the flower stalk. In August, seed cilantro again to enjoy a fall crop.

“Overall, herbs are fun and easy to grow if you just follow a few basic steps,” Lucas said.