[chrissie B]

im thinking of putting lots of herbs around the garden next year , my soil ranges from hard sandy gritty stuff to heavy dark stuff at the other end of the garden , i already have sage ,rosrmary and thyme which is a bit on the straggly side .i would like to fill the garden with herbs ,
question
do they like heat.
will they grow in realy rubbish soil.
will they grow all year round , i mean which ones will stay in the garden without reseeding , like rosemary.
i think thats all for now
chrissie b

[gregmcalister]

As far as I know things like rosemary and oregano originated in the Mediterranean and are used to heat and poor soils.  I don't suppose a bit of compost mixed in when planting will do any harm though.

[WG.]

Which of these do you plan to grow Chrissie & I'll give you some details ?

Rosemary
Hamburg Parsley
Flat-leaved Parsley
Curled Parsley
Coriander
Sage
Thyme
Sweet Bay
Fenugreek
Chives
Oregano  
Dill  
Lemon Balm
Basil  
Mint  
Lovage
Sorrel
French tarragon
Tarragon
Horseradish

[Heather_S]

I don't do anything to my cruddy clay soil and somehow my sage and thyme grows fine as does my mint. But generally woody herbs seem happier with me. Full sun is usually the order of the day for herbs, only a few do better in partial shade.

[chrissie B]

corriander tryed that it grew very quick seeded and died.
parsley bit puney.
sage no problem
thyme bit straggly , i transplanted it.
chives are just looking good now ,garlic ones
dill frizzled out quickly
basil no probs
mint no probs.

what i want is tarragon ,lime basil,camomile for my lawn and want to pick the ones that are there all the time if you know what i mean,  so will these survive a heavy type of soil as i have a patch down the bottom of the garden needs filling , it has what i call a small rockery and a work in progress.
hope you can help
chrissie b

[muntjac]

id dig it over clearing any rubbish and then make a  series of small beds maybe a foot square for all the small stuff . take planking 6inch deep .and cut a slot in each one kinda like what you find when you buy a wine box with the divisions in . place it in the ground after treeating it with cuprinol  and then plant your herbs in the boxes .i wouldnt worry about having crappy soil other than throwing some compost in the mix .then just feed with growmore fertiliser a loose handful per sq yard is fine once  a year  

 remember my herb rack thread for smaller spaces

http://www.chat.allotment-garden.org/viewtopic.php?t=1947&highlight=herb+rack

[WG.]

want to pick the ones that are there all the time if you know what i mean

If you want to grow only perennial herbs, that rules out coriander, dill, parsley, fenugreek, chervil.  Does basil overwinter for you?

[chrissie B]

ive never grown it through the winter and ive noticed the greeks dont seem to have the plants around , but i just threw some seeds from this years basil in a pot and they have started to come up so if it lives then i might bring some in and leave some in the pot to see how it fairs .
when the cooler weather comes we are having a plant movearound to free
up some space in a more sunny position ..
can you give me an idea of the more permanant herbs please ,here ther isnt much choice so they will have to come from uk .
chrissie b

[Annie]

Oregano will grow in really rubbish soil if you put a plant in ,not from seed,it may look weak for a while but will eventually take off,good for bees if you don`t cook from it.Do you cut your thyme back hard(shears)after flowering ,it seems drastic but it makes a hugh difference.Sage gets leggy after afew years so take cuttings,3 to a pot, and plant out together in spring for instant impact,I do this every 3 years.Parsley,I have this year round so am not sure why yours isn`t doingwell,I`ve just sown some and they seem to germinate Quickly this time of year.

[chrissie B]

i have some lemon balm , i didnt plant it just woke one morning and there it was growing under one of my roses , the stems dont look hard ones , will it die cos its lovley , there are no flowers just lemony leaves which i might get some iced tea from , (if no more posts after this one then i poisened myself)it is growing very quick , will it seed  :?:
chrissie b

[WG.]

Lemon Balm freely seeds itself - which is doubtless where your own plant came from.   Flowers are white and very small.  It will die back in winter & regrow in spring.

I suggest you replant it in a container since the root structure grows very solid.  Not invasive in the way that mint is (runners), but your roses won't stand a chance in competition.

Search for Melissa Tea on Google

[mushroom]

Oregano will grow in really rubbish soil if you put a plant in ,not from seed,it may look weak for a while but will eventually take off

why not from seed? once they hit the 4-leaf stage, they go ape on my allotment. In 3 months, i now have 4 large clumps of oregano, each clump has about 5-6 plants in it, all from seed. Mind you, I started them off in modules.

Oregano is one of those that seems to thrive on poor soil, giving a better flavour on poor rather than rich soil. I threw a load of sand and stones into my herb bed before planting tho oregano out, to make the soil 'poor'.

[Annie]

I mean that if you are growing it in really rubbish ground sewing from seed is not reliable,I use it in the herb garden,from seed but one area is dry,concrete clay in tree root riddled soil,if I could go from seed I would as a hack was needed to make a hole into which i could cram a plant,abit of generous watering followed by complete neglact has resulteed in a 3'x3' healthy plant.The other areas I grow it in are equally inhospitable so it is joined by feverfew and lemonbalm.