My Herb Garden

The first known herb garden was created in the 10th century by the Benedictine Monks of St. Gall in Switzerland.But herbs have been grown and used for at least 5000 years.

Simply said, Herbs are a group of plants that have some other use than growing in a garden.Herbs have medicinal and culinary uses.

Ancient peoples used herbs as medicine and many of their uses are being acknowledged by science as valid. Modern science and technology are increasingly exploring herbs to be used in the manufacture of medicines, cosmetics and perfumes.

I grow herbs for culinary purposes and a few for their wonderful aroma.

My herb garden plan has four sections each divided by stone,brick or railway ties and each section has its various herbs. For instance I put the perennial herbs in one section and the annual herbs in another section. Sometimes if they bloom and scatter their seeds, the sections have a mixture of plants.

For culinary use I grow chives (both regular and garlic), dill, tarragon, borage, marigolds, coriander, fennel, spearmint, sweet basil and Thai basil, marjoram, oregano, curly parsley and Italian parsley, rosemary, sage, winter savory and summer savory and thyme.

I grow lavender, Russian sage , yarrow, coneflowers, and lady’s mantle for color and aroma.

My kitchen herb garden is located near the kitchen door, and here I have two bay trees as well as some spearmint ,stevia,marjoram and winter savory. This year I will add a chive plant to the plantings.

Herbs close to the kitchen door are easy to use in cooking.

Some herbs are very sensitive to the colder weather and when there is a sign of frost I immediately put some of the herbs in pots and take them in the house so that I can use them during the winter.

I have been successful in keeping, rosemary, basil, bay,mint, thyme and marjoram growing indoors over the winter and it adds to my enjoyment of winter cooking.

Herbs can also be dried successfully either by hanging in a warm area or putting them in a dehydrator. If I dry them, I then store them in the freezer for they keep better there.

Some herbs can also be frozen. This applies to chives, garlic chives and the parsleys. If you want to freeze basil, you can do so by blanching it first and then freezing it. If you do not blanch the basil, it will turn black when frozen.

Some herbs can be started from seed but others such as rosemary need to be started from cuttings. Small herb plants can also be purchased from garden centers.

When I make this pesto, I like to freeze it in an ice cube tray. When frozen, I remove the blocks into a plastic ziplock bag for use throughout the year.

Basil-Walnut Pesto

½ cup fresh parsley, snipped and loosely packed

½ cup fresh basil, snipped and loosely packed

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic or malt vinegar

2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons chicken broth

1 clove garlic minced

3 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts or try almonds or pecans

freshly ground pepper to taste

Combine and process all of the ingredients in a food processer or blender.

This recipe should yield 3/4 Cup pesto with approx. 30 calories per Tablespoon.

Nothing tastes better than this in the middle of winter!