If Only....

If you have certain foods you like to eat, here are the best herbs to grow to suit each type, - there are others, but these are those most commonly used and grown:

for fish dishes:
Grow fennel, dill, sorrel, thyme, parsley, sorrel. Some of these herbs don't like being in the hot sun, so keep them moist and grow in partial shade.

for poultry dishes:
Grow bay, parsley, thyme, tarragon, sage, lemon balm, lemon thyme. Again best grown in partial shade.

herbs that go with vegetables:
Rosemary, basil, mint, chives, celery leaf, chervil, lemon thyme, garlic. Rosemary likes full sun, bay full sun, but protection in the winter, the rest partial shade.

meat dishes:
Rosemary, mint, thyme, sage, marjoram/oregano, coriander, garlic. Rosemary and sage can stand sun, the others partial shade.

If having to make a limited choice would grow only: mint, chives, parsley, basil, rosemary and thyme, with the perennials preferably grown outdoors (containers or in the ground - we discovered a big bush or rosemary when me moved here, so one less to buy), the annuals more usually grown in pots standing on a south-facing windowsill. ALWAYS have a bay tree (planted in a sheltered spot will grow into an enormous bush - in Leeds our butcher would take whole branches of this herb in exchange for a bag of sausages! Here we have only a small bush in a pot - and this was a very welcome house-warming gift).

Join me tomorrow for yet another read about our Goode Life. See you then.