GARDENS
just buying the plants, but it is a labor of love.”
The love she lavishes on her garden shows. It was selected
by Heathcote Botanical Gardens for the 2007 Hidden Gardens
Tour. “It’s a wonderful example of a home garden that someone
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with an ordinary yard could create, and it can be done
on any size budget,” says Lee Whitridge, who was part of
the committee which selected outstanding gardens for the
annual tour.
Herbs are generally thought of as being culinary, medicinal,
or aromatic, although many fall into two or three categories.
Most have multiple varieties.
Thyme (pronounced “time”), for instance, comes in 350
varieties. Used in cooking today, the ancient Greeks thought
it conferred courage and burned it as incense. Placed under
pillows in Europe in the Middle Ages, it was said to
prevent nightmares.
Rosemary, popular for spaghetti sauce, was thought of in
Ancient Greece as a memory aid, and students placed pieces
of it in their hair while studying. “There’s rosemary, that’s
for remembrance,” said Ophelia in Shakespeare’s Hamlet,
written in 1600.
Oregano, easy to grow in Southern gardens and used to
flavor tomato dishes, is enjoying great popularity today for
medicinal purposes. Jewel-like green mint jelly or striking
bottles of red or white vinegar featuring whole herb sprigs
upright inside make good gifts, she says.
Herbs can be used to decorate or to give as gifts, extending
their use beyond the cooking pot and medicine chest,
Charles says.
Pungent aromatic herbs are used in potpourri, or to make
wreaths. Herbal wreaths can feature the purple flowers of
Mexican Bush Sage, the fragrant foliage of Artemisia, and
spiky lavender flowers. Homemade soap and handmade
paper can feature herbs as well.
“It is very easy to grow herbs in south Florida,” Charles
says. “Fall, winter and spring are the best seasons. If you
cook with herbs it is good to plant them as close to your
kitchen as possible for easy access.”
Above, leaf basil's easily torn emerald-green leaves are used in Italian
dishes. The plant will eventually produce small blue flowers in a spike at
the top. Left, comfrey leaves are large and are very soft to the touch. The
plant grows in a "pillow" shape making it excellent as an anchor for a
back corner of your herb garden. It can be used as a poultice for bruises
on the skin. Below, nasturtiums, which can be used in salads, grow on a
fence. They produce bright orange and gold flowers.