Your favorite herbs

Herbs – Most people can instantly name their favorite wild animal: a giant tiger, a sleek python, a cuddly panda or a playful otter. The reason they state the affinity for the beings are many: a quality that the animal seems to imbibe, the habitat they live in or just the marvel of their physical attributes. After all who wouldn’t want to swim like a dolphin, soar like a condor or live in the rainforest canopy? But if you ask most people what their favorite herb is, the answers are slow to come, or something sarcastic about the one that is smokable. The answer comes slowly to me, too, not because I don’t know, but because I just can’t choose. The herbs in my garden bring me year-round beauty, joy and wonder.

Spring: In the herb garden, the lemon balm is the first to poke its leaves out from under the straw. Dark green and vibrant, it beckoned me to pick a leaf and sniff it. It whispered of bees and new batches of tea. Then came the Baikal skullcap, next the oregano and, finally, new bluish-green leaves at the base of the lavender emerged. Oh, and somewhere in there came the spearmint creeping into areas it shouldn’t. Clary Sage, too, begins popping up all over in sometimes very unusual places, not limiting itself to any garden at all. The patch of calendula, once again reseeded itself so well the young plants, practically form a mat. Once again, the growing season is on and these plants seem to thrive in Flagstaff’s unique growing environment.

Summer: Summer is the time for fresh herbs; calendula petals for salads, spearmint leaves for mojitos, lemon balm leaves for teas, oregano for savory sauces, lavender flowers in lemonade. The calendula I grow came originally from seeds from Thunderfoot Earthworks in the Verde Valley. The flower colors are the most vibrant shades of yellow and orange. So vibrant, they would be garish as clothing (unless you are a Lily Pulitzer fan). I happily get lost gazing at all the color variations: plain yellow, plain orange, orange centers with yellow rays, yellow centers with orange rays. Every year, I try to decide which combo is my favorite as I cut the flower heads for drying.

Somewhere around early to mid summer, I begin harvesting the herbs in earnest. For the oregano, lemon balm and spearmint, I dry the leaves, preferably before they begin flowering. To dry the herbs, cut sprigs of leaves, bundle them together with an elastic band and hang them upside down in a cool, dark room.

Fall: Somewhere after the hubbub of the new school year quiets down, I begin to strip the dried leaves for storage. The aromas of dried plants are pungent. Oregano has a slightly hairy feel and an earthy smell. Spearmint smells so strong it commands attention. Lavender flowers are slow to strip off the stem. It takes a lot of sprigs to get enough flowers. The calendula flowers are somewhat faded when dried but still stunning. Store the herbs in glass containers that are absolutely dry (even a little moisture can create a moldy, unusable mess) in a cool, dark place. Harvest enough for a year’s use.

Winter: Winter time is tea time. Sitting by the fire and drinking in favorite combinations of dried herbs, mixing my herbs with ones bought at Winter Sun. It is a time for making salves, shampoos and facial steam mixes. Outside all signs of the herbs greenery are gone, hidden under snow and frozen in the ground. But soon enough, the tender shoots or new seedlings will emerge starting the whole cycle over again.

I really am hard pressed to pick a favorite, and these are only the ones that I grow. This morning, it is lemon balm — its leaves looking so juicy and sweet. By midsummer it may be the purple blossoms of the dolphins-shaped skullcap or the heady scent of clary sage. Herbs, especially the mint family, grow easily and well in Flagstaff, despite drought, freezing and monsoons. Plant them yourself and find your favorite.

Ann Brown is a Master Gardener who is married with two daughters, a dog, a cat, and eight chickens, and who has a passion for herbs. Dana Prom Smith edits Gardening Etcetera, blogs at http://highcountrygardener.blogspot.com and emails at [email protected].

Bill & Sheila’s A-Z of herbs

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