Articles

Spring Herb Gardening

A fresh pot of spring parsley
A fresh pot of spring flatleaf parsley ready for the picking. (Photo by Jessie Keith)

Spring is full of small revelations: the smell of thawing earth, the sight of early crocuses and the taste of the season’s first herbs. Some of those herbs are old standbys like chives, parsley, dill and cilantro. Others, including lovage, chervil and sorrel, have an equally long history, but are less well known today.

Now, as last frost dates gradually pass and gardens begin their annual emergence, it is time to start annual herbs indoors and watch as outdoor perennials and self-sown annuals begin sprouting in beds and borders. If you are new to herb growing, take the plunge and grow a few varieties from seed. The sooner you start, the sooner you will reap spring’s first and tastiest harvest.

Cilantro blooms
After cilantro blooms in spring, it sets coriander seed. (Photo by Jessie Keith)

Spring Herbs in the Parsley Family

Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is the best known member of Apiaceae, or the Parsley Family. It is biennial and available in curly and flat-leafed varieties. The green sprigs are such ubiquitous garnishes that it is easy to forget the distinct “green’ taste note that they add to all kinds of dishes. In classic French cookery, parsley stars in the traditional aromatic herb mixture known as fines herbes. It also makes a great breath freshener.
Chervil (Anthriscus cerefolium) or sweet cicily is another fines herbes component that also enlivens the luxurious flavor of Béarnaise sauce. Less celebrated than its relative, parsley, chervil’s delicate flavor combines parsley, citrus and licorice notes. The annual plant’s deeply dissected leaves have a similar lacy appearance.
Unlike many low-growing herbs, perennial lovage (Levisticum officinale) stands tall in the garden, often growing to six feet or more. It emerges in spring, bearing leaves with a celery-like flavor that intensifies through the growing season. The leaves are best eaten fresh, but the seeds can be ground to flavor winter dishes.
Fragrant annual dill (Anethum graveolens) is nearly as tall as lovage, sprouting up to five feet in spring. Best used fresh, the feathery dill leaves enhance spring foods, from fish to eggs. In the garden, those same leaves feed swallowtail butterfly larvae. Start sowing dill outside just before the last frost date and continue planting once a week until the last week of spring.  This should provide enough dill for both humans and butterflies.
Cilantro (Coriander sativum) is another lacy-leafed parsley relation, often used in Latin or Asian dishes. Some people seem hard-wired to hate it, while others relish the taste. The leaves of the annual plant are best used fresh and the aroma and flavor combine green notes with a discernable soapy undertone. Cilantro seeds are known as coriander, though in Europe and elsewhere, the leaves also go by that name.

Chives
Chives offer a mild, sweet onion flavor that adds freshness to dishes. (Photo by Jessie Keith)

Multi-Talented Chives

Perennial chives (Allium schoenoprasum) belong to the same strong-flavored tribe as onions and scallions, but the taste of the grass-like leaves and bulbs is more subtle. All parts of the plants are edible and the purple-pink flowers make a colorful addition to salads. A happy stand of chives quickly outgrows its boundaries, so be prepared to divide regularly.

Spring Sorrel

Sorrel (Rumex scutatus) is a perennial leafy green with a lemony flavor. Its spade-shaped leaves are mild tasting early in spring and more assertive later on. Used for both medicinal and culinary purposes since ancient times, sorrel is a traditional ingredient of European spring soups. It is hard to find, even in farmers’ markets, but easy to grow.

Planting Spring Herbs

To get a jump on spring, start herbs indoors at least a few weeks before the last spring frost date. Use small containers filled with quality seed-starting mixtures, like Fafard Organic Seed Starter. Distribute seeds evenly over moistened potting mix and cover with a thin layer of additional mix. Place pots in roomy plastic bags, seal and provide bright indirect light. When seedlings appear, remove the bags and check daily to make sure the soil remains moist. Thin seedlings, if necessary.
Before transplanting to outdoor containers or garden beds, move the young plants to a porch or other shady, protected location, to allow them time to acclimate to outdoor conditions. Then choose a porous potting mix, such as Fafard Professional Potting Mix, or amend beds with a rich soil additive such as Fafard Ultra Outdoor Planting Mix. Good care will ensure an early and bountiful harvest.

Herb boxes
These box planters are great for spring herb growers. (image care of Maureen Gilmer)

Berm Baby Berm with Garden Berms

For vegetable gardening, berms are where it’s at. They provide increased aeration and drainage when weather conditions are wet, and encourage deep and expansive root growth to help veggies endure heat and drought. Truly berms are the perfect alternative for gardeners that don’t want to be locked into raised beds or can’t build them.
Lots of vegetables benefit from friable, bermed soil. Root crops like carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes and rutabagas develop larger, more perfect roots for harvest. And vegetables requiring well-drained soil, like tomatoes, peppers and eggplant, will be safe from excess root moisture if planted on berms. And don’t forget melons; those planted in amended bermed beds tend to develop better fruits that are sweeter and more flavorful.
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So how do you berm? Before berming the soil up, till or deeply turn your soil. Next, establish planting rows or mounds. Once these are set, apply a generous amount of Fafard Premium Organic Compost and work it in until well mixed. Bed berming is best done with a hard rake. Pull and lift the soil up along the planting rows or mounds. This takes a little elbow grease, but the results are well worth it.
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Once the berms are created, put a layer of removable mulch cloth down and cover that with a layer of seed-free straw or grass clippings. This can help keep weeding down by up to 75%, helps keep moisture in and makes it easier to walk around the garden after a rain.
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It’s best to use a very lightweight mulch cloth that’s easy to pull away, roll up and reuse the following season.
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Before the plants are in the ground, the vegetable garden may look like a bumpy straw-covered mess, but once your garden has grown, you won’t even see the berms. Only beautiful garden will shine through.
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