herbs

for several years now we've been keeping an herb garden on the tar beach. we grow some pretty standard things every year and then try something different each year. if it does well and we like it we add it to the annuals, if not we try something different. some of the things we grow are actually perennials which we have been able to keep going for years. for instance the chives.

THE CHIVES the plant we have this year we have had for three years now and it was just this little sprig when we started it. now it has gotten so big that last year at the end of the season we split the plant into three clumps and gave one to each of John's sisters this spring when they had started growing again. we just leave it out all winter and in the spring it comes back. in the first week of summer it grows these pretty little purple flowers that are edible and we like to toss them in salads or pasta dishes. they have a very intense oniony flavor. the thyme and the rosemary we have been able to keep from one year to the next with some success. last year our rosemary seemed to die out and we had to start with a fresh one this year though. in the spring they get these very tiny whitish flowers.

THE ROSEMARY (ALSO GETS HUGE)

THE THYME (ON THE LEFT) AND THE OREGANO (ON THE RIGHT) our thyme has come back from last year and looks like it will be doing well, right now it is in bloom with very small yellow flowers. our purple sage and oregano have also come back from last year and are doing well. i just used some of the oregano in my bolognese sauce tonite. that's one of my favorite italian sauces.

THE PURPLE SAGE


THE BASIL (doesn't look like much now but it gets HUGE) every year we also plant lots of basil with which we make tons of fresh pesto, and also use it fresh in pastas and salads. last year we tried mint for the first time and it did ok but not great. i think it was too exposed on the roof. we've tried cilantro a couple of times and cannot figure out why we have no luck with that one at all. we've done parsley a few times and this year too. our new herb this year is dill. last year we tried tomatoes and they did not really do so well. we had lots of flowers but the fruit just didn't seem to grow well and they kept splitting. maybe it was the type of tomato so this year we have two new different types to try. hopefully these will do well because there is nothing like fresh tomatoes. here's some pictures of our herbs so far.

OUR (VERY LITTLE) TOMATO PLANTS