Thought Eucalyptus was just a delicacy for koala bears?  Think again!  It’s actually a potent medicinal herb with a myriad of benefits. We were overjoyed a few years ago, when we discovered “Silver Drop” Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus gunnii), which is a much more cold hardy version of this Tasmanian native herb. After planting it throughout our farm, here in zone 7, it now thrives in our gardens and towers over us.

Used medicinally to relieve respiratory and chest congestion, ease coughs and soothe burns, Eucalyptus has long been used by Aboriginal tribes for its healing properties. Antiseptic components in the plant’s oil, like cineole- a chemical found in the herb’s oil that gives the plant its camphor-like, pungent aroma adds the active ingredient that makes Eucalyptus an expectorant. Often compared to Vick’s Vapor Rub, Eucalyptus has a strong, piney smell that aids in decongestion when inhaled.

To create your own decongestant, forget about the artificial drugstore remedies like Vick’s, and opt for the grease-less, natural source. Just boil some water, crush a cup of fresh ‘Silver Drop’ Eucalyptus leaves. Remove the water from the stove top, wait for it to stop bubbling, and toss in the leaves. Hover over the hot concoction with a towel over your head to collect the steam and breathe deeply until the water cools. You can then use the cooled Eucalyptus water as a fragrant hair or skin wash, to infuse your body with the plant’s fresh fragrance. I like to add lots of freshly crushed leaves to a satchel and place it in the floor of my shower where the hot water will release the essential oils into the steam. It’s a great way to open up your lungs if you’re asthmatic, clear a stuffy nose if you’re sick, or just relax and treat your body to a fresh fragrance after a long day.

Fennel is an often times overlooked and under appreciated herb. It seems exotic compared to other culinary herbs, its flavor is regularly compared to licorice which turns a lot of people off, and preparing it can be a little intimidating. Do you eat the bulb? Do you use the seeds? Do you chop the feathery fronds? The answer is YES. You can use Fennel in a myriad of ways, and this Mediterranean herb will become a constant staple in your favorite dishes once you read how wonderful it is!

Fennel is a terrific complimentary culinary herb, meaning, it enhances the flavors of other ingredients. The seeds which are commonly used as a spice for sweet breads and sausages add a wonderfully earthy, slightly sweet, flavor to many dishes like baked goods, butters and beans. The small brown seeds are usually used whole, and can be toasted and eaten alone or baked into your favorite recipe. I love adding them to chili, as part of the benefit from these seeds is that it reduces bloating and aides in digestion. Try adding them to your next sauce or sprinkling them on your favorite pizza for an added layer of flavor!

The bulb is also edible and is commonly grated into salads, roasted among meats or blanched and eaten with other vegetables. Having the consistency of celery, the bulb is easy to prepare. Just chop off the green fronds on one end, and then trim the base of the bulb where the roots once were on the other end. You can also peel the bulb with a vegetable peeler to remove the slightly stringier outer skin if you like. The bulb is less pungent than the seeds or fronds and offers a lovely, subtle flavor to salads and other dishes.

Lastly, we come to the plant’s feathery, Dill-like  fronds. Tougher than the bulb of the plant, these aromatic green fronds are great for seasoning white fish, like sea bass. Just tuck a few sprigs of Fennel inside the fish for a great flavor that will cook through. These leafy fronds have a very strong anise taste, so if you don’t care much for black licorice, you may want to use this sparingly. Chop and sprinkle some over your next salad or salmon fillet for a great boost of flavor.

Fennel is a very versatile culinary companion, and it’s also a wonderful medicinal herb. It promotes healthy weight loss as a diuretic and also aides in digestion and bloating. The carminative properties of the plant’s seeds also helps reduce gas. Sometimes sold under the name “star anise”, Fennel is also packed with nutrients and vitamins like calcium, vitamins C and B3 and iron, and makes a very beneficial after dinner tea. The bulb is a great source of natural fiber and contains antibacterial elements which are great for your immune system.

Fennel seeds were even used historically in the Middle Ages to ward off witchcraft. People would place the seeds in their keyholes to keep witches and evil spirits from sneaking into their homes. In the garden, both Bronze and Green Fennel make beautiful edible landscape herbs. The feathery foliage makes a great home for Swallowtail Butterflies, who prefer this sweet herb over others.

Fennel is easy to grow and very low maintenance. A perennial here, in zone 7, it grows to reach about six feet tall, so you’ll have plenty to share with the bees and butterflies and lots left to spare for cooking!

Back by popular demand, we have Bay Trees! OK well, to be fair, they never actually left, they’re just really hard to find. You can thank their high popularity rating as a savory, flavor-filled culinary herb and their slow rate of growth for that. Because we love them so much, and we know you all do, too, we’ve ensured a large crop for our shipping season this Fall, for all of your delicious holiday meals. If you’ve never grown Bay before, don’t worry. Read on or check out Briscoe’s Tips for some great information on how to keep this robust herb happy and healthy, all year round!

Bay makes a wonderful potted herb and if given well drained soil, and plenty of sun, you could literally grow a tree full of delicious Bay leaves.  At its maturity, a Bay can reach about fifteen feet high and approximately twenty feet wide, but actually responds well to staying pruned into a container-planted shrub. Though Bays are more akin to turtle than hares, in terms of their growth rate, giving them the appropriate amount of space dictates their size quite a bit. Make sure than you give your Potted Bay a large enough planter, because, keep in mind, it IS a tree! That being said, a pot about twelve inches in diameter will grow your plant to about five feet tall before you need to re-pot your Bay into a larger container.

Bays have a shallow root system, and prefer fertile, well drained but moist soil. If the situation allows, leave your Bay outside while it’s nice and sunny to allow it to get full, unfiltered light, making sure that it doesn’t completely dry out while in the sun. If the outdoors is not an option, give your little tree as much direct, clear sunlight as possible. You may need grow lights to keep this herb happy throughout more dreary, cold months. While indoors, also beware of placing your plant near heating vents or where it could catch a draft from an open door. They can be VERY temperature specific!

A native to the Mediterranean, Bay is also very useful outside of the kitchen and makes a highly beneficial medicinal herb. Bay contains healthful components that make it antiseptic, antioxidant and perhaps even an anti-cancerous herb. A wonderful source of vitamins A and C, folic acid, and B-Complex groups such as niacin, as well as many necessary minerals like potassium, calcium, iron and magnesium. Combining these powerful, health boosting properties, Bay is useful in healthy digestion, strengthening the immune system, healing to heal wounds more quickly, and among other things, aid in regulating your body’s metabolism. So while you may be adding this deliciously aromatic herb to your favorite recipe for its great flavor, you’re actually helping your body in lots of different way to stay healthier!

When talking about Rosemary, my mind immediately wanders to the kitchen. That savory piney smell that wafts out from under pot lids, or from a steaming roast or loaf of bread just out of the oven. One of the most basic culinary herbs, Rosemary has remained popular for many reasons since its early use in Greek and Roman cultures where it was used for everything from repelling evil and sickness to symbolizing fidelity between lovers. Though long believed that if grown in kitchen gardens, Rosemary represented the strength of the matriarch of the home, in modern times Rosemary has lost its gender bias and is a culinary herb enjoyed by all. A member of the Mint family, Rosemary is a cousin to Basil, Oregano and Lavender, which explains why they grow and taste so great together! Yet, one of the best reasons to love Rosemary is its ability to grow in many different climates and zones and for its versatile usage and easy care. To give you an idea of what we mean, here’s a crash course in Rosemary!

Rosemary ‘Arp’

By far the most cold-hardy variety, ‘Arp’ has thin, silvery, needle-like leaves. It’s the plant’s uniquely sized foliage that I believe makes it so temperature-tough, as with less surface area the plant is able to conserve its energy and essentially becomes impenetrable to cold weather. Aromatic and easy to grow, this variety is great because it gives chefs who live in more northern zones, like Zone Six, a delicious culinary option when other herbs can’t survive. Also quite drought resistant, try planting Rosemary ‘Arp’ as a low-growing hedgerow. Brushing past it will release its wonderful scent.

Rosemary ‘Hardy Hill’

Typical of the traditional Rosemary foliage, ‘Hardy Hill’ is the second most cold tolerant variety and produces characteristic dark green, needle-like  foliage. A terrific culinary herb, ‘Hardy Hill’ will survive in cold areas as low as Zone Seven and is drought tolerant. Great on potatoes, in stews and breads, or to season meats, ‘Hardy Hill’ really comes through when the temperatures are low. Similar to Rosemary ‘Arp’, yet possessing a darker color, ‘Hardy Hill’ grows well in containers as well as in your garden, and can be grown indoors during extremely cold temperatures.

Rosemary ‘Salem’

Very similar in habit and look as ‘Hardy Hill’, without the extreme hardiness. ‘Salem’ is a more cold sensitive variety of Rosemary but is more useful in the kitchen. Not only can you use its flavorful foliage to lend a savory distinction to your favorite dish, but you can use its woody branches for barbecue skewers. We actually tried this over the summer when we had lamb kabobs. The natural fragrance and flavor of the Rosemary infused the meat as it cooked over the grill, releasing tons of taste and perfuming the air. Give this a shot the next time you’re grilling pork, lamb or beef. If you don’t feel like making skewers, try sinking the sticks into the full piece of meat to really cook the amazing aroma into your dish. Perennial in Zone Seven through Zone Ten, ‘Salem’ has light, almost smoky green foliage.

Rosemary ‘Tuscan Blue’

By far the most beautiful of the Rosemary varieties we grow! ‘Tuscan ‘Blue’ produces tons of beautiful blue flowers and lush foliage, making this variety the ideal Rosemary for topiaries.  As useful in the kitchen as it is beautiful in the garden, ‘Tuscan Blue’ is used to flavor dishes in many of the same ways as its hardier cousins. Also a terrific indoor herb because of its lovely fragrance and glossy, dark green leaves, ‘Tuscan Blue’ has an erect habit and grows best in Zone Eight through Zone Ten. It’s sometimes best to container plant this delicate beauty for moving indoors, as even cool evening temperatures may upset it.

Rosemary ‘Prostrate’

A great ground cover Rosemary, ‘Prostrate’ is not terribly hardy, but where it’s warm enough, this great variety won’t let you down. A landscaper’s dream, ‘Prostrate’ can be planted as a stand alone landscaping shrub, so it doesn’t take up room in your garden. Fashionable and functional, just make sure to plant it in close proximity to your kitchen for easy use. This great dual purpose Rosemary will brighten your yard and your kitchen without using valuable garden space. Try planting this along a garden wall or in a large planter and let it spill over the edge to create a culinary cascade!

Regardless of which Rosemary you prefer, they all have terrific culinary and aromatic value. Planting them in your garden or keeping them indoors will provide you with a delicious herb for your favorite recipes as well as a wonderful fresh fragrance that can’t be matched. Try using your favorite Rosemary variety in wreaths, potpourris, or as centerpieces. By adding Rosemary to a mesh sachet, you can place it in your bath for a soothing soak or in your drawer to freshen up your laundry. You can even extract the oils and use it as an all natural perfume that will actually condition your skin! We love working with this versatile herb in the greenhouse, as we always leave smelling of its sweet, piney scent. The possibilities for using Rosemary are endless! No matter what zone you live in, we have a Rosemary for you, so don’t be discouraged by your location!

Though Rue’s rich history is merely a memory to many these days, this hardy perennial herb still has a lot to offer. From the mystical to the mundane, Rue has been a popular herb throughout time with many modern applications that are often overlooked. A flavorful herb to season your favorite dish when used sparingly, an attractive organic insect and pest repellent, and a powerful natural antispasmodic, Rue is a terrific aromatic herb for any garden.

Also commonly known as ” the Herb of Grace” or the “herbe a’la belle fille” (the Herb of Fair Maidens) in France, Rue has long been a symbol of virtue and purity.  As part of traditional Lithuanian wedding rites, the bride wears a crown of Rue which is burned during the ceremony to symbolize her transition from the whimsy and virtue of childhood to the responsibilities of motherhood and adulthood. A sprig of Rue is also presented to the marrying couple to lend clarity to their marriage.  In many parts of the world, Rue was also used to repel witches and evil spirits because of its strong, pungent odor and effect on the body. Sprigs of Rue were  ingested to guard against spells, and was considered a very reliable “anti magic” defense. This belief started with Ancient Greeks who, when dining in the company of strangers, ate Rue to calm their indigestion, which they attributed to their new guests using witchcraft to cast spells upon them. Ironically, Rue was also used in witchcraft to create and cast spells. Because of the herb’s astringent and abortive properties Rue was used to poison, blister, and in some cases, make the victim of  the spell miscarry. Rue was also used to give a person “second sight” and was believed to help see into the future. This old-world reverence of Rue as a sacred herb and guard against evil also manifests itself in the Catholic Church, where it is dipped in Holy Water during High Mass and then sprinkled over parishioners to bless them.

Also heavily used in art and  literature, Rue is closely related to regret or remorse and even the word “rue” in its literal sense means to repent or lament. Mentioned by Milton, Shakespeare and in the Bible, in the Book of Luke, Rue is used as a constant symbol of guilt, sorrow and anguish. It was common to eat Rue among Italian artists, including Michelangelo and da Vinci, to sharpen their creativity and eye sight during tedious periods of painting or sculpting. The strong, bitter taste of the Rue was thought to awaken the senses and encourage productivity. This thought that Rue could aid eyesight was also shared by expert marksmen who coated their gun flints and bullets with a mixture that included Rue to make their aim more true.

Rue has lost its popularity as a  modern medicinal herb because of its bitter taste, its ability to nauseate and poison if taken in too large a dose, and the difficulty to harvest it due to allergic reactions with the plant’s oil when combined with UV light. This phenomenon is called Phytophotodermatitis and can be contracted when your skin comes into contact with the Rue plant in direct light. The plant’s oils are activated by the light and can cause very painful blistering, rashes and skin irritation, similar to poison ivy. Characteristic of all members of the Citrus family, Rue shares this quality with Lemons, Oranges and Limes. The best way to avoid this painful reaction is to wear long sleeves and gloves when tending Rue and to harvest it early or late in the day when the sun’s rays are weaker. Washing affected areas quickly can help alleviate the reaction, as well as applying Aloe, Calendula or over the counter antihistamines directly to the points of contact. Rue was traditionally used for its powerful emmenagogic properties (an agent that encourages menstrual flow),  by women suffering from various menstrual problems, but is no longer deemed a safe alternative to other herbal antispasmodics because of the high chance of miscarriage. This being said, Rue should never be handled or ingested by pregnant women.

Rue’s most present-day use is in the kitchen as a culinary herb, and it is the staple of many cultural foods throughout the Mediterranean, Greece, Italy and Ethiopia. Used in small quantities, as it packs a potent punch and tends to overwhelm a dish easily, Rue is a strong, savory herb. When dried, the herb takes on a more bitter taste which comes from the presence of Rutin, a chemical also found in Watercress, Capers and Orange Peel.  In Ethiopia, the leaves and berries of the Rue plant are used to create a traditional spice mix called Berbere and it is used in many Mediterranean recipes to lend a strong flavor to fish, cheese and meats. Because its taste is complimented by other savory herbs, Rue is a great addition to Italian recipes like tomato sauces that require Capers, Marjoram, Basil and Lovage. To lessen the bitterness of this multipurpose herb, extract just the oil from the Rue leaves by adding it in for a few minutes at the end of the cooking time, once your sauce or soup has reached a slight boil. Take the leaves out after a minute and discard, like when cooking with Bay leaves. This will maximize the flavor of the Rue while leaving the bitterness to a minimum.

Although we think of Rue as an outdated, old fashioned and even ancient herb, there are lots of reasons to still grow this wonderfully ornamental plant in your garden. Aside from its many practical and cultural applications, it’s a beautiful, yellow flowering perennial with broad, blue-green foliage. It acts as a natural insect, deer, cat and dog repellent and has a strong, citronella-like fragrance. Rue leaves were the basis for the club design on playing cards and will lend a lovely contrast to your gardenscape. A hardy herb, Rue will grow easily in well-drained soil and its verdant leaves will add lovely cover for surrounding plants. As Rue is making a graceful comeback, try planting it as a useful ornamental or buying it in bulk as a cut herb for culinary and spiritual purposes–the possibilities for this versatile herb are endless!