Growing herbs in your garden provides many more benefits than just enhancing your culinary dishes. Herbs improve the aroma and aesthetics of your backyard and also play an important role for pollinators. Some even have medicinal properties or contain natural dyes. Here are a few of our favorite easy-to-grow herbs:
African Blue Basil
(Ocimum kilimandscharicum x basilicum)
Basil is a must-have. Not only is it harvestable all season long, it also is a great companion plant as it repels garden pests and attracts beneficial insects. African Blue Basil is one of our favorites because of its constant blooms. The long, purple flowers are like a magnet to bees and other pollinators. It’s a hybrid, sterile basil, so it does not make seeds. This means you must take cuttings to propagate, or purchase one from your local plant sale.
Roman Chamomile
(Chamaemelum nobile)
Chamomile is a sweet-smelling herb with gorgeous, daisy-like flowers. These flowers are used for medicinal purposes, both orally and topically, to treat a wide array of ailments. They also make tasty, relaxing herbal teas. Roman Chamomile is a low-growing perennial, so it’s a great ground cover in the garden. This is one of the sweeter smelling chamomile varieties, almost apple-scented.
Lemongrass
(Cymbopogon citratus)
Lemongrass is a hardy herb that is commonly used in Asian cooking. It’s also used in teas and natural remedies. Because of its citrusy scent, lemongrass is deer-resistant and a natural mosquito repellent. Many organic bug sprays use lemongrass oil as their active ingredient. This is a great plant to have on the porch as it keeps the insects at bay while maintaining the look of a beautiful, ornamental grass.
Gorizia Rosemary
(Salvia rosmarinus)
Rosemary is an evergreen herb that can reach 4 to 6 feet over time. It is winter-hardy in our area, which means you can harvest it year-round. This versatile plant can be grown in a pot or in the ground as an ornamental shrub. There are many different cultivars of rosemary, varying in overall appearance, growth habit, taste, and cold-hardiness. One of our favorite varieties is Gorizia Rosemary, as it has the best flavor. It is fast growing, produces light blue flowers that attract pollinators, and has needles double the size of other cultivars.
Texas Tarragon
(Tagetes lucida)
Tarragon has many uses besides cooking. It makes a great tea, has many health benefits, and is used in some cosmetics. Texas Tarragon produces small, marigold-like flowers at the end of the growing season, making it one of the few things to bloom in fall. You can use these blooms to make a golden-colored natural dye. Not only is it one of our favorite herbs, the pollinators seem to like it too. Texas Tarragon is a host plant for Eastern Black Swallowtails, so be sure to leave some for our butterflies when you harvest!
Find these varieties and more at the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Garden’s Spring Plant Sale, April 11 and 12. Expert growers will help find the right plant for your culinary and landscaping needs.
2025 Spencer Lecture featuring Mieke ten Have
Thursday, March 6 // 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
Guest speaker Mieke ten Have will share her expertise for creating a compelling and vibrant living space, often using seasonal botanicals and floral artistry to accent the individual qualities of the home.
Mieke began her career as an assistant at Domino and went on to become home editor at Vogue and design editor-at-large at Elle Decor. A frequent contributor to Architectural Digest, Mieke has had her work featured in House & Garden, Veranda, and The World of Interiors, as well as interior design books. She also styles advertising campaigns for homeware and fabric companies.
Mieke divides her time between New York City and her home in Dutchess County, New York. Her new book, Interiors: Styled by Mieke ten Have, released in 2024, provides countless design ideas for beautifying our surroundings throughout the year. More Event Details
Reception: 5:30 pm | AuditoriumÂ
Talk: 6 pm | Linn-Henley Lecture HallÂ
Admission: Free / Registration required
