UNUSUAL HERBS TO GROW THAT YOU WON’T FIND IN THE SUPERMARKET
Want to add some herbs to dishes that aren’t so run-of-the-mill?
There are so many easy-to-grow herbs which are overlooked, says award-winning herb expert, designer and author Jekka Mcvicar, who runs Jekka’s Herb Farm in South Gloucestershire and is a 14-times RHS Chelsea Gold Medal winner for her organic, peat-free herb exhibits.
HYSSOP
“This is an absolute must-have. Apart from the fact that it’s stunningly beautiful when in flower and the bees adore it, it’s a member of the Lamiaceae family (which includes mint, sage, thyme, oregano, basil, rosemary and lavender),” Jekka enthuses.
The flowers of this hardy perennial are generally blue and purple, but there is also a pink variety and a white one too. Flowers are edible and have a slightly minty flavour, or you can make a tea with the leaves, with a teaspoon of honey.
“The leaf makes a fantastic salad dressing. It goes really well with tomatoes in a pasta sauce.” TOP TIP: Grow it in a sunny position in well-drained, neutralto-alkaline soil. You may need to add grit to the soil as hyssop will die if waterlogged. It’s a great companion plant for cabbages as it lures away the cabbage white butterfly.
MYRTLE
Jekka uses the aromatic dark leaves of this fragrant evergreen shrub in her cooking as you would use bay, adding them to stews, soups and sauces, before removing and discarding them.
“The white flowers are stunning. It’s the herb of love, Aphrodite’s herb. They are followed by black berries, which you can make myrtle gin from, as we would make sloe gin,” she says.
TOP TIP: Plant it in full sun in well-drained soil against a south or west-facing wall and don’t overfeed it. Protect it from frost and wet weather in winter, making sure that your container is lifted on to bricks if it’s in a pot.
MONARDA FISTULOSA (WILD BERGAMOT)
This herb has a mauve leaf and the flowers look like a lady’s fancy summer wedding hat, says Jekka. “I use the petals in salads. It’s glorious. They have a warm, minty, spicy flavour, again they are part of the Lamiaceae family.” Native to North America, this perennial plant has spreading rhizome roots which grow to 1m (3ft) tall and the leaves can be used to make a spicy tea. “It’s very easy to grow in a welldrained soil and although they are sightly rhizomatous they are not invasive,” says Jekka. “They are glorious in flower and you could easily grow it as an ornamental. It’s known as bee balm because it’s good for bees and other pollinators. You also get the seedheads which finches adore in the autumn.” TOP TIP: Grow it in well-drained soil in a sunny spot and dig up plants over three years old, removing the dead centre and replanting in a prepared site.
LEMON GRASS (CYMBOPOGON CITRATUS)
“In the UK you can only buy the stem but if you go abroad, everyone uses the leaf,” says Jekka. You can grow it from seed, sowing indoors in spring in prepared seed trays or modules on a frost-free windowsill.
Often used in Thai curries and other South East Asian dishes, keep it in indoors in the winter and put outside in the summer when the night temperature doesn’t fall below 8°C. Pick the leaves when they are young.
“You can make tea with the leaf. You just chop it into small pieces and add boiled water. Or make ice cubes with the tea, which go really well in a gin and tonic.”
TOP TIP: Use it as a container plant, Jekka suggests, using a loam-based compost. In the autumn bring it indoors.
■ 100 Herbs To Grow by Jekka Mcvicar is published by Hardie Grant, £30