HERBS & SPICES REFERENCE - GROWING HERBS AT HOME

Basil - "The King of Herbs"

In a botanical sense, an herb is a plant that does not produce a woody stem and dies back to the ground each winter to a perennial root system. Herbaceous plants in the landscape and garden include annuals, perennials, biennials, bulbs and grasses.

In the garden sense, herbs are plants that serve as a major source of seasonings in the preparation of foods. In an even broader sense, herbs include those plants that are also useful for scents in cosmetics or for medicinal purposes. Some of them are woody and are exceptions to the definition of a herbaceous plant.

In the gardens of American pioneers, herbs were the major source of seasonings for foods. They were also used for curing illnesses, storing with linens, strewing on floors, covering the bad taste of meats before refrigeration was devised, dyeing homespun fabrics and as fragrances.

With the advent of the supermarket, growing herbs in the garden declined because a wide range of dried herbs became available in stores. Now, however, with an increase in the popularity of ethnic foods, combined with a realization that fresh herbs have more distinctive tastes than some dried herbs, more gardeners are growing at least a few herbs for fresh use, drying or freezing.

Growing Herbs at Home    General Culture    Harvesting Herbs    Herbs Indoors    Herb Descriptions

Unless otherwise noted, all facts are supplied by Ray R. Rothenberger, Department of Horticulture, University of Missouri-Columbia.