Italian Culinary Herbs for Your Kitchen Garden
Why not grow your own herbs in an Italian herb garden? Some of the tastiest and most familiar culinary herbs come from Italy. Italy’s famous cuisine, loved around the world, makes good use of these herbs.
Basil is probably the best known Italian herb, and is found in many Italian recipes. Basil not only adds flavor to your cooking, it is a useful companion in the garden to other plants. Plant basil next to your peppers and tomatoes, and they will grow better, with better flavor. Basil, incidentally, will also repel flies and mosquitoes!
Parsley can be difficult to grow but it is useful in not only Italian dishes but many other ethnic cuisines. Italian parsley is the flat-leafed variety, and has a more pungent flavor than the familiar curly leafed variety. Did you know that by eating fresh, raw parsley after a meal, you have a natural and effective breath freshener? Originally, parsley was served on a small dish after the meal. Today, parsley is often seen as a garnish on a variety of meals. Make sure you eat it!
Oregano is another beautiful and flavorful plant used in Italian cooking. Its spikes of pretty little purple or white flowers will attract lots of bees to your garden. Oregano should be harvested just before flowering, since this is when herbs are most flavorful. After flowering, cut it back and a second growth will keep you supplied with fresh oregano until a hard frost.
Fennel seeds are used to enhance the flavors of Italian sausage. Fennel is a perennial plant that loses its flavor as it matures, so divide and replant it every few years to keep it flavorful.
Like basil, rosemary is an Italian herb that is beneficial to the garden. In temperate climates it can grow into a large shrub. Its pretty little blue flowers help the garden by attracting bees. Although it is a tough evergreen perennial shrub, it is sensitive to frost. In less temperate climates, you can grow it in a container, and bring it into a cool greenhouse or area for the winter.
No Italian herb garden would be complete without garlic. Garlic cloves can be planted in the fall, and will thrive in just about any garden with very little attention. Next spring, you’ll see the green shoots, and by summer, you’ll have your pick of fresh garlic bulbs.
Fresh garlic cloves will keep in the refrigerator for about a week. After harvesting your garlic by pulling the whole plant, gently wash the bulb and roots. Hang the bulbs in a shady, well-ventilated, moisture-free area for a week or more. Once properly dried, garlic will keep for months, as long as the bulbs are not broken open.
Sage is used in a variety of Italian dishes from meats to breads to salads. The new shoots contain the most flavor, so don’t let sage plants to get too woody. By pruning them, new shoots will be encouraged to grow. Sage can be harvested after it blooms.
Although there are many more herbs you could include in your Italian herb garden, you should consider which herbs you’ll actually use. Be familiar with the growing conditions each plant needs and consider whether or not you can provide them.
Italian herbs add flavor to food but they also make beautiful additions to landscape design. You can plant these Italian herbs among your other plants, and your gardens will be filled with with sweet aromas straight from Italy.
