The Herb Garden

One thing most culinary folk will agree on is the necessity for fresh ingredients. Given that I live in the real world of suburbia America, we have such preventions against this like jobs and winter. About the only thing that I continually get fresh is herbage. Like those funny green things that grow and you can buy pre cut in the produce section at your local shopping mart. Growing your own can be highly rewarding, inexpensive, and help spice up the most basic of dishes with the fresh taste.

Around April or May of this year, I made a trek out to my local home improvement store. It was warm and I wanted herbs. I purchased 4 identical pots and 4 different herbs: Genovese Basil, Curled Parsley, Greek Oregano, and Cilantro (it didn’t have any proper name). Pretty inexpensive, the most expensive part being the pots and those I figured are an investment. I planted them, and watered them and waited for them to grow.



And I must say that purchasing herbs was probably the best culinary decision of my life. About once a week, I trek the 10 feet to my balcony, take which herbage I need and apply them in my meal. Nothing beats the taste of fresh, earthy herbs in your dinner—except maybe chocolate cake, but that’s another post…

Now this is not to say that caring for these basic herbs has been easy. I’m a workingwoman. There have been times that I have forgotten to water them. In fact the Cilantro succumbed to malnourishment and died about mid July…although that might’ve been the 100-degree heat (you’d think a plant featured in many Central and South American dishes would be hardier to heat, but I digress…). Bugs have also been a problem. My Parsley recently just got over an infestation of spider mites (I think). But all in all, they are good for having about.

And the best part is, now that summer is coming to a close, I can bring the pots inside and place them in front of my window and they will continue to provide me with herbage for the winter. I look forward to having one fresh thing when Indiana comes and dumps piles of snow upon me. Just one word of advice for those of you thinking of starting your own garden, don’t harvest all your Basil for pesto at the beginning of the week and leave yourself no leaves for putting into stuffed Portobello caps at the end of the week. Apparently, the leaves don’t grow back that fast.

Go. Exercise your own Green Thumbs!!