Grow Some Herb

 Sage with the purple flowers on the left; rosemary in the back and thyme with the pink/whitish flowers on the right.

You know the first thing I wanted when we bought our house in Midtown Memphis??  An herb garden.  I have always wanted one.  In college, I tried numerous times to grow herbs (legal ones...yes) in pots in the kitchen, but I was too busy gettin' my party on (hey, I did go to a professional party school..I had to live it up) to take care of them and they always died.  I did graduate from WVU by the way, in case you wondered.  Of course I was on the 5-year plan.  Ok, we'll make it a 6-year plan because I did do that one year at Marshall University...but I digress...it's easy to go back to those years and get sidetracked.  Those were some of the most memorable times of my life.  Ok, back on track.   My first project when we moved in, was to plant some rosemary, cilantro, sage, parsley and thyme.  Best decision I ever made.

The parsley didn't make it.  I didn't really research it to know that parsley likes a little shade and I planted everything in the hottest spot in my yard.  So it died.  It's in herb heaven...with all the other herbs from college that I killed.

The cilantro grew great.  It even flowered, turned into coriander and seeded new plants for next year, but it never came back after that second year.  Though we threw one helluva Cinco de Mayo party when we found out it replanted itself that second year.

The rosemary is a tree now.  It's about to knock my house off its foundation.  It's a crazy bitch.  And I use it all the time.  For chicken, pork, lamb, marinades, I cut it up and put it in goat cheese, butter, etc.  It's versatile.  It's piney.  It makes a great centerpiece, it makes an awesome wreath and it makes a gorgeous gift!  And if you want some, come get some, because it's out of control, but I love it.

The sage is also a crazy bitch.  It blooms these beautiful purple and white flowers every year.  I don't use it much for cooking, though I have thrown some under the skin of the chicken or turkey I cook.  And I add it to any stock I ever make.  And every time I walk by it, I rip off a leaf, rub it between my fingers and then smell like I'm smart all day.  I can't explain why, but sage reminds me of the smell of smart people!  Maybe I should make a sage perfume and dab some behind my ears.  Couldn't hurt right??

 Sage

The thyme, is nuts too.  It blooms these teeny, delicate pink flowers, that remind me of little flower girls walking down a wedding aisle.  And I use the HELL out of some thyme.  I use it in everything.  I might just put some in my cereal tomorrow...don't tempt me!  I use it for everything.

 Thyme

I save so much money having herbs in my yard.  Herbs are expensive little suckers.  And they don't last very long after you get them home.  So this year, I've planted parsley, basil, oregano, lavender and chives in a 5-gallon planter.  I can't wait to see how they turn out.  And I should get some more pretty flowers from the chives, lavender and oregano!

 parsley on the left, basil on the right

 lavender on the left, oregano (with really tiny chive sprouts you can't see) on the right.

GROW SOME HERB!  You won't be disappointed, you'll save money, it will force you to experiment and it will make your stinkin' ass smell a whole lot better!