Growing herbs are a great way to realize the potential of your property. While herbs are not natives, they can be extremely productive for attracting pollinators to your yard. Herbs are a "gift that keeps on giving"! Benefits include
Valuable culinary and medicinal plants
Deer resistant
Perennial, biennial and self-seeding
Thrive in gardens, window boxes, and containers
Here is a list of the most productive herbs for your yard, health, and kitchen!
Parsley, Dill, Cilantro
I have grouped these three herbs because they are your commitment tester. Parsley, cilantro, and dill are host plants to the Black Swallowtail Butterfly.
This crop will be your first "caterpillar farm"!
If you can start seeds indoors, plant the dill, parsley, and cilantro seeds in separate large containers in early spring. Move the seedlings outside after the threat of frost has passed. Soon, adult female black swallowtails lay their eggs on the leaves, and with luck, your plants will be loaded with caterpillars!
Swallowtail caterpillar on parsley
Pro tip: Don't be shy about planting a lot of seeds. You want to avoid having more caterpillars than plants! If you find your caterpillars running out of plant material, put them on or near fennel, Queen Anne's Lace, carrots, or lovage.
This summer, I put a celery base in a saucer of water. When the celery base sprouted leaves and roots, I planted it in a container and fed it to my swallowtail caterpillars!
Recently hatched Swallowtail caterpillar on dill beside full-grown Swallowtail caterpillar on parsley
Sage
Biennial
Start from seed or root cuttings
Useful deer repellent border plant
A valuable culinary herb used in meat dishes
Use the silver textured leaves and spiked blue flowers in flower arrangements
Other varieties include Blue Sage, Pineapple sage
Bee on Sage
Thyme
Perennial
Nursery purchase or dive and replant
Useful deer repellent border plant
A valuable culinary herb often used in meat dishes, fish recipes, soups, and salad dressings
Other varieties include lemon thyme and oregano thyme
Anise Hyssop
Perennial and self-seeding
Start from seed
Deer resistant
Licorice scented
A traditional medicinal herb used for respiratory ailments
Use leaves and flower petals in salads
Use the purple spiked flowers in flower arrangements
Eastern Swallowtail on Anise Hyssop
Sacred Basil
Annual
Self Seeding
Bee/Butterfly magnet!
Brewed as "Tulsi" tea
Taste and smells of bubblegum!
Seed heads attract goldfinches
Sacred basil or "Tulsi" is a new arrival in my yard. Unlike its sensitive cousin, sweet basil, Sacred basil is hardy, low maintenance, and will self-seed all over the yard. I cold brew lemon balm/sacred basil for ice tea. Frequent harvests guarantee a year-round supply of iced tea!
Eastern Tailed-Blue Hairstreak on Sacred Basil
Lemon Balm
Perennial
Self-seeding
Bee/Butterfly magnet!
Strong lemon scent
Use as green foliage in flower arrangements
Valuable culinary and medicinal herb
Prepping harvested lemon balm cold brew tea!
Catnip
Perennial
Self-seeding
Bee/Butterfly magnet!
Gives cats the "zoomies" dry or fresh
Add to the vegetable garden to attract pollinators
Cabbage Butterfly on Catnip
Garlic Chive
Perennial
Self-seeding
Onion/garlic flavor
Pollinator magnet!
Valuable culinary herb
Mint
Perennial
Self-seeding
Pollinator magnet!
Use as green foliage in flower arrangements
Valuable culinary and medicinal herb
Gray Hairstreak on mint flowers
While herbs are not natives, they are incredibly productive culinary, medicinal plants that attract pollinators to your yard. Herbs such as mint and lemon balm have a reputation for rapid, invasive expansion. Any plant will thrive under ideal conditions. If you are concerned about herbs jumping their borders, grow them in containers. I find mint plants easy to "train." Mint is a shallow-rooted plant; when it escapes its border, pull it up, and put it where it belongs.
All photographs were taken on our one-acre property in eastern PA.
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