A tall and stately herb for the back of the border, this can grow to 6'. Loves moist shade. The candied stems are used as cake decorations. In their first year this plant is leafy and busy. It dies down and disappears in winter and then, in the second year, reaches full size. If you prevent it from flowering and setting seed, it should survive for many years. 9cm pot

A pretty annual with feathery leaflets in bright green and umbels of white flowers followed by edible seeds. Plant in well drained sandy soil in full sun. Doesn't like wet, heavy soil. Lovely for flavouring food and drinks in flower arrangements and good for wild life. Cut back faded flowers to give a second flowering. Deadhead to prevent self-seeding but propagate by saving some of that seed! 9cm pot

An aromatic annual, this is the main ingredient of pesto sauce and is also eaten in salads, especially good with tomatoes. 9cm pot

This annual herb is delicious with fish and also makes a tasty tea. 9cm pot

Large leaves which are dark red to purple with a clove flavour. Pretty to look at as well as good in the kitchen. Never plant Basils in wet soils.

A classic pesto basil, this is thought by many to make the best. Also makes good tea and is one of the herbs used in a Victorian nosegay called a Tussie-mussie
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Similar in form to Lemon Basil with a tingly lime aroma. Delicious in salads and with fish.
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Lemon Bergamot aka Monarda citriodora is used in some gorgeous recipes for puddings, fruit salads, cooking fish, making a tea, dried flower arrangements. It's a beautiful herb in every way and is attractive to bees, too. The flowers are a pink-purple in late summer and sometimes turn white as they age.
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Be prepared for it to seed itself everywhere if you let it 'escape'. It's notorious for this. Of course, the happy answer to that is to make more Pimm's - those beautiful blue flowers look wonderful floating in a glass. The leaves are also delicious, with a cucumber flavour when young but as they age, they become prickly. A real bee magnet.
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Bright green feathery foliage growing to about 8" in its first year and then on and up to 2' in the second year. In its second year it produces umbels of ceam/white flowers. Caraways leaves are very mild flavoured with aniseed and are used in soups and salads but caraway is best known for the seeds, used to flavour cakes and savoury food. Grow in well drained soil in full sun.

Used in chamomile tea. This is not the Chamomile used for making lawns.

Fern like leaves give a delicate aniseed taste in mild flavoured dishes, or use as a garnish instead of parsley. H. 12" Shady position.

Mild onion flavour to both the leaves and the flowers. One of the most popular of herbs. Cut leaves no less than 2" from ground level. Height about 12" Sun or some shade. Add to vinegar and leave for 7 days to make chive vinegar. All the plant can be eaten from bulb to flowers.

Similar in habit to chives but the leaves are flat and the flower white. Delicate garlic/onion flavour. Hardy perennial.

Traditionally the seeds are used in curries and chutneys and the leaves are added to sauces and Mexican food, among others. Full sun. Annual.

The seeds are a common ingredient in pickles and sauces. The ferny leaves are a good flavouring for fish and lamb dishes and dill mayonnaise is lovely with e.g. poached salmon. Full sun. H. 3'. Hardy Annual.

Delicate feather bronze leaves with an aniseed flavour. Seeds and leaves are used in pickles and cooking. H. 5' Hardy Perennial but not quite as hardy as the green variety. Seeds freely.

A hardy perennial which can grow to around 6', this has glossy, erect stems and feathery bright green leaves with umbels of yellow flowers. The whole plant has an aniseed flavour and is good with a rich fish such as salmon. The leaves and seeds are also lovely with pork or flavouring soups, sauces and salads.

Hardy Perennial. H. 18". White daisy flowers and strongly aromatic yellow-green leaves which stay a good colour through winter. Is said by herbalists to be good for headaches and migraines but while the leaves can be eaten in a sandwich, tablets from a herbalist are probably more palatable. A muslin bag containing the dried leaves is a good moth repellent. Seeds freely.

With all the same properties as its 'plain' cousin, this strikes a vibrant colour note in the garden. We usually find some here and there in the garden throughout the year. It's one of those plants that makes a good foil for several others, helping to set off other colours. Dead head to keep it flowering or to prevent it self-seeding.

A frost hardy perennial which grows to 3' but rarely flowers in UK. Long, narrow aromatic leaves with an aniseed flavour. Good culinary herb and needs protection from heavy rain in winter.

This is one of those that is grown for medicinal use and is said to be good for colds and coughs if a tea is made from the dried or fresh leaves. The flowers, leaves and stems can also be candied. Attractive silvery foliage make this a pretty border plant, too H. 24" Perennial.

A perennial which grows to about 30" tall and puts down long, thick white roots which are grated to make a fiery sauce. The roots are mature after about 4 months, so it's probably best to plant it one year for use the next. VERY pungent when being grated, so do not touch your eyes.

Use the leaves sparingly to flavour rich meats like pork, and in soups and salads. Bright blue flowers attract bees. H. 18". Perennial

A tall plant with yellow green shiny leaves and yellow flowers carried on tall hollow stems. Use sparingly in soups and casseroles. Good in salads or cooked with vegetables, fish and meat. Perennial and shrubby so needs space. Can grow to 6' tall. Perennial.

An annual so well known it's hardly worth describing. However, it is used to make soothing ointments and its petals will add colouring to rice or may be added to salads.

Another name for Oregano that essential Italian ingredient. Hardy Perennial H. 18"

Half Hardy Perennial. H. 12" Fully sun. Small bushy plant with grey green leaves. Tiny white flowers in summer. Rub the leaves into roast meats, game and poultry.

Hardy perennial growing to 30" and spreading to 12". Considered the best oregano for flavour. Needs a dry, sunny position. White, sometimes, pink flowers.

Flat, dark green leaves with an outstanding flavour. Always cut about 1" above the ground as the plant will grow more leaves, more quickly.

This culinary sage is a sub-shrub and is an ever-green perennial with aromatic leaves and lilac blue flowers in early summer. The leaves are variegated yellow and green. Grow in full sun in moist but well-drained soil.

Another culinary sage but this time with a lovely purple stained leaf and again, one that combines well with other plants and looks especially lovely grown with lavenders. Grow in a sunny place, away from cold winds and in well drained soil. The more sun, the more purple the leaves.

A beautiful multi-coloured leaf plant in shades of green, cream and pink, this culinary sage makes a lovely combination with other plants. Plant in a sheltered location in full sun and in well drained soil.

Fine pointed, dark green leaves covered with tiny pink/white flowers in summer. Used to flavour all types of beans, seasoning cucumber, pork and trout. H. 18" Annual.

Stronger flavour than the summer variety and used in the same way. . Pretty white flowers.

A hardy perennial, low-growing herb with many uses. Pretty pink flowers loved by bees.

The lowest growing carpeting thyme growing to less than 2" high. Flowers are carmine pink from May to July. Lemon scented. Good in rock gardens and between flag stones.

Woodruff grows here in our garden and is so often admired and asked for that we've started growing it from seed. It's one of those 'magical' herbs which were added to wine to celebrate May Day and is said to have the power of money, protection and victory - not bad for a tiny plant! The bright green leaves unfold like little windmills and it has beautiful white spring flowers. The dried foliage has a sweet scent like new mown hay and so was used as a 'strewing herb' to sweeten the floors of smelly mediaeval buildings. It's also one of the Tussie-mussie herbs (see the introductory Herb page) We just love it as a dear little garden plant in our 'wild garden'.
H. 8" Perennial.