A Walk with a

Rose Loveall

Ireally love learning the history and folklore of our commonly used herbs. These stories remind me that humans have been gardening and using these versatile plants for many thousands of years. Some stories are practical, with names that describe the plant. Some stories are tales of magic and ritual. Some stories are based on misunderstanding. The history of basil, a favorite of herb and vegetable gardeners throughout the world, includes all three possibilities.

Herb gardens include more basil than any other herb. The botanical name Ocimum basilicum L. makes perfect sense for this beloved herb. The genus name comes from the Greek word okimon, meaning smell. The specific epithet, basilicum, is the Latin translation of the Greek word basilikon, meaning king. I think we can all agree that basil is the king of smells—just rubbing the leaves of sweet basil turns our thoughts to pesto, caprese salad, and an idyllic trip through rural Italy.

Basil has many magical and sacred stories. People around the world have considered basil sacred for thousands of years. In some cultures, only the pure of heart, using instruments made of silver, gold, or platinum, could cut it. Helena, Emperor Constantine’s mother, had a revelation that led her to a basil patch where she found what she believed were the remains of the cross on which Christ was crucified. Holy basil, or Ocimum tenuiflorum L., is known in India as the Queen of Herbs, a sacred plant used in both religious observance and Ayurvedic medicine.

Even the secular world considered basil magical. Basil, pinned onto a woman’s clothing In Italy, proclaimed her chastity. A pot of basil on a windowsill signified that a woman was ready to receive her lover (Kowalchik and Hylton, 1987).

During the Dark Ages, basil was not a popular herb. Perhaps because of a misunderstanding of the Greek word basilisk, which was a frightening, lizard like, fire-breathing monster, people considered basil to be an evil plant. Imagine believing that basil would cause problems with digestion, urination, and lactation, and would cause poison to be drawn to any person consuming it. Just dreaming about basil could bring misfortune and unhappiness (Hartung, 2011). Wow! Poor misunderstood basil.

Fortunately, basil did take hold in Europe by the mid-16 th century. By the next century, more than seventy varieties of basil had been described from the common Genovese basil to lemon basil, small leaved Greek basil, and purple leaved basils. Basil has become a staple in our kitchens. Additionally, many basils are used to produce everything from natural insecticides to medicinal products (DeBaggio and Belsinger, 1996).

I grow at least eighteen varieties of basil in my own gardens and sell them at my nursery. I never grow tired of describing their uses and the many scents, flavors, leaf, and flower colors to new herb gardeners. A simple question of ‘Do you have any basil for sale?’ or

‘What’s your favorite basil?’ can lead to a rather lengthy walk through the nursery gardens and greenhouses, complete with tasting and smelling.

It is always a delight to watch someone start with an appreciation of basil, then grow passionate about the plant as they discover so many possibilities in the world of Ocimum. Beyond pesto what about lime basil ice cream, lemon basil infused gin, and cinnamon basil chai shortbread cookies? From appetizers to an after dinner digestives, there is a basil to fit your wildest culinary fantasies.

With more than one hundred named basils on the market, it can be confusing to know which one to grow, or which is best for cooking. Every year new varieties appear in the market, and it’s worthwhile to try one or two new varieties to satisfy your basil obsession.

I think of basils in five categories: sweet flavored, small-leaved, purple-leaved, sterile, and specialty scents and flavors. The sweet varieties such as ‘Genovese’ or ‘Italian Large Leaf’ have the classic flavor and look of basil, but if you have problems with diseases such as downy mildew or fusarium, try more resistant varieties such as ‘Aroma’ or ‘Everleaf.’ We have fallen in love with ‘Everleaf’ basil (sometimes called ‘Everleaf Emerald Towers’). It is perfect for container growing. It has the classic Genovese basil flavor, is compact with short nodes between the leaves for more leaf production, is disease resistant, and is slow to bolt. The lettuce leaf varieties of basil, such as ‘Napoletano,’ can easily grow to twenty four inches tall, with large, ruffled leaves growing five inches long and four to five inches wide. Switch out lettuce for these large leaf basils in your sandwiches, burgers, and wraps.

On the other side of the size spectrum are the small-leaf or dwarf basil varieties. Ocimum ‘Spicy Bush’ grows only to twelve inches and is perfectly rounded. The plant is perfect to edge an herb garden bed. This basil will flower quickly but can be pruned back to maintain a beautiful ball shape. The flavor is heavier than sweet basils, with a spicy mint flavor. It is delicious on pizza or appetizers, and the flavor doesn’t fade when it is heated or cooked.

Purple-leaf basils range from mottled purple and green, like the heirloom Ocimum basilicum

‘Corsican,’ to deep purple, such as the Genovese type basil Ocimum

‘Amethyst’ or Italian large leaf type

Ocimum ‘Red Rubin.’ Excellent as salad greens, they also impart both a basil flavor and a stunning pink shade to vinegar (Tucker and DeBaggio, 2009). They are wonderful as edible garnishes and have pink blooms that can be added to flower bouquets.

The specialty basils encompass a vast range of cultivars, from citrus to clove to licorice, each with a different flavor profile. I cannot have a garden without Ocimum basilicum ‘Mrs. Burns Lemon.’ This basil has been in production for over sixty years, for good reason. The lemon flavor is huge, with an undertone of cinnamon and mint, and the plant is generously sized, ready to create batches of lemon pesto, lemon basil iced tea, and lemon basil infused gin.

Ocimum basilicum ‘Cardinal’ is my new favorite. I first viewed it at a Master Gardener test garden, full grown and in full bloom. It is a robust Thai-style basil growing two feet tall, heavy with the spicy flavor of clove and anise. The flower spike is the showstopper though, short and squat, in rich deep purple. Each spike can be three to four inches wide, and as a cut flower, it adds both fragrance and color to a summer bouquet.

I can see all the basil growers out there shuddering at the thought of flowers on basil plants. Of course, we need to keep flowers pinched back to keep plants shrubby and productive, but flower farmers have discovered the beauty of fragrant basil flowers in bouquets. Chefs and mixologists are mixing, sprinkling, infusing, and muddling basil flowers into new culinary sensations. Bees adore basil flowers, so why not expand your garden with more basil cultivars?

This is where the sterile basil varieties become highlights. Ocimum ‘African Blue’ (Ocimum ‘Dark Opal’ × O. kilimandscharicum Gúrke) was a chance seedling found at Companion Plants Nursery in Athens, Ohio. It typically grows to three feet tall and wide, with green leaves having purple veining and large purple flower spikes blooms with flowers. Plants will grow and flower almost continuously throughout the growing season, much to the delight of the many bees that will visit. It is a stunning garden specimen and excellent for bouquets. Although it is considered an annual, it does overwinter in the more temperate regions and is also more forgiving as a winterized houseplant than the seed grown basils. The leaf scent and flavor are a bit heavy with camphor, and most people consider it an inferior selection for cooking.

There are several newer sterile selections that are attractive in pots or in beds and that produce stunning flowers. They are disease resistant, culinary worthy, and quite tolerant of extreme hot and cold conditions. My favorite is Ocimum HerbaleaTM ‘Wild Magic’(PPAF), a patented sterile basil that grows to eighteen inches tall. The plant is well branched with deep violet green leaves, plum-black new growth, and dark stems covered with deep pink blooms. The plant has a delicious spicy flavor, great tolerance to fusarium disease, grows vigorously, and blooms over a long season. It will tolerate slightly drier soils than other basils and tolerates temperatures down to the low forties. In our central California garden, ‘Wild Magic’ looks good and usually blooms until late December when we get a hard freeze. It will tolerate life as an indoor plant during the winter. It is really a hard-working herb!

Kate Frey highlighted this basil in a 2018 article in Santa Rosa’s The Press Democrat. She advised Sonoma County gardeners that Ocimum HerbaleaTM ‘Magic Mountain’ (PPAF) provides a lovely complement to ‘Wild Magic’ in the garden, or in containers. It has deeper green leaves, light pink blooms, and milder flavor.

On the other side of the spectrum is Ocimum ‘Pesto Perpetuo,’ a variegated non-blooming Genovese style basil. It is a stunning plant in the garden, shining as a container plant, or even tucked into mixed pots of perennials or herbs. It will not bloom, giving the busy gardener the opportunity to enjoy basil at its highest quality.

The largest basil I grow in my garden is tree basil known as ‘Vana.’ There are so many varieties of tulsi basil that it is difficult to choose just one, but Ocimum gratissimum L. ‘Vana’ is so large it is difficult to ignore. It grows to five feet, with large fuzzy green leaves, maroon stemmed flower spikes, and a strong lemon/licorice/clove/mint scent, I can’t help but think of tea every time I walk past it. It is woody stemmed and lives in my zone 9b garden until mid-December. It is stunning to look at, and I find even a pinch in a tea adds an amazing burst of flavor.

Basil always reminds me of my father. He did not discover basil until later in life, when he was in his sixties. He always had a huge garden, and I learned so much about vegetable gardening from him. I introduced him to basil though, and once he started growing it, there was never again a day without pesto.

I think of him standing in his garden with his basil plants, telling me in his Missouri accent that if he had a million dollars, he would spend it all on basil.

Of course, basil seed is cheap. He was a fabulous gardener growing in amazing soil, so he didn’t need to spend very much money to have a constant supply of basil. He had truly fallen in love with this king of herbs, as so many of us have.

Start basil indoors from seed six to eight weeks before the last frost. Use well-drained soil-less media in small pots. Basils require dark for germination, so cover the seed lightly, at least one-eighth inch, with soil or vermiculite.

Invest in a heat mat to maintain soil temperatures at 65° F. This will assure faster and more even germination, less damping-off, and strong plant development.

Some basils, such as Genovese basil, are quick to germinate, often in five to seven days. The tropical tulsi basil, Ocimum tenuiflorum, is slow to germinate and requires warmer temperatures and higher light to develop strong plants. Even with heat mats and additional lighting, germination often takes fourteen days, and plant development is much slower. Be patient and allow soil temperatures to warm up to at least 65° F before transplanting into the garden.

Basils need more fertilizer than perennial herbs. If you are growing basil in containers, supply both a slow-release fertilizer when you first transplant and liquid fertilizers every one to two weeks, depending on the pot size and how often you need to water. If plants are growing in the ground, incorporate compost and a slow-release fertilizer at planting and liquid fertilizer every two to three weeks to maintain healthy growth. We prefer organic dry fertilizers and fish emulsion.

To keep basil in a vegetative state, pinch back blooms and several sets of leaves. If the plants try to re-bloom quickly, it is a sign that it’s time to fertilize.

Plant basil in succession to get the highest quality flavor throughout the season. This is especially true in warmer climates, where the basil growing season may be March through October. Basil planted in March will not produce good quality leaves by October, but basil planted in June will still be vigorous for fall harvest.

If you plan to save seed, remember that basil, both varieties and species, will cross pollinate readily. Allow only one type of basil to bloom and set seed at a time to assure that you are saving each variety separately.

All basils will readily produce roots from cut tips either in water or in soil-less media. This will assure you propagate the basil you want.

Literature Cited

DeBaggio, Thomas, and Susan Belsinger. 1996. Basil, an herb lover’s guide. Loveland, CO: Interweave Press.

Frey, Kate. “Sonoma County Gardeners Wake Up and Smell the Basils.” The Press Democrat, Santa Rosa, Ca. July 6, 2018.

Hartung, Tammi. 2011. Homegrown herbs. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing.

Kowalchik, Claire, and William H. Hylton, eds. 1987. Rodale’s illustrated encyclopedia of herbs. Emmaus, Pennsylvania: Rodale Press.

Tucker, Arthur O., and Thomas DeBaggio.2009. The encyclopedia of herbs: a comprehensive reference to herbs of flavor and fragrance. Portland, OR: Timber Press.

We all love to spend time in our gardens but with the arrival of hot, humid days, small flying insects like mosquitoes and gnats drive us back indoors. Before you spray your yard for those bugs, remember there are other members of our environmental community that dine on them! Building a GreenBridges™ garden creates safe haven for wildlife we don't think of as pollinators but which makes our outside lives more pleasant. Enter chimney swifts!

As incredible insectivorous birds, chimney swifts do a great deal of noteworthy aerial acrobatics to feast on the flying insects in and around your gardens. If you are not familiar with this important and declining migratory species, sit back and let me take you on a journey of learning, loving, and appreciating all they do for us. In addition, you will learn how to improve their declining numbers and invite them to nest within your garden.

Chimney swifts are charcoal gray in color, with a cigar-shaped body, and long pointed wings. Their body length ranges from five to six inches, and their wingspan is twelve to thirteen inches. Their short weak legs, with all toes pointed forward, keep them from perching upright like most other birds. This Andres Jimenez | Dreamstime.com means they cannot perch on a tree branch or a wire. They can only hang vertically using their long claws and stiff tail feathers for support. Since they spend almost all their waking hours from sun-up to sundown in-flight hawking insects, they devour incredible numbers of mosquitoes and other insects. Amazingly they feed, drink, sleep, bathe, and collect nest material, all while they are in flight!

Historically, they nested in hollow or split tree trunks, but they can also use trees with larger, open cavities where they can enter and build a nest inside the trunk. With the arrival of humans on the scene, they were able to adapt and build their nests inside masonry chimneys, silos, wells, cisterns, air vents, and other manufactured structures. Since they prefer sites with low light, house and building chimneys and abandoned silos have become preferred nesting locations for them. No matter how large the structure might be, there is only one active nest per year in any given structure.

Nest construction usually begins around the last half of May and can continue into mid-June. Both parents help build the nest and use their glue-like saliva to “cement” sticks to the sides of the chimney or structure. Since they gather nesting material on the wing, they can use their feet to break twigs and bring them back to the nest site in their bill. The completed nest measures two to three inches front to back, four inches wide and about one to two inches deep. After they have completed the nest, their saliva glands shrink in size, and they use the resulting pouches to carry balls of insect material back to the nestlings for food. The female typically lays four to five white eggs, which both parents incubate for eighteen to twenty-one days. Once the eggs have hatched, both parents feed the young on the average of every thirty minutes until they are about four days old. After that they will feed them hourly, spending all the daylight hours collecting small flying insects, mostly mosquitoes, to keep their young well fed. Unfortunately, our increasing decline in insects, due to many human-related causes, makes it tough on the parents to find enough insects to feed their young—one of the many reasons for the decline in numbers of this vitally important avian species.

After about ten days, the nestlings’ wing feathers begin to unfurl, and their eyes open at about fourteen days. The young outgrow the nest after about two weeks and hang vertically on the walls near the nest. After about twenty days, the young begin to practice flapping their wings in preparation for when they are ready to leave the structure. They finally are ready to leave the nest after about thirty days and fly with their parents in slow circles near the nest structure. Their constant twittering as a group serves as vocal communications between the parents and the young as they continue to learn how their wings operate and to refine their flight movements.

What makes them a particularly useful bird for people is the fact that they are flying and eating constantly during daylight hours. Unlike other insectivorous birds such as swallows, purple martins, and flycatchers, they cannot perch horizontally to rest or occasionally eat ground insects such as ants. Swifts spend many more hours hunting the insects we don’t particularly care for—mosquitoes, biting flies, midges, and more. A single bird can eat more than 5,000 insects per day, consuming nearly one third of its body weight in flying insects! Think of how many insects can be naturally eliminated without using chemical treatments, “bug zappers,” and other harmful ways to control “pest” insect populations.

When it is time for the swifts to migrate south in autumn, they typically leave the Great Lakes area around the middle of September to the first week of October, with most of them gone by the last week of October. As they fly south, they usually stick to the land side of the Gulf of Mexico and then head to northwest South America to sites in Peru, Brazil, Chile, and Ecuador to spend the winter. They do not fly at night, so they must find a structure to roost in each evening. Depending on their area of summer residency, they can migrate more than 10,000 miles each year!

Their breeding grounds, their summer range, extends from southern Canada to the north, the eastern edge of the US to the east, Florida to the southern tip of Texas to the south, and the western edge of Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota (roughly the longitude line of 103° West). Most of them arrive back in northeast Ohio between the third week of April and the middle of May.

During both northward and southward migration journeys, they can congregate by the hundreds, and sometimes thousands, at large roost sites such as large brick or stone chimneys and silos. They can remember the sites where they stop and use them from year to year on their migration journeys. It can be especially important to their migration journeys that those structures remain in place each year as their roosting stops along the way.

As darkness approaches, the birds gather about an hour before sunset and start their slow descent to the chimney or roosting site for the evening. As it gets even darker, larger groups of birds descend into the structure and within ten to fifteen minutes, most of them have selected a location inside to spend the night hanging vertically on the wall.

When the birds migrate northward in the spring, they generally head to the memorized sites they used the prior season. Within two weeks of arriving at their chosen breeding areas, they form monogamous pairs and perform aerial courtship flight displays. Once they have mated and selected their nesting site, they begin nest building, ultimately lay eggs, and care for their young.

Now that we know these facts about the chimney swifts and their behavior, let’s discuss why they are imperiled and have declined in population by more than 60% since the mid-1960s. Many reasons account for their decline, but two are critical. They are losing nesting sites (chimneys, for example) at an alarming rate. Second, the insect populations (the swifts’ food sources) are declining because of the replacement of the insects’ host plants by introduced invasive plants, the use of chemical insect sprays, and other human-generated causes.

Regarding loss of nesting sites, newer chimney construction on individual homes utilize metal flue liners, which chimney swifts cannot cling to, nor can they attach their nesting material.

If they can get into a metal flue, they are typically trapped and cannot get back out. Those types of chimney liners need to be secured with a cover so the swifts cannot get inside them. In addition, many people with suitable masonry chimneys have blocked the open tops thinking they were keeping out squirrels or raccoons, when in fact, they may have had nesting chimney swifts and did not know the “twittering” noises they were hearing came from the young birds vocalizing when the parents came with food. To keep squirrels and raccoons out of an open chimney, a two-foot-wide sheet of metal wrap at the top will prevent them from being able to climb into the chimney. But at the same time, you must remove the screening or cover that may have been put over the opening in past years.

In addition to capped chimneys, the demolition of old chimneys from churches, schools, greenhouses, and businesses in old downtown city settings, which provide great swift nesting sites, are gone forever once they are taken down. Since there is only one nest site in any one of those old chimneys, every suitable nest site is crucial. If possible, consider retaining the chimneys if the building must come down, as long as there are no safety issues with the structure.

So, what can we do to help the swifts and encourage them to happily devour insects in our home gardens? Build them a chimney swift tower!!

Just like putting up nesting boxes to encourage eastern bluebirds to nest has resulted in greater populations, a similar practice has been successful for chimney swifts. A breakthrough publication by Paul and Georgean Kyle (Kyle and Kyle, 2005) gave essential information and plans for people to build their own towers and place them in many locations such as home gardens, municipal areas, churches, schools, and parks. Homeowners, scout groups, and environmental/ecology students in high school and college classes have all built chimney swift towers.

Some groups have worked with local planning and zoning departments to suggest that chimney swift “chimneys” be a part of new building/construction plans. By incorporating more of these structures, many cities and municipalities can use the swifts’ incredible penchant for “naturally” devouring mosquitoes rather than the continued use of pesticide application/spraying in neighborhoods, parks, and over wetland areas. Pesticides then harm species such as birds, amphibians, and even humans.

The minimum height for a chimney swift tower should be ten feet but the taller the tower, the more likelihood that more swifts may use the tower during migration once they have found its location. Most of the towers that people place in their garden habitats range in height from twelve to eighteen feet.

Towers can be free-standing or placed against structures such as a house, garage, barn, or shed. Before moving forward with a swift tower, be sure to check your local zoning laws to see if you need a permit for the structure. A helpful tower placement guide is to place it near structures where chimney swifts have been nesting in the past.

Inside the tower, walls should be sixteen to eighteen inches apart to accommodate the bird’s wingspan. As the young become more active and practice flying up and down in the tower, they must have room to exercise their wings in preparation for leaving the tower with their family members. In addition, the inside surface of the tower should have a rough texture so the swifts’ claws can grip the vertical surface and the parents can attach the sticks during nest building.

The exterior of the tower can be made from all types of materials including vinyl or aluminum siding, bricks, cedar, or other wood products. To discourage predators such as squirrels and raccoons from climbing up the tower and entering the interior, a twentyfour inch band of metal flashing placed around the top of the tower will help keep these creatures at bay.

Additional information about chimney swifts can be found at Chimneyswifts.org. This organization provides a great deal of information in addition to videos, photos, tower construction directions, and swift promotional merchandise. You can also search the internet for other tower ideas and designs.

While we know we need to pull together to try to help this imperiled species, keep in mind that there are many organizations in many states that can offer good advice. The next time you happen to view a group of chimney swifts flying and hunting for insects, please consider doing what you can to invite them into your home garden habitat as well as other areas you might frequent or where you volunteer!

Long-distance migrant. Chimney Swifts migrate to South America each winter flying across the Gulf of Mexico or skirting it along the Texas coast (a route they’re more likely to take in spring than fall). Many swifts use one of three distinct flyways: the Atlantic coast, the east side of the Appalachians, and the Mississippi River. They fly high in the sky during the day and roost in chimneys at night.

Map data are provided by NatureServe in collaboration with Robert Ridgely, James Zook, The Nature Conservancy - Migratory Bird Program, Conservation International - CABS, World Wildlife Fund - US, and Environment Canada - WILDSPACE.

Literature Cited

Kyle, Paul and Georgean Kyle. 2005. Chimney swift towers. College Station, TX: Texas A & M University Press.

Additional Resources

Chimney Swifts.org Available from http://www.chimneyswifts.org/

Kyle, Paul and Georgean Kyle. Chimney Swifts: America’s Mysterious Birds Above the Fireplace. College Station, TX: Texas A & M University Press. 2005.

The Nature Guys. 2020. Chimney swift the flying cigar. Accessed April 15, 2022. Available from http://natureguys.org/?s=chimney+swifts

Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke. 2015. Chimney swifts. Accessed April 15, 2022. Available from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHxtUl1XXsQ

Texas Parks & Wildlife. 2019. Chimney Swifts, Paddlefish Progress & Tree Stand Safety, #2725 (YouTube TV). Accessed April 15, 2022. Available from https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=NyPMkr6A3EE

To Grow them is to know them, To Know them is to use them, To Use them is to love them, And then happily Herbs Become your way of life.

~ Bertha Reppert

Indoor herb gardening lets you enjoy the fragrance and flavor of fresh herbs year-round.

The novice and gourmet chef alike appreciate how herbs enhance even the simplest meals, pleasing the eye as well as the palate. They add zest to drinks, salads, main dishes, sweets, and soups. Herbs are also valued for their health benefits for promoting overall wellness by calming stress and building immunity.

Whether growing in a pot or a garden, herbs encourage creativity and offer a comforting connection to the natural world. Herbs are the quintessential passalong plants. More herb roots, slips, and seeds are shared by plant lovers than any other category of plants. Reciprocal relationships give our lives meaning, and herbs are great at making friends for themselves.

It's important to realize, as Helen Van Pelt Wilson advises, “In a natural sense, there is no such thing as a ‘houseplant,’ for no plant can claim a house as its natural habitat.” (Jenkins and Wilson, 1944). A plant growing in a container depends on the gardener for its every need. To say growing herbs indoors is simple would be misleading. Not all herbs are suitable for indoor gardening because of their size, unruly growth habit, or cultural needs. Today, thanks to the popularity of indoor gardening, new techniques, tools, efficient grow lights, organic soil mixtures, and compact herb varieties specifically bred for containers and small spaces, it is easier to cultivate these delightful plants indoors.

classification or Latin name of a plant will help you correctly identify the plant and its origins. From that information, you can research some of its growth characteristics. Knowing the life cycle of a plant will help you plan for its future. Is it an annual, biennial, or perennial plant?

Success with indoor herb gardening begins with choosing the right plants for the windows and other growing conditions in your home. Most herbs are sun lovers. An unobstructed window facing south or east is the best place to grow an indoor herb garden.

All plants have four basic needs: light, soil, water, and nutrients. A green thumb is nothing more than a good understanding of plants and their requirements, plus the time, inclination, and determination to meet those requirements consistently.

Light is nourishment and energy to a plant. One of the most important aspects of growing herbs is making sure they get enough light. Herbs need a minimum of five to eight hours of direct sunlight per day. However, some plants such as mint, myrtle, and patchouli will do well with daylight and minimal sunlight. Placing a plant just a few feet away from a window can reduce light intensity up to fifty percent. Spindly elongated plants are a signal they are not receiving enough light and need a brighter window or supplemental light. Northern gardeners need to study the changes in winter day length to ensure plants receive enough light indoors. Turn your plants regularly, so all sides get even exposure to light.

Light conditions suitable for growing plants can be created nearly anywhere indoors using artificial illumination. An LED or simple full spectrum grow light with a high level of light output will work for most herbs if the window light isn't bright enough. Place the light one to one and a half feet above the plant, depending on its size. Plants need rest, so schedule your lights with an electric timer set for twelve to fourteen hours rest per day.

Given the variety and diversity of herbs available for cultivating indoors and outdoors, it is impossible to offer a standard set of cultural needs and care requirements that apply to all. It is best to understand the individual needs of the particular plant you wish to grow and to meet those needs. A plant's native habitat offers valuable clues on how to grow it. Knowing the botanical

Many commercial potting soils are available for indoor gardening, including multipurpose peat-based mixes, soil-based blends, and others designed to suit specific plant needs such as cacti or orchids. Good drainage is essential for growing herbs, and a soil pH that is neutral to slightly alkaline is best. Soil-based potting mixes hold more nutrients, especially trace elements, and retain their porous structure longer than peat-based blends. In general, soil-based mixes are better for potted herbs and for the environment.

Choose a balanced, soil-based potting mix

My favorite soil mixture for producing healthy, vigorous herbs contains these ingredients:

3 parts soil-based potting mix

1 part coarse sand

1 part compost

1 part perlite

There are two schools of thought regarding repotting houseplants. Some believe late winter and/or early spring, when new growth begins, is the proper time to repot herbal houseplants into fresh soil or a larger pot before they shift into active growth. In contrast, others insist it is better to repot in late summer before bringing outside plants indoors. Either way, most herbal houseplants should have fresh soil yearly, even if they are repotted into the same pots. I generally repot my herbs in the spring before moving them out for summer vacation.

Difficulties that arise with growing herbs indoors are often because of air that is too hot or dry, especially if the plants are near hot air vents. One way to combat low humidity is to put pots on top of a tray of gravel filled with water, making sure the bottoms of the containers are not sitting in water. Air conditioning that blows directly onto plants will rob moisture from the soil, so locate your herb plants away from air vents. Misting your plants once or twice a week with a sprayer will help herbs resist insect pests that flourish in dry, hot environments. Plants thrive in company. Grouping herbs about five inches apart creates a beneficial microclimate that stimulates more fragrance and makes it easier to water. Just like people, herbs need fresh air. Open a window occasionally to give them some fresh air or use a fan to increase indoor air circulation.

Learn to read the plant, and it will tell you if it's thirsty. Proper watering and good drainage are essential for growing herbs. They are forgiving, but soggy soil is a sure prescription for root rot and fungal disease. To water herbs, gently pour the water into the pot until it runs out of the drainage hole. After an hour or so, empty any standing water left in the pot saucer to avoid waterlogging the roots. Because salts and nutrients leach from potting soil with each watering, I prefer to discard the water and not pour it back into the pot. Try to water herbs early in the day, especially in winter, as watering indoor plants at night sometimes encourages fungal growth.

I am a big fan of clay pots for growing herbs indoors because the growing conditions within the pot are easily adjusted by altering the type of potting mix used or by adding or withholding water. They allow the potting soil in the pot to "breathe" because water slowly evaporates through the sides of the pot, increasing air exchange between soil and roots. This means plants are less apt to have wet feet, which hinders their growth. What's more, the moisture evaporation through the porous sides of clay containers is a simple way to raise humidity and moisture in the air surrounding the plant. Whichever container you select for an herbal houseplant, it should suit the size and needs of the specific herb you plan to grow. The pot needs to be deep enough to accommodate the plant's roots and wide enough to support the plant's future growth. For example, parsley is a plant with a long taproot and requires a deep container sufficient to accommodate the length of its entire root structure.

Use an organic half-strength solution of a 15-15-15 liquid fertilizer to feed your indoor herbs. Many indoor plant enthusiasts favor liquid fertilizers because watering and feeding are completed simultaneously. All complete fertilizers have three numbers, which represent the three primary elements they contain that are essential for healthy plant growth—nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (NPK).

Look at the fertilizer label to determine the percentage of each of these elements. I use a fish emulsion to fertilize my herbs every two or three weeks when they are actively growing because it contains naturally occurring beneficial soil bacteria that are frequently missing in inorganic fertilizers. Lower temperatures and fewer daylight hours of late autumn and winter decrease the need for fertilizer, especially during slow growth or dormancy periods. Gradually start fertilizing again when spring returns.

Herbs should be pruned regularly as they grow. Pruning is key to the health and well-being of attractive, nicely shaped plants with lush foliage. Every herb species has its own growth habit and natural shape, which is why some herbs are not suitable for indoor culture. Plants growing in containers require more grooming than those grown in the ground. Fast-growing plants need frequent pinching to promote maximum foliage production and deter straggly growth. Many herbs put on new growth at their branch tips, and this is where they should be snipped or pinched regularly

This hydrogen peroxide solution, in addition to controlling aphids, is also useful as a foliage spray to control fungus, gnats, and spider mites. Occasionally watering your plants with a diluted solution of hydrogen peroxide will boost oxygen levels and soil aeration. Let the soil dry briefly before resuming your regular watering regimen.

In a 24-ounce plastic or glass spray bottle, combine 2 cups water and 2 tablespoons three-percent hydrogen peroxide. Cap the bottle and store at room temperature.

to encourage a bushier form. Some herbs, such as chives, parsley, and sorrel, grow from the base of the plants. Old-growth should be removed from the sides of these plants rather than from the branch tips.

The best defense is a good offense for pest and disease control. To keep your plants healthy, examine them frequently. Stay ahead of insects and disease by recognizing early symptoms of trouble and accepting when a plant is kaput. It is also wise to learn to recognize when it's time to trash a pestridden or sick plant to stop further spread of disease or insects.

Charles A. Lewis, in his classic book, Green Nature/Human Nature: The Meaning of Plants in Our Lives, perceptively states, "Plants and people share the rhythm of life. They both evolve and change, respond to nurture and climate, and live and die." (Lewis, 1996). Some plants manage to adapt readily to an indoor environment and thrive for years with little effort on your part. But not all plants are long-lived, especially certain herbs. The important thing is to enjoy them while you have them and replace them as needed.

Generally speaking, I use a few types of herbal houseplants in my home throughout the year.

I treat short-lived plants, such as basil, cilantro, and summer savory, the same way indoors as I do annuals in the garden. Transient decorative gift plants associated with seasonal celebrations bring temporary pleasure and are here and gone.

Aloe vera, scented pelargoniums, lemongrass, and many other perennial herbs are easy-going long-lasting plants indoors if given the proper environment, soil, nutrients, and lighting.

Creatively approached, growing a group of herbs together in a single pot offers a great opportunity to experiment with theme gardening. When combining several plants in the same container, it's important to choose plants with similar cultural needs because all the plants will receive the same amount of moisture and light. Keep in mind that the plants will eventually outgrow the space. Your container's diameter should be about two inches larger than the total diameter of all the pots you are combining. As the garden ages, prune or remove plants to avoid overcrowding. Close planting reduces air circulation and increases the chance of a pest or disease problem. Keep plants groomed and pruned to fit the available space.

Last but not least are those special herbs I value as good friends or those which have sparked my botanical curiosity with a snippet of historic intrigue or an amusing tale about them. I enjoy the adventure of interacting with them, spending the time and effort learning to create the perfect environment suited to each plant's individual requirements. I think of them as friends and want to know more about them. And yes, I do talk to my herbs! Although there are many delightful myths and legends associated with herbs, the magical gift of a green thumb is not one of them. Gardening is a skill developed through trial and error, and container gardening is an excellent way to begin cultivating your green thumb. We're increasingly aware of how plants and gardening connect us to the healing power of the natural world. You can travel the planet by gardening on your windowsill. In and out of the garden, herbs offer people of all ages a fun, friendly, delightful venue to explore and ask questions about cultural, ethnic, geographic, and economic diversity. By kindly nurturing us, herbs teach that there are many approaches to understanding and enjoying the continuity of people-plant relationships.

Literature Cited

Bailey, Liberty H. 1902. Garden making, suggestion for the utilizing of home grounds. New York: Macmillan, Company. Jenkins, D.H and Wilson Helen Van Pelt. 1944. Enjoy your house plants. New York: M. Barrows & Co. Lewis, Charles L. 1996. Green nature-human nature: the meaning of plants in our lives. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.

Reppert, Bertha. 1990. Growing and using herbs with confidence. Nicholasville, KY: Remembrance Press.

Bibliography

Betz, Susan. Herbal Houseplants, Grow Beautiful Herbs -Indoors! Beverly, MA: Cool Spring Press. 2021. Foster, Steven. “Aloe Vera: every windowsill deserves one.” The Herb Companion. February / March. Loveland, CO: Interweave Press. 1995.