L ong before pharmaceutical companies, the herb garden was nature’s medicine cabinet.
People grew and gathered herbs because they needed to.
And the meaning of “herb” was much broader than it is today.
As early as 200 years ago, there were pot herbs (what we now call vegetables), “salet” herbs for salads, sweet herbs for cooking, and “simples” for medicinal purposes.
Much of that knowledge is lost to modern people, who think of herbs mainly as food seasonings – if they think of them at all.
That’s a shame because herbs are beautiful in the landscape and useful, said Sayra Hill of Snohomish, a self-taught herb expert who enjoys collecting old herbal books and boning up on herb folklore.
Hill uses herbs in nearly every aspect of her life, from the meals she prepares in the kitchen to the lemon balm toner she splashes on her face.
Dried lavender keeps the moths out of her clothes. Fresh herbs fill vases in her office and are the starting point for liqueurs, teas and homemade muscle rubs.
She works out of her home as a licensed esthetician (she specializes in the care and treatment of skin), and she raves about the benefits of essential oils derived from herbs.
“Let’s face it, some people don’t get excited about these plants,” she said. “Herbs look unassuming, not splashy. But they’ve got more to offer than splashier looking plants.”
It’s true. Herbs don’t stand up and demand attention with gigantic blooms and heavy aromas.
They subtly invite it, with understated hues and scents that need to be coaxed from leaves.
Many might be surprised to learn that an herb is any plant that has a useful purpose, Hill said. Roses, hydrangeas, daisies and honeysuckle are all considered herbs.
“That could mean emotional, spiritual or physical” uses, she said.
Grow herbs and you’ll have an inexpensive source of homemade cosmetics, scented gifts and comforting teas as close as the back yard.
You’ll also have a carefree garden alive with subtle colors and scents.
Nowhere is this more apparent than the cottage-style mixed garden that surrounds Hill’s butter yellow 1920s Dutch colonial bungalow.
Too many kinds of herbs to count blend together untamed in her back yard planting beds.
All the familiar standards are here: rosemary, lavender, thyme, oregano, tarragon, sage and many mint varieties including chocolate and pineapple.
Bee balm produces brilliant lipstick-red flowers nodding on chest-high stalks. Hydrangeas with baby blue blooms flourish along a fence. Golden swirl oregano grows close to the ground like an unruly cowlick.
There are roses and a curving hedge of lemon balm, lady’s mantle and stately madonna lilies.
A wisteria-draped arbor and white wrought iron furniture add a timeless feel. Crumbling rock paths lead to a tinkling pond or around the home to a secluded side garden with a curtain of honeysuckle and ivy draped over the fence. There, she created a garden vignette with a claw foot tub, parlor chair and table.
She takes a relaxed, no-nonsense approach to life and gardening.
“I like the sprawling look of herbs. They look like they enjoy where they’re at. They don’t look stiff.”
Herbs aren’t fussy and she has found most prefer well-drained soil in a sunny spot, although some like shade.
Herbs don’t require super rich soil. In fact, too rich of soil can inhibit the production of essential oils, the lifeblood of herbs that give them flavor and scent.
“I put my herbs where I think they’ll be happy, and if they’re not I move them,” she said.
Herbs shouldn’t be jammed together, she said. They need room to grow and spread.
Most experts would recommend containing mint – an exuberant spreader, to put it mildly – in a pot. She lets hers march all over the garden.
“I don’t believe in containing mint,” she said. “It’s a free spirit. It just wants to go.”
She recommended buying herb starts in gallon-size containers and planting in the fall. It’s OK to plant in the summer but herbs require more water in the dry months.
Buy several of the same kind of herb so there is enough to harvest. Harvesting more than a third of the plant can kill it.
Expect that perennials such as lavender and sage will get woody after four or five years and may need to be replaced, she said.
Hill doesn’t dry most of her herbs, but you can by hanging them upside down in a dark dry place such as a closet.
She does dry bunches of lavender for use in a warm bath or between clothing stored in the closet. Moths hate lavender.
If you choose to use dried herbs from the garden or the grocery store, they stay flavorful for about six months. After that, they’ve lost all their essential oils and should be tossed.
Giving a tussie mussie – a small bouquet of flowers and herbs – was a popular way to bring comfort and healing to the ill in the Victorian era or to celebrate special occasions.
Women would also hold the bouquets close to their noses when traveling through city streets. (At that time, folks were emptying their chamber pots out the window.)
Hill’s favorite herb is lemon balm, and she buys it by the flat. It can smooth wrinkles, soften the face and lift the mood. In Victorian times, it was known as anti-depressant, Hill said.
Flowers from edible herbs are safe to eat, she said. Try the purple flowers of chives on salads. French sorrel, with its lemony spinachlike leaves, is another favorite.
She offers visitors a homemade mint liqueur made by packing a sterilized quart canning jar with fresh mint and vodka.
The jar is topped with a nonreactive, nonmetal lid and left to steep for at least three weeks and no longer than three months. She then removes the mint and adds a simple syrup solution made from equal parts sugar and water. The finished product is stored in the refrigerator.
Another yummy recipe: Mix olive oil, vinegar and a bit of lemon juice. Add crushed garlic and fresh snipped sage. Crumble Gorgonzola cheese on top and serve with a baguette.
Reporter Debra Smith: 425-339-3197 or dsmith@ heraldnet.com.
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