Growing thyme in central texas full#
Growing thyme in central texas free#

Those who want to learn more about herbs and what to do with them may attend free classes at the Herb Fair. Once that plant produces flowers and seeds, and the first major heat wave knocks it out, you can start your basil again. Harvest what you want from it, let it go and replace it with something that will do well all fall and winter. Don't try to keep it alive all winter it won't be happy. And if you have basil in your garden now, let it go. Which means, don't start or buy basil right now. Then, even beginner gardeners can be successful.' 'Work with nature and with what the plants naturally want. 'Don't try to manipulate the plants to do what you want them to do where you want them to do it,' Wood advises. Notice which plants thrive and which ones struggle over time, then adjust locations accordingly. Wood recommends starting with several of each variety of herb you want to grow, and place each one in a different area of your garden. The main thing to figure out is where herbs - and all your plants, really - do best in your garden. Also, Wood adds, if you cut it to put in a vase, the seeds will continue to ripen. Plant borage.' Once it is established, let it go to seed, and it will volunteer reliably season after season. 'We hear all about the bees dying off - well, this is something we can do to help them. 'The English call it bee bread,' Wood says, because bees are attracted to it. Borage is usually the first to bloom in the spring, in February or March, and produces small sky-blue flowers in the shape of a five-point star. Herbs offer many different shapes and sizes, and then produce beautiful flowers in the spring that attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.īay tree is a slow-growing herb that makes a wonderful specimen in full-sun areas of the garden. Still others enjoy herbs as part of their overall landscape design. Many lavender varieties don't do well through the Texas summer, but area gardeners have success with the fern leaf and sweet lavender varieties. Choose your favorite smelling herbs by brushing the herbs' leaves between your fingers to release the fragrance. Other people enjoy the fragrance of herbs, so they choose mints, various lemony herbs - like lemon balm and lemon verbena - pineapple salvia and lavender. Some people enjoy cooking with herbs, so any of the culinary varieties are great to start with - rosemary, oregano, chives, dill, cilantro, thyme and more. What to plant? 'Whatever will give you the most pleasure,' Wood says.

Also, the sand warms up quickly in the winter sun and can help protect plants from the cold.

Herbs mostly don't do well in soggy soil, which is why Wood and other herb experts recommend planting herbs with sharp sand or pea gravel mixed into the soil to help with drainage.

Place herbs in the ground or in containers, but make sure the drainage is good. 'Morning through afternoon sun is best - the late-afternoon sun in the fall and winter is OK, but it's too intense for them in the summer.' 'Most herbs need six hours of sun to thrive,' she says.

Growing thyme in central texas full#

Susan Wood, a life member of the Herb Society and past chair of the South Texas Unit, says the key to growing herbs is to put them in full sun and to make sure they don't get waterlogged. Pre-orders: Order online at by Monday for early admission (8 a.m.) on fair day. Where: Metropolitan Multi-Service Center, 1475 W. What: 43rd annual Herb Fair presented by the South Texas Unit of the Herb Society of America