Pretty Garden Tips

Call me silly, but if you do not have thyme growing in your garden you cannot call the place an herb garden.  There are several uses for this essential plant.  It does not hurt that there are more than 100 special varieties with tempting flavors and aromas.

It doesn’t matter which variety of thyme you choose, they all have a woody, twig like stem and little oval-shaped leaves.  Your herb will have very small purple, pink or pale white blossoms that appear in early summer or late spring depending on the temperature.

Some of the many types, here are 3 you’ll probably want to be familiar with:

• Common Thyme: When you get thyme at the store, this is the type that you’ll generally be getting.  It’s a taller variety that also has a strong flavor and smell, which makes it superb for your entrees.  You can look at the leaves of this type of thyme to determine which of the following 3 kinds it is.  While the English kind has variegated leaves, the leaves on the German type are broad and the French are thin.

• Lemon Thyme: You’ll have a hard thyme guessing what lemon thyme smells like.  If you cannot tell that that one out you might want to choose another hobby.  Yes, lemon thyme has a strong lemon smell that you cannot miss.  Some varieties of lemon thyme even have tiny pale yellow flowers.

• Wild Thyme: This kind of thyme is not usually grown for use in cooking, so don’t fall into the trap of thinking that every thyme plant is the same.  If you are seeking an interesting ground cover, this is a great place to start.

Using thyme is easy, just snip off a few leaves, dice them if necessary and throw them in with your recipe.  In order to help your herb grow well; make sure you trim it often which will give you plenty of opportunities to use the leaves in making scrumptious meals.  This herb is also used in health and beauty products that you can make at your house.  You can use thyme in soaps and lotions, add a little bit in your bath or use it to make an sweet smelling potpourri.

Those same folks will tell you to use it to help with several different ailments including sleeplessness, gas, asthmatic breathing, headaches, poor digestion and coughing.  I guess it basically can do anything except bring in the newspaper.

This herb is one of the best herbs to raise.  It will succeed inside or outside and does well in well-drained, rich soil and full-sun.  Thyme takes a while to germinate, so you might find it easier making a trip to the home improvement store and starting with mature herbs instead of seeds.  For your outdoor thyme, use it in your rock garden or along a stone wall or over a rustic driveway.

If you would rather dry your thyme for use over the winter than bring your plant inside, just snip off each branch at the stem and hang it upside down to dry.

Don’t forget to get the seeds on your thyme herb.  Believe it or not, your herbs can still be used in germination up to three years later.

Good luck with your herb gardening. Be sure to let me know how your herb garden grows.

Here is more information on Herb Garden Plants. Here is a website with a free mini-course dedicated to Herb Gardens.

Tags: gardening, growing herbs thyme, Herb Garden Plants, herbs, thyme

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