Italian Herb Garden

Italian Herb Garden - Oregano, Parsley and Rosemary

Italy is known for its great food. Going out for an Italian dinner is just the best because the Italians have got it figured out when it comes to cooking fantastic food. Part of the reason their food is so good is because of their tasty herbs. And for that reason we need to discuss why you should have an Italian herb garden.

The Italian oregano is used in stews, soups, sauces, meat and shellfish. The plant has a finer leaf then other oreganos and will hang over the edge of any containers it is planted in. It grows best in a full day of sun without partial shade. It needs a water soluble plant fertilizer every 2 or 3 weeks. It needs to be watered every 2 or 3 days and needs a lot of drainage so the soil should have some sand or perlite in it.

Bundle the oregano and hang it upside down in a dry place and let it dry. When the leaves are dry you can just crumble them on your food. That's actually how it is when you buy a bottle of it in the store, it's just dried leaves. It's best not to harvest oregano until the flowers have bloomed because that is when it is most tasty.

Parsley is used today by the nicer restaurants to decorate your plate but parsley was not always used for this purpose. It has an interesting history in that many generations ago, long before the invention of the breath mint parsley was used. It was served on a dish after a tasty meal so that all could help themselves to what was then their version of a breath freshener. There is nothing wrong with eating it and it is actually part of the carrot family. So help yourself, sweeten your breath with a natural healthy herb.

Rosemary can be used in many different dishes like salads or soups or meat and the leaves can be used as a tea and no Italian herb garden would be complete without it. It gives a generous amount of foliage which you can just pluck off as needed.

If you feel down and out or depressed rosemary can energize and cheer you up believe it or not by having some as a tea (with a pinch of valerian added) or an herbal bath.

It likes to grow in warm sunny places. Rosemary is though and will survive a cold winter or if it should dry and turn brown all you have to do is cut it way down and it will spring back with healthy foliage.

You can get some more herb tips free of charge for your Italian herb garden at http://herbalplanting.com/ so go grab some tips for some healthy herbs.

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