The Kew Gardener’s Guide to Growing Herbs

Description

The new Kew guide to planting and cultivating herbs features 12 easy and inspiring projects as well as detailed information on 80 of the most important species to grow, all accompanied by Kew's beautiful botanical illustrations.

Herbs provide flavours and scents unlike any other, and the 80 hand-picked herbs in this book are a living trove of fresh flavours for any cook, with power to transform the simplest dish.

Find out how to grow herbs in beds, pots, borders and windowboxes, how to plant, and how to propagate and harvest your herbs, as the kew experts equip you with all you need to create a flourishing herb garden of your very own.

Following this, 80 of the most important and exciting herbs are identified, illustrated and their uses explained. This is accompanied by 12 projects which show how to develop a herb garden at the next level and use herbs in the most interesting and creative ways, from planting a herb roof to making herbal oils. 

Herbs can be used as seeds, flowers, or leaves; cooked and eaten themselves or used to infuse a dish or drink. They are high-value ingredients for foraged dishes, and must-have crops for the best restaurants as chefs realise that often the only way to capture their elusive flavour is to grow and harvest fresh herbs on their doorstep.

With this book these intense flavours can now be a reality for gardeners and home-cooks with any size of garden, from an acre to a window box. Underpinned by the authority of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the expertise of Holly Farrell this book combines practical elements with inspiration and beauty. 

This book is from the Kew Experts series, in which the top gardeners and botanical scientists from Royal Botanic Kew Gardens offer up advice and information as well as suggesting handy projects on a range of gardening topics. Other titles include: Companion to Medicinal Plants, Guide to Growing Bulbs, Guide to Growing Fruit, Guide to Growing Orchids, Guide to Growing Roses, Guide to Growing Succulents and Cacti, Guide to Growing Trees, Guide to Growing Vegetables and Guide to Growing House Plants.

HOLLY FARRELL is the author of Planting Plans for your Kitchen Garden (2013, How To Books) and RHS Plants from Pips (2015, Mitchell Beazley). She contributes to gardening magazines such as The Garden and Kitchen Garden, and has a blog at www.hollyefarrell.com. Holly trained at RHS Gardens Wisley where she gained the Wisley Diploma in Practical Horticulture and the RHS Certificate and Diploma, both with Commendation. After working as Head Gardener on a private estate she now combines her career as a garden writer with freelance work as a consultant on (kitchen) gardens for private clients and Tom Stuart-Smith Ltd. Holly has been growing her own fruit and vegetables for many years, in a variety of settings from allotments to container gardens. Holly is also a keen and experienced baker, and while she’s happy to produce wedding cakes for friends or hundreds of biscuits for a Christmas market stall, she doesn’t need a reason to bake!

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, has cultivated plants for more than 250 years. Today, Kew’s horticulturists grow over 19,000 species of plants in the gardens – the most diverse collection in the world.

Growing herbs
Introduction: the value of herbs
must-have herbs
easy herbs
growing herbs equipment
growing herbs soil, situation, planting
growing herbs perennials
growing herbs shrubs and trees
growing herbs annuals
growing herbs biennials
growing herbs in the ground
growing herbs in the ground – design
growing herbs in containers
A-Z of herbs
Achillea ageratum
Acmella oleracea
Agastache foeniculum
Allium schoenoprasum
Project 1 A vertical herb garden
Allium schoenoprasum var sibiricum
Allium tuberosum
Aloysia citrodora
Anethum graveolens
Angelica archangelica
Anthriscus cerefolium
Apium graveolens
Artemisia dracumculus
Armormacia rusticana
Artemisia dracunculus
Atriplex hortensis
Borago officinalis
Brassica
Calamintha nepeta
Calendula officinalis
Calycanthus floridus
Carum carvi
Caspicum spp
Caspicum spp
Caspicum spp
Project 2 Infused oils, vinegars etc
Caspicum spp
Chamaemelum nobilis
Project 3 Herbs as cut flowers
Chenopodium bonus-henricus
Cichorium intybus
Cinnamomum
Citrus
Coriandrum sativum
Crocus sativus
Cuminum cyminum
Curcuma longa
Project 4 Herbal teas/tisanes
Cymbopogon citratus
Drimys lanceolata
Dysphania ambrosiodies
Elettaria cardamomum
Eruca vesicaria subsp. Sativa
Foeniculum vulgare
Project 5 Harvesting seed and fennel pollen
Galium odoratum
Hyssopus officinalis
Laurus nobilis
Lavandula spp
Project 6 Drying herbs
Levisticum officinale
Melissa
Mentha spicata
Mentha spicata
Mentha spicata
Mentha spicata
Project 7 Herbs as a green roof
Monarda didyma
Myristica fragrans
Myrrhis odorata
Myrtus communis
Nasturtium officinale
Ocimum basilicum
Ocimum basilicum
Ocimum basilicum
Project 8 Hey pesto!
Ocimum basilicum
Origanum marjorana
Origanum vulgare
Pelargonium crispum
Perilla frutescens
Persicaria odorata
Project 9 Herbs for cocktails
Petroselinum crispum
Pimpinella anisum
Piper nigrum
Portulaca oleracea
Rosa – R. rugosa and R. gallica var. offincialis
Rosmarinus officinalis
Project 10 Topiary rosemary
Rumex acetosa/R.sanguineus/scutatus
Salvia officinalis
Salvia officinalis
Sambucus nigra
Sanguisorba minor
Satureja hortsensis
Satureja montana
Symphytum
Syzygium aromaticum
Tanacetum
Taraxacum officinale
Thymus vulgaris
Thymus vulgaris
Thymus vulgaris
Project 11 Herb lawns and seats
Thymus vulgaris
Trigonella foenum-graecum
Tropaeolum majus
Urtica dioica
Viola odorata
Zingiber officinale
Problems
Problems
Year programme: spring
Year programme: summer
Year programme: autumn
Year programme: winter
index
acknowledgements

Additional information

Dimensions	0.75 × 6.75 × 8.5 in
Series	Kew Experts
Imprint	Frances Lincoln
Format	General Trade
ISBN-13	09780711239364
ISBN-10	0711239363
Audience	General / adult
BISAC	GAR018000, GAR027020
Subjects	rosemary, pot marigold, cinnamon, camomile, chamomile, caraway, catmint, borage, chives, lemon balm, lavender, calendula, book on herbs, home grown, medicinal plants, growing herbs, herb garden, tisane, self sufficient, mint, GAR018000, parsley, black pepper, herb seat, herb lawn, viola, dock, thyme, tanacetum, tansy, comfrey, salvia, topiary herbs, grow your own, herbal wreath, nasturtium, bergamot, green roof, lovage, melissa, hyssop, tisanes, teas, new skill, advice, ginger, chelsea flower show, royal horticultural society, RHS, national gardening month, national garden month, sustainable, coriander, easy to follow, kitchen garden, tips, herbal, how to, experts, ingredients, Recipes, Cooking, Spices, vegetarian, outdoors, oregano, sage, pesto, at home, dill, basil, fennel, cut flowers, pepper, diy, vegan month, introduction, bay, guide to, project, encyclopaedia, encyclopedia, for beginners, GAR027020, 2022