SFG Herb of the year Garden

Over the weekend I was at the annual Midwestern Herb and Garden Show. Deborah Lee is the President of the Illinois Herb Association, and she was at the show to give a talk about herbs, and she asked me to join her to talk about my Certified Illinois Herb Garden.
So here is a small video clip of me on stage talking about my Square Foot Herb Garden.
I did edit the video and cut out the part where I said UHHHH UHHHH several times



You can read more about Deborah Lee on her web site. http://www.four-winds-farm.com/about-us/

Very cool! I am big with the Uhhhhs when I speak too.

Way to Go Josh, High Fives to You !

Excellent job Josh

With the milder winter this year several of the herbs like lavender and rosemary made it through the winter. The herb garden looks better this year, the roses, chives, sage and thyme are blooming.


The horseradish is in a pot buried down in it's square so it doesn't spread everywhere, but everything else is just planted in the SFG, from the 21 herbs from the herbs of the year list, which one do you think is the hardest one for me to keep control of so far? I try to keep everything in it's own square, so far I've been able to do it.

Wow, Josh! It looks awesome! Horseradish, I need to try that!

Thanks for the update and picture Josh! I love seeing how everything looks once it has grown for a while.

Gorgeous, Josh, simply gorgeous! I'm not surprised you have difficulty keeping everything in it's own square...mints are probably the most invasive herbs I've dealt with, but many of those plants have a larger growth habit than 1' wide.

Kudos on the herb garden, Josh, and all of the recognition it has received. In time, I'm sure you'll find uses for all 21 of those herbs!

I can see that your Lemon Balm on the corner is very large. From my experience, it is very hard to control. I ended up moving it out of my 2x3 herb box last year because it was supplying too many weeds. I moved it to a small slope outside my fence so I can still have it when needed. Wouldn't you know that I've already had to pull out a bunch of lemon balm sprouts from the same 2x3 this spring! Not so ironically, I was given the first plant from a Rutgers Master Gardner who said, "It just takes over" as I dug it out of a 20' border of lemon balm!

I mostly use it as a mosquito repellant in the summer. I just pull off a handful of leaves and rub them all over my exposed skin. Then I can use my hands in my SFG instead of swatting 'skeeters. It works great!

Josh,

Thanks for the updated photo of your incredible herb garden! It's looking great in its second incarnation!

By the way, I didn't know that the rose is considered an herb. Do you happen to know the rationale?

Savory has already won the title of Herb of the Year for 2015? I think the contest is rigged somehow.

Excellent Job Josh! My russian sage grew crazy big last year. I kept shaping and chopping it and it seemed to get bolder

donnainzone10 wrote:Josh,

Thanks for the updated photo of your incredible herb garden! It's looking great in its second incarnation!

By the way, I didn't know that the rose is considered an herb. Do you happen to know the rationale?

This is what they say the definition of a herb is:
The
common accepted definition of an herb is, “Plants of which the leaves
or stems are used for medicine, for their scent and their flavor.
The rose hips are used in teas and are high in vitamin c.
Check out more about the uses of Rose Rose herb for 2012

H_TX_2 wrote:Savory has already won the title of Herb of the Year for 2015? I think the contest is rigged somehow.

This is how they decide what herb will be herb of the year

[size=12]The International Herb Association



Herb of the Year



Every year since 1995, the International Herb Association has chosen an Herb of the
Year to highlight. The
Herb of the Year Program, spearheaded by IHA's Horticulture
Committee, has established Herb of the Year selections
up to 2015. All IHA members
are invited to participate in the selection process. Long-standing member, Chuck Voigt
(University
of Illinois) has been involved in the selection process for many years. He
explains, "The Horticultural Committee evaluates
possible choices based on them
being outstanding in at least two of the three major categories: medicinal, culinary,
or
decorative." Herb societies, groups, and organizations from around the world work
together throughout the year to educate
the public about these important herbs.

The herb that spread the most was Artemisias. It spread by the roots to every level of the garden and I took the plant up and pulled out all the roots that had spread or at least all of them I could find, there may be more sprout up yet, since Mel's mix is so loose I was able to pull them out pretty easy but there was a bunch of them! I planted it in a pot like I did the horseradish and buried the pot in the square. The second most invasive was Monarda but was still easy to pull out the unwanted plants. Mint came in third, but I can see it may be next on the list to be #1, So far the Lemon Balm has stayed in it's own square, but when it was in the flower garden it spread fast.

Josh,

Thanks for your explanation as to why roses are considered herbs; it makes perfect sense. It's always good to get an expert opinion!

Josh - You are exceptional! I love seeing your posts!

I notice that in your photos there are no critter protection cages. Is that not a problem in your area, or do you have them, but choose to photograph without?

Thanks for always sharing so much information!!!

I planted two lemon balm in a round non mm garden about three years ago..It is now a lemon balm garden! I am transplanting the other herbs lol..much easier. And since that bed has an inground border the balm will be contained.

I had a granddaughter staying till last week. The mosquitoes love her! I just took a top of a stem and wiped it on her. She was in heaven! Not a bite all evening lol..I can see where I can send a few starts lol..