A tough and lovely evergreen sub-shrub for the Mediterranean garden, Gray Santolina has fine textured grey foliage that is amazingly fragrant when the afternoon sun hits it. Native to sunny hillsides in the western and central Mediterranean, Gray Santolina is very drought adapted and adds great color and texture to the Mediterranean border. Mixes well with rosemary, sages, lavender, and phlomis.
A most interesting member of the Amaranth family, Epazote is an extremely valuable and useful herb whose fragrance and flavor is unmistakable. Often used in Mexican cooking and a common addition to black beans for its antiflatulent properties, Epazote can be added to a variety of dishes and also made into a tea. Aromas are somewhat similar to oregano or tarragon but quite unique.
A lovely scented cool-season grass native to North America, Sweet Grass has long been valued for a multitude of traditional uses due to its incredibly fragrant leaves that have a sweet, almost vanilla-like aroma to them. Sweet grass spreads via rhizome so be sure you plant it somewhere that you want it permanently and where it has room to roam as it can be difficult to remove after establishment.
A unique hybrid of watermint and spearmint, the Chocolate Mint is treasured for its unique fragrance that is often described as chocolatey or citrusy. One of the preferred mints for baking and also makes an excellent and unique mojito if you don’t have any mojito mint on hand.
A plant that surely needs no introduction, spearmint is one of the easiest, some might say too easy given its aggressive tendencies, herbs to grow. Though it’s incredibly common the virtues of spearmint cannot be understated. Excellent in teas, cocktails, baked recipes and just about anything else you want to add a minty flavor to.
An essential plant for every herb garden or Mediterranean border. Italian Oregano is an easy to grow plant that produces an abundance of fragrant foliage that can be used to flavor a great number of dishes. In climates with heavy summer rainfall plant in very well draining soil to maintain best flavor and longevity of the plant. Don’t be afraid to cut the plant back if it starts getting a little leggy.
Not your average Mint family member, Cuban Oregano looks like the beautiful love child of an Echeveria and a mint with its big succulent and slightly furry leaves. Cuban Oregano is much more fragrant than the Italian or Greek oregano typically used in pizzas and other Mediterranean dishes. When sliced into thin pieces and simmered in butter a single leaf can add a huge amount of flavor to any dish! A very fun windowsill plant for those of us in frosty climates that can’t grow it outdoors year round.
