At this time of year our glasshouse is a hive of activity with propagation, seed sowing and potting, in preparation for the start of our season. It is also the time when we take notice of all the new shoots reappearing in Jekka’s Herb Garden making us excited that spring is on its way. Signs of spring are all around us with our residential Song Thrush serenading us as we weed Jekka’s Herbetum.
Every year our seasons differ and this year we experienced a mild and wet winter compared to the previous year. At Jekka’s Herb Farm we record the weather and temperatures every day and have also noticed that the light level this year has been so much better than the last resulting in our herbs making an earlier appearance than usual. It is wonderful to watch our herbaceous herbs come out of hibernation. Jekka’s Herb Garden is looking fresh and green, with new growth of flavoursome young leaves appearing alongside our established evergreen herbs.
In this blog, we are documenting the top 10 herb plants that are providing us with colour and flavour in our garden this early spring. Read more about Jekka’s Herb Garden in the blogs on the garden in both spring, late-summer and autumn as well as a time-line to see its evolution.
10 top spring herbs in Jekka’s Herb Garden:
This wonderful plant forms its bulbs at the top of the stem and, in autumn, the stems gentle curve towards the ground. At this time of year you can watch the bulbs root into the soil and form new growth. The new stems can be used in salads instead of spring onions.
What to know more? Read Jekka’s blog all about Alliums.
The fresh new leaves of wild garlic are quickly reappearing in our garden, providing us with ingredients for pesto and potato salads. Nothing quite beats the flavour of their young leaves.
This is the wild celery, which easily self-seeds itself throughout the garden and provides fresh salad leaves in early spring that are wonderful in Jekka’s Spring Herb Flat Breads. It is also brilliant in soups which is a staple for us this month.
Celery Leaf (Apium graveolens)
In early spring this herb provides much needed colour and texture with its structural leaves.
This perennial Marjoram is amazing in cooking as it provides so much flavour to dishes. Similar to the annual Sweet Marjoram, this is one plant we highly recommend as it is very hardy and has a wonderful aroma to its leaves.
Want to know more? Read Jekka’s Guide to Oregano.
One of our evergreen herbs that provides interesting colour and texture. It is from South Africa and is known as the burning bush.
Kerosene Bush (Ozothamnus hookeri)
Another early spring salad herb with a sharp lemon flavour. It also makes a very good soup that can be served cold.
The Rosemary’s in Jekka’s Herbetum are providing us much needed colour, especially Jekka’s Blue Rosemary which is covered in buds and has started flowering. The Rosemary family tend to be the first to flower and will provide colour from February right through to the start of May, which our honey bees greatly appreciate as they wake from their winter slumbers.
Want to know more? Read Jekka’s Guide to Rosemary.
This is a soft leaved evergreen that we use in salads all year round; it tastes of nutty cucumber. In early spring the leaves look very attractive covered in the morning dew.
A must have evergreen herb for any culinary garden. All of our thymes are already putting on new growth, ideal for using in cooking with your winter dishes and roast vegetables.
It is a wonderful time of year and Jekka’s Herb Garden is coming to life and we hope you are inspired to refresh or create your own herb garden.
Want to know more?
Jekka’s has a wealth of material on designing and planting culinary herb gardens. Some additional Guides and Blogs that might also help are:
- Jekka’s Guide on How to Grow Herbs
- Jekka's Guide to being a Sustainable Herb Gardener
- Jekka’ Tips to Planting a Culinary Herb Garden
- Jekka’s Advice on Growing Herbs in Containers
- Marcus Wareing's Herb Kitchen Garden
- Jekka’s Riverstone culinary kitchen herb garden
You can also find more about herbs in Jekka’s blog, our past newsletters and videos as well as Jekka's new book '100 Herbs to Grow' and Jekka's existing books, namely 'A Pocketful of Herbs' or Jekka's Complete Herb Book, and also by browsing Jekkapedia and exploring our herb based recipes.
Jekka's Herbs of the month blogs: Bay (January), Rosemary (February), Salad Burnet (March), French Tarragon (April), Angelica (May), Alliums (June), Lavender (July), Basil (August), Mint (September), Szechuan Pepper (October), Thyme (November) and Curry Tree (December).
Alternatively, come and visit the herb farm in South Gloucestershire at one of our Open Days, Master Classes or Herb Experiences (see our events calendar).
For advice on growing and maintaining herbs, check out Jekka's How to Grow Herbs videos and ‘Jekka’s Seasonal Tips’ blog series, which includes what to do in your herb garden in early spring, late spring, summer and autumn & winter. Together they form the basis of Jekka’s guide on how to grow herbs.
Herb plants are available and you can organise a collection from our herb farm in South Gloucestershire or at one of our Open Days or Herb Experiences (see our events calendar). Please see our 'Looking Good List' for availability and use our webform or email your list directly to us (sales@jekkas.com). We no longer offer a general mail order service for our plants but we do offer a limited selection of Jekka's Culinary Herb Boxes.