There are hundreds of different garden herbs that are wonderful for growing in the herb garden. Of course, trying to fit them all in one bed won't work - so the gardener has to make a choice. How this turns out depends entirely on what the herbs are to be used for. The range of species and varieties varies depending on whether you want to create a kitchen garden, an exotic herb garden, a scent or aroma garden, or simply plant a few herbs in the flower borders.
Different herbs have different requirements
Annual and biennial herbs
This group includes many of our traditional kitchen herbs such as parsley, chervil, savory, dill, marjoram and cress, but also ancient cultivated plants such as orache or purslane. They are usually quite robust and can be sown directly into the bed in spring. The best time to do this depends on the specific species: You can start with parsley, chervil and cress in March. Dill, orache and rocket follow from April, and nasturtium, purslane and savory in May. You should only wait until after the ice saints to sow marjoram.
More kitchen and wild herbs
Many herbs in this group are native or naturalized in Central Europe and are well adapted to our moderate, rainy climate. As a rule, they also do well in semi-shade, although species such as woodruff or wild garlic even love shady places under trees. Chives and lovage, ancient medicinal plants such as valerian and lemon balm, strong aromatic herbs such as horseradish and species that have been somewhat forgotten in the meantime such as wild rocket, sorrel, burnet burnet or watercress also need good, deep and moist soil.
Mediterranean herbs
Many herbs from the Mediterranean region are the exact opposite, namely sun-hungry and rather ascetic in relation to the soil. Thyme, oregano, sage, rosemary, hyssop, the aromatic curry herb or lemon verbena prefer very warm, sheltered locations on poor and stony soil. Many varieties are very sensitive to frost - especially rosemary, laurel and lemon verbena - and should therefore be cultivated in containers.
artemisia
Artemisia is the botanical generic name of a whole range of ancient aromatic and medicinal plants such as wormwood, mugwort, southernwood or tarragon. The latter is best known from fine cuisine, where its sweetish, anise-like taste lends aroma and sophistication to fish dishes and delicate sauces. This family of herbs contains a lot of bitter substances, but also substances that have a toxic effect in higher concentrations - a well-known example is the alkaloid absinthe. Artemisia promote fat digestion and help with numerous other ailments. They used to be considered strong "protective and magical herbs" and were mainly used for incense.
tips
If you want to grow something very special in your herb garden, you are guaranteed to find what you are looking for among Asian exotics. Various types of coriander, shiso, Thai basil, lemongrass, ginger, turmeric, kaffir lime or even wasabi grow here.