Herbs add texture, fragrance, and hue to the home landscape environment.  They also look good as stand-alone elements in ceramic pots.  Garden herbs are a great sustainable item in the residential setting.

Most herbs are deer resistant, drought tolerant and easy to grow and maintain. From a sustainable perspective they have a lot of attributes to admire. When you add their ornamental characteristics, the obvious question is: why don’t we use them more often in our landscapes and gardens?

There are many that grow well in Central Texas.  Favorites for use both in the landscape and the kitchen are rosemary, oregano, dill, parsley, garden sage, thyme, cilantro, and basil. There are often many forms of each of these, some being especially decorative in the mixed perennial bed.

Lavender can be outrageously pretty in the garden, but sometimes tricky to cultivate.  Other herbs/veggies that possess decorative qualities are Mexican oregano, malabar spinach, kale, chard, chamomile, chives, peppers, and lettuces.

Figure out which herbs you will use most in the kitchen and which ones you desire for groundcover and get planting!