KICK-START YOUR GARDEN

Kick-start your garden with herbs for cooking and cocktails

Let’s talk herbs. They are an easy way to kick-start gardening adventures. Culture Shock We talk a lot about tomatoes around here, but if being an amazing home chef is your goal, plan your herb garden accordingly. Rosemary, basil, cilantro and mint are my tried and true favorites.

I always plant herbs in containers by my backdoor, nearest the kitchen. My rosemary Lacey Howell bush is in the ground and absolutely huge, aggressively taking over a neighboring come-back azalea. There is ample opportunity to snip twigs for roasting pans of vegetables or to garnish a floral arrangement. My mint that lived several summers ago in a pot now comes up in the flower bed on its own accord around late February. It is within easy reach to pinch off leaves for summer cocktails on the way to the lake. It is also delicious on ice cream and desserts. If you cook Mexican-inspired dishes weekly like I do, you have to plant fresh cilantro. Cilantro can be planted with parsley, basil and tarragon. I always keep taco and enchilada essentials on hand for last minute quick meals.

If pizza and Italian nights are your jam, basil is a must to spice up sauces. Pinch off any flowers that grow on the plant. For more variety, try Thai basil. It’s a bit stronger with a hint of licorice. And purple basil does not taste that different from green basil, but it does add a pretty dash of purple to a dish. During the summers, I keep frozen cheese pizzas on hand and dress them up with fresh herbs and veggies for those late night unplanned dinners.

Dill and chives are classic staples for us Southerners who make a lot of chicken and tuna salads, pasta and potato salads. Lord knows these dishes are the true stars of the shows with BBQ.

Remember to shop local this spring as you spruce up your yards and gardens. All of our local plant shops will carry herbs and big pots to plant them in. I personally like big galvanized farm-style buckets for my herbs.

We poured a new concrete front porch on our house and are planning the landscaping. We want something that will stay green year round and is drought hardy. My lakeside yard is east facing and gets direct sunlight all day, so plants and flowers that will not blister is vital (sadly, no hydrangeas at my house). Inspired by SpringHouse’s famous rosemary hedges, we are going with that. You cannot beat the smell either.

~ Lacey Howell is a recovering English major from Auburn who now lives on Lake Martin, sells real estate, rides horses and loves good wine. Follow her on Instagram @LaceyHowell and on her Facebook page.