2021 List of Great Culinary and Medicinal Herbs

In my email recently I got my “Just the Essentials.”  It is the “extra” short publication that we get on the in-between months of The Essential HerbalMagazine.  I regularly write for the magazine, which comes out 6 times a year as an eMagazine.  “Just the Essentials” tides us over until the next full version arrives.  I love it because it brightens my email box with fun herb info at unexpected times.

In the most recent version, Tina Sams compiled a list of Culinary and Medicinal herbs that are most important to her.  It got me thinking because my list was not the same as hers. So I am sharing my 2021 list of great Culinary and Medicinal Herbs.

I had a lot of winter kill this year.  My thyme plants are not reviving as I would like and my rue plants died, however they self-seed, so once the soil warms I will probably be fine. As a result I am beginning my shopping because there will be many plants that I will have to replace!

2021 List of great Culinary and Medicinal Herbs

Culinary List:
Basil – I like to get Genovese, Red Rubin, Purple Ruffles and Sweet Dani Lemon Basil.  As Tina says you can never have too much Basil!

Chives – this easy Spring blooming perennial is perfect for making herb vinegar and the mild onion flavor is great in recipes, dips, salads, side dishes, and or course on potatoes.
Cilantro – Seed this plant over and over to get a constant crop and save the seed which is coriander and great in baking and pickling. Remember if it is not for you it is all inn your genes.
Dill – An annual, I sow a row, then reseed the row every two weeks to give me a continuous crop throughout the summer and plenty of seed to save and use for pickles.

Flowering Marjoram

Marjoram – You can use this as a substitute for oregano, it is harder to get a bad flavored plant, and the flowers that arrive in late summer are nice to preserve and use as a dried decoration for packages, soup wreaths and dried arrangements.

Rosemary – adds so much to chicken and beef roasts and stews.  Very tender perennial that I have to grow in a pot or transfer to a pot of overwintering.  I found the best place to keep it in winter is by the back door.  Less dry and less hot in that location and it continuers to stay green and lush..
Sage – So delicious with fall dishes and once it’s in the garden, it can find its way into lots of meals. I prefer Berggarten Sage as the leaves are large and the plant takes longer to get woody.

The rounded leaves of berggarten sage

Tarragon – this flavorful sauce herb also makes a great vinegar.  Remember to plant it in the back as it gets tall and unruly and trim to the ground in spring as the new growth always springs from the root.

Thyme – should be perennial, but often requires replacement. Doone Valley is my favorite Lemon Thyme variety, and Wedgewood is lovely in a border with its variegated leaves.

Medicinal List:

Calendula – I agree with Tina, no matter how much gets planted, it’s never enough. Used in tea, facial creams and salves. I love to use it in baking and cooking for the color.
Chamomile – I like because it shows up early in the year.  Many consider it a perennial, but I think it just reseeds because those small flowers are a bit hard to harvest.  The apple flavor and relaxing attributes are perfect for tea.

Chamomile

Echinacea – reliable perennial that has seeds for animals in winter and seed saving. I love the flowers, leaves and roots and divide the plant in half each year to harvest the roots and allow the mother plant to expand. Purple is the best for medicinal properties to boost immunity.
Elder – If you have the room this perennial shrub, it is a must have.  Lovely flowers in spring can be used for tea and cordials and the berries in fall make great healing syrups for colds and flu.

Feverfew – There is a plant in our Illinois area called feverfew that is actually wild quinine, if you want the medicinal plant good for headaches and migraines you want Tanacetum parthenium which is in the daisy family and has ferny leaves and white flowers with yellow centers.  Both the leaves and flowers can be used for tea for headaches and cold symptoms.

Notice the subtle difference between feverfew (here) and Chamomile (above)

Holy Basil – Get some seed and grow your own, as nursery plants are hard to find.  The ability to help with emotions and sleep makes this a wonderful medicinal.
Lavender – gentle, relaxing, and tasty, the fragrance alone can help one relax and the flower stems dry such a nice shade of blue.  The crown must be protected from cold weather, which can take its toll on the plant so they are not as perennial as one might like.  I add a couple new each year to make up for those I lose to the elements.
Lemon Balm – An easy to grow perennial with a delicious lemon scent and flavor.  I love to harvest it and stroke the leaves for the relaxation they impart and a good tea with it is stress-relieving too.

                                                                             Lemon Balm

Mint – I grow two mints. Peppermint and Spearmint.  If I grow more, they just cross pollinate and become spearmint in a year or two.  However, Pineapple mint with its randomly variegated leaves always makes it into at least one planter because I love the leaf color.  Mint is soothing to the stomach and the mind as well as perfect for sachets and scented pillows.