Growing your own vegetables is a cost-effective way of ensuring you eat your five-a-day. However, it can be tricky to figure out what vegetables grow best in different seasons, especially fall and winter. Rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis, combines ornamental beauty and the usefulness of a culinary herb in one attractive plant.
It is often sold during the holiday season as a small pine tree-shaped tabletop plant or in variously shaped topiary forms. It’s not surprising they are so popular, given their beauty and fragrance. Their fresh piney fragrance is refreshing, especially during the dreary winter months.
There are many legends surrounding rosemary, as would be expected from a plant cultivated by humans for over 5,000 years. (Dried rosemary sprigs have been found in Egyptian tombs dating from 3000 B.C.
) Many know the saying, “Rosemary for remembrance.” It was thought the foliage’s scent improved memory, and so sprigs were woven into braided garlands by ancient Greek students to improve their memory. It also has a history as a love charm, has been used to signify stability and fidelity and to repel evil spirits.
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Growing rosemary in the garden Rosemary leaves are needle-like, similar to a spruce tree, and dark green or gray-green in color. Plants have white, pink or light blue flowers. It grows as a woody evergreen shrub, and in its native Mediterranean region, plants can easily grow to a height of 4 to 6 feet.
In North America, rosemary is .
