Off the Urban Grid

5 Herbs for Winter

Just because winter will be here soon, it doesn’t mean that you have to give up cooking with the herbs that you love. Even in the cold season, some herbs can flourish inside as long as they have enough sunlight and water. Keep these five herbs growing indoors during the winter so you can enjoy fresh salads and meals.

Thyme
This is a widely used herb, because it’s versatile in salads, soups, chowders, meat dishes, vegetables, sauces and desserts. It’s a perennial evergreen shrub, which is a member of the mint family. There are different varieties of thyme, but the most used are garden and lemon thyme.

Sage
This is also a perennial, but it has a stronger flavor. You would want to use this on your meats, but you can also incorporate it into some vegetarian dishes. With this herb, it’s important that you don’t over water it. Also, when you harvest it, take no more than a quarter of the foliage at a time and try to pick the older leaves.

Rosemary
Since this herb is an evergreen shrub, it has pine needle-like leaves. The blue flowers bloom through spring and summer, and in warm climates it can stay planted for up to 30 years. Rosemary is best known for complimenting lamb, but you can also use it with fish and rice dishes.

Hyssop
This evergreen, bushy herb can grow up to two feet high. Three different varieties of hyssop produce blue, red or white flowers. The flowers are what are harvested. Hyssop can be used in broths and salads.

Mint
Mint can be forced into winter production by using the root cuttings. This fragrant herb can spread quickly, so it does well in a confined space. It can be used to make mint julep, pea and mint soup, chocolate mint syrup, mint tea and fennel and orange salad with mint.

Tags: herbs for winter, hyssop, mint, rosemary, sage, thyme, winter herbs