MANGAWHAI'S NO.1 NEWSPAPER
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Gardening with Gael - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and ThymeListening to The Wireless, an old Simon and Garfunkel favourite ‘Scarborough Fair’ brought back memories of the herbs parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. Back in the 60’s and 70’s they were the predominant herbs, and, along with mint, grown in most gardens. Now, coriander [cilantro], basil, oregano, dill, and fennel are equally popular and staple requirements of most herb gardens.
Adding herbs to meals often improves the flavour and most herbs have a long list of nutritional benefits. For as long as I can remember every garden had a parsley plant. They enjoy average garden conditions and are happy in part shade. Once in the garden and allowed to go to seed parsley plants will pop up everywhere. I prefer to have my herb garden close to the kitchen and near an outside door in order to be able to access them at a moment’s notice. With even a small amount included in a diet, parsley can be very beneficial. Researching parsley brought me, once again aware of what a little superfood this well-known plant is. Sprinkle over scrambled eggs, add to salads or use as a garnish, just try to incorporate it into as many meals as possible. A mention of sage and I remember being on Brighton pier with my son Matt eating pork with sage and onion stuffing. Everyone enjoys a roast chicken or pork with a sage stuffing. Now with plant based diets becoming more popular, sage still has a distinctive place in the menu. Listed for generations as an essential herb, sage was known in the middle ages for its healing properties. Belonging to the salvia family it is worth growing a couple of extra plants for their lovely spikes of mauve flowers. I love them. Unfortunately the soil in my rose garden where I tried to have a border of them was too solid and wet. Sage prefers a sandy loam and for that reason grows really well in pots as long as there is no tendency to overwater it. I have a potato recipe that layers potatoes, onions and fresh sage. Delicious. One of the most attractive things about rosemary is the fragrance. The aromatic essential oil trapped in the leaves transmits to your hands when the plant is being trimmed. As with sage, rosemary prefers a light soil. I have a prostrate hanging variety that produces beautiful blue flowers. The more upright plant needs almost constant trimming to avoid becoming leggy. Kept trimmed, rosemary with its evergreen needle -like leaves makes a very attractive small hedge. Some garlic and sprigs of rosemary are delicious with a lamb roast. I have discovered there are now many varieties of thyme. A low growing plant with tiny oval leaves, thyme is easy to grow as a border plant around a vegetable garden. It can be used fresh or dry and I can recommend thyme tossed on to mushrooms topped pizza. Summer is almost here. A few herbs growing next to the barbecue , in the ground or in pots, are a great addition to any summer meal. On the parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme theme, I would like to thank Jenny and Roger Ashford for allowing me to reproduce a wonderful poem written by their son Terry. Who needs a reason if you still got some rhyme Just give it some flavor, Just give it some thyme To distil just one answer, If the whole world is the question Is to break down the secrets of stars to equations To Parsley the mysteries, and ignore chaos’ beauty Or Rosemary memories, Left hopeful, but empty So lets make our own stories in this volatile age The world still has secrets, The whole world is a sage Terry Ashford 1982 - 2018 |