Found mint and chives in the garden when we moved in six years ago, and I'm still fighting to keep them within bounds! In England we grow parsley as an annual; although it's actually a biennial. Last year I planted two varieties of parsley, flat leafed and curly leafed. We had a long winter with record snowfall. When the three feet of snow melted in April the curly variety had disappeared; but the straight leafed one was still there. Out of curiosity I left it to go to seed. It shot up to over six feet before it seeded!
Dill is popular here. I also grow coriander in pots. I've tried thyme. I failed; but I'll try again. I'm fascinated to see that Trish classifies elder as a herb. In England we regard it as a hedgerow tree, and it's mainly used for wine and cordial making.

I put my mint (and monarda and gooseneck loosestrife) in 5 gallon buckets that I buried. Am hoping that will keep things from running....

Did you put any holes in that bucket? I have mint growing in a nursery pot and it's crawling out the bottom.....

patgeorge said: I'm fascinated to see that Trish classifies elder as a herb. In England we regard it as a hedgerow tree, and it's mainly used for wine and cordial making.

I should have been more specific, I suppose! I was classifying elder as an herb for it's medicinal qualities, but not as it's growth habit. It is also a shrub/tree in in US.

We haven't managed to harvest enough of it for Dave to make wine with, although he would love it if we did! We use it medicinally.

I've heard that elderberry flowers make an excellent wine! Would also love to try. *grin* Unfortunately, there isn't enough growing here either but... I have seen several colonies of sambucus canadensis growing along the river banks as you cross the bridges of a nearby road. Since they are a food source for 45 species of birds and the whitetail deer, I've never pursued them!

That is a really nice photo on your avatar, Christine!

Dear Trish, in England elder flowers are also picked coated in batter and deep fried! They are really delicious to eat and as we have lots of them it always leaves lots of berries to make wine or cordial which is very popular here.
They do grow in most of the hedgerows and a lot of the gardens and can get to be a nuisance for they are forever seeding where the birds drop the seeds. We also get a lot of Prunus spinosa in the hedges which is commonly known as Blackthorn or sloe. The berries of this large shrub are used medicinally and the gamekeepers use them to make sloe gin for the shoot days.
Regards.
Neil.

Woofie, thank you, it's my bug's-eye-view of trout lily.

I think I would enjoy batter-fried elder flowers. I always know when they have come into bloom here as the scent is sweet like honey and it seems to waft straight to me.

Ah, Sloe gin, I have memories...

Elderberry will be the 2013 Herb of the Year (as chosen by the International Herb Association).

Wish I had room for some in my yard, but I understand the shrubs can get quite large.

Yes, I have a red elderberry which I am going to cut back because it shades so
much of the back yard.
I am on team herbs-the common ones, mostly outdoors and in planters.
I have one cardamon plant growing indoors. I am waiting patiently for it to grow up and provide seeds. The seeds are used in Scandinavian recipes to spice up cookies etc.

Oh my, how difficult is it to grow cardamom? One of my favorite recipes calls for it (chicken,not cookies!) and it's a bit hard to find at times. Not to mention being rather expensive!

I have one elderberry in the yard. Never planted the seed. I had used some dried elderberry fruits I had bought to make tea once in a while, so maybe one of the seeds discarded in a compost pile there was still good and germinated. I dug up one of the little ones that came up by that plant and planted it by the creek nearby. That one has spread out and colonized over there. Even extreme drought doesn't seem to bother those much.

Yes, the buckets I planted the mint and stuiff in DO have holes.
Since the 5 gallon buckets are deeper than your average nursery pot, I'm hoping it'll keep the roots from roaming.

mom2goldens said:Elderberry will be the 2013 Herb of the Year (as chosen by the International Herb Association).

Wish I had room for some in my yard, but I understand the shrubs can get quite large.

Good to know. I planted two in my back yard this past fall.

Woofie - let me send you some! I was recently also aghast to find Cardamom at something like $ 10 for a small jar and found a POUND on a website for $ 16..... so now I have a pound of Cardamom seeds which I will not use up in my lifetime! Shoot me a tree mail if you want.

Hi Trish & everyone!
I agree with so many of you... can't imagine my garden without herbs... I have luck with thyme (have an entire path - wish I could get rid of ALL my grass and have thyme instead... ) several types of thyme... love it... (pic below)
Rosemary, (in container - still have 2 surviving this wonderful winter we are having)
Oregano (that comes back every year!!! love it!!!!)
Lavender (lost a big bush last year to voles! oh I was so upset!)
Basil ( love the flowers!!!!)
Sage - tons of sage among my roses... love it.
Chamomile, Lemon balm, mint (in containers...) Dill. and Santolina (this is so invasive in my garden... but I don't really care!)
Parsley (next to tomatoes and some containers)

Oh my, that is a lovely path!

Me, two.