List of Garden Herbs That Require Calcium

Short Culinary Herbs

• So adept are thyme, marjoram, salad burnet and oregano at growing in rocky, alkaline soil that they will actually leave garden beds on their own and start growing in gravel pathways. Consider mulching these herbs with a layer of porous cloth covered with small stones, or pea gravel. Besides giving the garden a Mediterranean look, the stones warm the soil in spring and summer and help keep roots protected in areas with harsh winters.

Tall Culinary Herbs

• Bay, rosemary, sage and fennel are also alkaline lovers. In areas where bay and rosemary must be potted up and brought indoors for the winter, a little horticultural lime mixed into the soil benefits color and growth. Fennel, particularly the bronze variety, thrives in a sunny spot rich in calcium. Sage prefers wind shelter, so plant it beside a large rock. The purple and variegated sages are not quite as hardy as the standard silver type.

Herbs for Small Hedges

• Small hedges around a garden bed, or along a pathway, can be created with winter savory, lavender, hyssop and santolina, as they lend themselves readily to pruning and shaping. The fragrance from these herbs will reward anyone who brushes against them in passing. The grey-blue of santolina and lavender plants adds visual interest, while the flowers of hyssop and winter savory are a favorite with bees and other pollinators.

Herbs for Tea

• Marjoram, rosemary, sage and fennel are often blended into herbal teas, but so too are chamomile, catnip and chicory. The latter three tend to be invasive and weedy in character, so plant them apart from regular garden herbs in large containers or in a waste area where nothing else grows well. The stress from less-than-perfect soil conditions helps concentrate the essential oils, resulting in more intense medicinal and taste properties.