Rosemary questions

[MameJenny]

I just bought a little baby rosemary plant at the store and had a couple questions...first, are the stems edible? Second...do you have to trim the tips to keep it bushy as you do with other herbs? And third, will it do ok in a medium sized pot & how tall would it grow in one?
Thanks in advance! :bun

 

[digitS']

Rosemary is quite variable when grown from seed and there are a number of varieties that are propagated from cuttings. I have Rex rosemary which might be a standard-sized culinary type.

Rosemary has no chance outdoors here thru the winter. That must also be true for you there in Colorado, MameJenny. So, the plants are in medium pots and I have no older plants right now. Life on the floor of an unheated greenhouse covered on the coldest winter days and nights with a quilt - isn't the best for a little rosemary plant but they do survive. It seems best to not try to keep older plants going year after year but, rather, take cuttings and start again.

My young rosemary, thru a short growing season and confined to pots, don't grow to more than 16" to 18". The only trimming I do is for use in the kitchen.

I use sprigs for roasts and remove them after the meat comes from the oven. Or, strip off the leaves with the plan of eating those. I'm sure that chopped finely, the stems of new-growth rosemary would be okay to eat.

Rosemary is wonderful to have for fresh use .

Steve

 

[Hattie the Hen]

Hi MameJenny

Living in the south of the UK I am lucky that I have no problems getting my huge rosemary bushes through our winters. Currently I have two large ones just in front of my front door. They are about 4ft tall & the same across. I have to cut them back this week as the postman told me he was having problems getting my mail through to me..........!! (We don't have mail boxes here).

I use the woody sticks of rosemary as skewers for meat & fish on the BBQ -- I just soak them briefly in water before threading the chunks on -- it stops the wood from burning.

If I am cooking trout I often slip a whole big twig of rosemary into the cleaned whole fish & grill it -- baste with olive oil & serve with chunks of lemon or lime, it tastes sublime & is so simple.

You don't need to do anything to the plant (other than to use it in cooking) to get it to bush out. But it is VERY EASY to take cuttings of it so that you will have more plants.

If you ever have an excess of it pour a kettle of boiling water on the branches &let it sit until cool. Then pour through a sieve & use the water as the last rinse when you wash your hair. It makes it very shiny & it smells lovely! :rainbow-sun


:rose Hattie :rose

 

[Beatrice]

I, too, am from Idaho. I have had luck in the past of growing rosemary very close to my house and it survived. Otherwise, no, it won't survive a very cold winter. With the type of rosemary I grow, it does not do well to top off the sprigs, so I just cut the sprigs from the outside and then in towards the middle of the plant. Have fun with your herb.

 

[wifezilla]

Mame, mine survived for many years outside, but it only took one deep freeze to kill it.

 

[digitS']

I'm glad this thread came up again. It gives me the chance to qualify what a "medium-sized" pot amounts to. (In my interpretation of things . . . )

My rosemary are in 6 inch and 8 inch pots. They will go into 10 inch pots to live on the floor of the unheated greenhouse for the winter. During late winter, the most promising shoots will be rooted in a flat of sterile planting mix. And, by September, I'll expect them to be a collection of 16 to 18 inch plants.

I don't remember how many of these Rex rosemaries I had when they started out but there could be hundreds of them by now. As it is, I count over 20 of the critters out there. Clones, one and all . . .

Steve

 

[herbfan1]

Hattie you are making me hungry. I am a big rosemary fan and use it in sprigs and also diced up. Either way I love the way it gives the kitchen that wonderful fresh aroma. Luckily it grows great here in South Florida.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

I started some from seed this year. They are currently in 3" pots and I stuck them in some cute small glazed pots on my windowsill. They are doing great. I'm glad I didn't put them outside, as we have already had killing freezes again this year (not particularly normal for our area).

I really enjoy having the rosemary plants on the windowsill too. I suspect I could get used to keeping rosemary like this . . . starting seeds in the spring and then keeping them in the kitchen in the winter.

 

[digitS']

. . . and, my rosemary plants are back on the greenhouse floor again.

They've been covered most nights lately (and 1 or 2 days) with 2 old vinyl tablecloths but are now out on the shelf because the air temperature has warmed.

There was even several hours of sunshine for them today !

Steve

 

[Hattie the Hen]

Hi herbfan,
I have two huge plants either side of my front door & I have to keep cutting them back otherwise they block visitors getting through...!!!
They are now about 4'6" high. If you ever have a lot of extra material (from trimming back) try pouring boiling water over it & leave to infuse overnight, drain & use the liquid as the final rinse for your hair. It will be shiny & smell wonderful.

The season's greetings to you!

:rose Hattie :rose