harvesting herbs

[alexia]

We're about to have our first real snow storm.

I have some herbs in the garden that are potentially perenial (zone 7) such as rosemary and sage. Will they die off and not be usable or can I continue to snip off bits through the winter. If not, I'll harvest them all now. I also have mint, oregano, marjoram

We have had our first frost, the chives and parsley have pretty well wilted away, but everything else can be saved (harvested).

My recollection from the distant past is that the marjoram and mint leaves will die off, but that they will re-emerge in the spring. But I've never grown sage.

[phatch]

Sage should be just fine in general. I've got a monster bush from the previous owner of the home that has taken -5 with ease. I harvest sage as needed all year, even when it's covered in snow and ice. The cultivars get trickier. I have some tricolor sage that struggles every winter (zone 5). Rosemary will generally die in cold winters. I have some Arp rosemary that has done well in zone 5, just struggles in dry winters like last year. All other rosemary I've fiddled with outside dies at about 20 degrees.

Parsley and chives will die down over the winter. Chives need a good freeze to do their best. Parsley should come back, depends mostly on how the seeds do on the second year though as a biennial.

I've lost oreganos and kept some. The more generic the oregano, the better it does. Marjoram should be OK. I really miss my Kaliteri Oregano as it had great flavor but couldn't take the weather and was a pain to overwinter.

Phil

[alexia]

Thanks for the info, Phil.

These are all potted plants from a nearby nursery: generic rosemary, etc. Next year I may order some from catalogs and know what I'm getting. Maybe I'll put a little plastic tent around the rosemary to see if I can winter it ofver. I had one in the garden for several years about 15 years ago.

[mudbug]

alexia,

I know this response is a little belated but you can always bring your tender perennials inside and over winter them. (ie rosemary, parsely, chives). The sage is one of the most hardy herbs for cold weather. We've had 3 hard frosts and the sage still looks good.