Betty E. M. Jacobs - Growing & Using Herbs Successfully

1 NASTURTIUM

2 CHIVES

3 TANSY

4 THYME

5 SALAD BURNET

Betty E. M. Jacobs

Illustrations by Charles H. Joslin

The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.

1976,1981 by Betty E. M. Jacobs

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, photocopying, recording or other without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Printed in the United States by Versa Press
5049 48 47 46 45 44 43 42 41

Also by the same author:

Growing Herbs for the Kitchen, Grays Publishing, Ltd., Sidney, B.C., Canada

Growing Herbs and Plants for Dying, distributed by The Unicorn, Books for Craftsmen, Inc., Petaluma, CA

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Jacobs, Betty E M

Growing an using herbs successfully.

Portions of this book were originally published

under title: Profitable herb-growing at home.

Bibliography: p.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-0-88266-249-7

1. Herb gardening. 2. herbsmarketing. 3. herbs.

I. Jacobs, Betty E. M. Profitable herb-growing at home. II. Title.

SB351.H5J29 80-28002

635.5

CHAPTER 1
Starting Your Herb Garden

Index of the 32 Herbs you will need for your basic Herb garden How to grow the 32 basic Herbs What each of the 32 Herbs can be used forBuying plants Planting your Herb plants How to start Herb plants from seed outdoors and indoors

CHAPTER 2
Thirty-two More Herbs to Grow

SuggestionsIndex of the 32 more Herbs How to grow the Herbs What they can be used for

CHAPTER 3
A Guide to the Vegetative Propagation of Perennial Herbs

List of 46 perennial Herbs and how each can be propagated Eight methods of vegetative propagation: simple layering, stool or mound layering, division, stem cuttings, root cuttings, runners, bulbs or cloves, and corms Recommended reading

CHAPTER 4
Harvesting, Drying, Storing, and Freezing Herbs

How and when to harvest Herbs How to prepare and store dried Herbs Freezing Herbs

CHAPTER 5
Growing Herbs for Profit

General considerations Tools and machineryGreenhouse, potting shed, and lath house Initial preparation of the soilLaying out of the beds How to make compost About fertilizers and compost Final preparation of the soilInsects and diseases Soil mixesIrrigation

Markets and Marketing

Fresh Herbs: quick and not so quick cash turnover, perennial money makers, for dyeing, flavor, cosmetics, and perfume, and about essential oils Herb plants; wholesale, retail, and mail order selling, indoor culture, field-grown plants and Christmas sales, Herbs for drying: culinary, cosmetic, perfume, cats, dyeing, medicine, and liqueurs

CHAPTER 7
Growing Parsley

Different strains and varieties When to sow for the fresh Herb marketWhen to sow for plant sales Starting Parsley from seed Care and maintenance of the beds Harvesting and drying Pricing fresh Parsley

CHAPTER 8
Growing Chives

Preparation of bedsStarting from seedCare and maintenance of the beds Older beds Harvesting, pricing, and delivering Yields A bonus from your Chive beds

CHAPTER 9
Herb Products For Fun or Profit

Culinary products to make with fresh Herbs: vinegars, oils, dressings, jellies Candied HerbsCulinary products to make with dried Herbs: packaging dried culinary Herbs, two classic blends, Herb salts for flavor, baked goods Perfumed products to make from fresh Herbs: Herbal wreaths and Tussie Mussies Perfumed products to make from dried Herbs: potpourri, pillows, sachets, moth preventatives, hair rinses, bath perfumes, air fresheners, perfumed stationery, Catnip toys Suggested outlets

CHAPTER 10
Building a Successful Business

Dr. Johnson: Give me the town, Sir. The Countryman may be king of his holdings, yet, I tell you, Sir, he is the slave of his own acres.

Squire Windrum: Yes, Sir. But where will you find such willing servitude, or such happy kingship?

Do you want to plant a garden of culinary Herbs, lay out a garden of fragrance, make a modest profit from your Herb garden, or start a cottage industry? This book tells you how to do all that and more.

It is a book for the beginner and the established Herb grower alike. No matter if your garden is big or small this book will show you how to make good use of all the Herbs you grow.

In 1965 my husband and I started Canadas first commercial Herb farm on southern Vancouver Island. Our experience running this farm for eight years and a lifetime interest in Herb growing assure you of practical and accurate information to help you grow and use Herbs successfully for both pleasure and profit.

The term Herb covers many different plants from several botanical families. No matter what people tell you, Herbs are not just weeds. They need as much care in cultivation as any other garden plants, so a basic knowledge of gardening is essential to the would-be Herb grower. In this book you will find all the basics of good husbandry and much hard-to-find information about Herbs and Herb growing, plus the professional secrets of eight years of successful commercial Herb growing and marketing.

There are many different ways to use Herbs in your home and many profitable ways to sell them. For instance, you can grow fresh culinary Herbs for your kitchen or for sale to restaurants. You can dry the Herbs, both culinary and medicinal ones, for your own use or package them attractively for sale. You can make Catnip toys for your own cats or sell them to a pet shop. You could even start a line of gourmet salad dressings.

Whatever aspects of Herb growing interest you, with the help of this book, they can be a source of pleasure or profitor both!