uprise winter sweet is an effortless endeavour as long as you ’ve engender the loose , well - draining soil of its aboriginal mountainous growing conditions . Oregano is native to southern and central Asia and to the Mediterranean , where is it experience to the Greeks as the “ joy of the hatful ”
The oregano industrial plant is just as spectacular in the garden in the fissure of a keep back wall or spilling out of a ornamental container as it is in the kitchen , where it is classically paired with Basil the Great in Italian and Greek dishes .
Below you will find a verbal description of the oregano plant , include its elevation , hardiness , and flower ; light , moisture , and soil requirements;cultivation tips for keep your growing oreganohealthy and tasty ; our favorites form ; and some ideas for how to use oregano in your home .
Description
Though the oregano herbaceous plant can hold many postures , you ’ll most usually be greeted by a small round woody shrub - ette no more than 18 inches high and wide . Depending on the combination of multifariousness and website , oregano can be anything from annual to evergreen . Here in the mid - Atlantic state , most varieties survive most winters entire .
Oregano flowers are white , pink , or purpleness and cluster in pompoms or pannicles ( pointy frosting cream cone cell shape ) .
Site Conditions and Requirements
lighting : Full sun , a lower limit of 6 hour , unless you live with very spicy summertime . In this case , a high bright subtlety intruding on some of that sun can be helpful .
Moisture : On the teetotal side . Oregano plant are somewhat drought patient of .
Soil : Gritty , well draining . Think ‘ mountains ’ .
Cultivation Tips for Growing Oregano
Start from come , bow cuttings , or base division , whichever you are most well-fixed with . This uncoerced herb will work with you .
Once it ’s growing , wait about six weeks from source sprouting or rooting out , and then veer the growth back to within 1 column inch of the center to encourage bushy , leafy growing . Feel free to use the foliage from this cold shoulder - back in your recipes though you ’ll notice a more barbed flavor out of the late season leafage .
Overwintering : some less hardy marjoram are grown as annual inzones 5 and north , and some are evergreen in the southward . A good mulching over the winter can help your winter sweet survive , but you must rip the mulch back in the spring and let the cleansing Lord’s Day dry it back out .
Varieties to Try
Greek marjoram is the think the truest and most accurate variety of culinary Origanum vulgare according to aficionado of the herb .
Hot ‘ n Spicy is a variety gaining in popularity due to its more biting , peppery flavor . Kent Beauty is another popular variety , praised for its fragile forking habit and soft pink and white bracts , but NOT for its flavor . Kent Beauty is not tasty .
What about Marjoram?
Marjoram is a variety of oregano bred for its soft , more soft tang . It is a raw material of Gallic culinary art , and used to be considered its own character of herbaceous plant . It ’s now understand as one of many species within the Oregano genus .
How to Use Oregano
Oregano is an absolute essential in Italian and Grecian cuisine , specially tomato - based marinade , sauce , and chilies . Oregano sprigs smack oils and vinegars attractively .
Marjoram is quintescentially Gallic in flavor , where it is couple withthyme , savoury , Florence fennel , basil , andlavenderto shape the famous Herbes de Provence .
