How to properly dry garden herbs?

Vegetables/herbs for dry garden?

• I have an area that I am starting up as a vege garden, but am having trouble due to it drying out and stunting the plants I water as much as i can and even use a deep root waterer, but unless I do it every day, the plants start to shrivel. The garden is mulched, soil is poor(quite sandy). I have introduced some compost and manure and the organic material has nearly gone already. What are some vegetables herbs or other edible/useful plants that I could grow?

• Answer:

  Dry soil is difficult to deal with - I had it myself for years and share your frustration. I didn't have luck with "real" veggies until about 3-4 years of adding organic amendments - mostly compost and manure. But that doesn't answer your question! What I found DID work in dry soils were a lot of the "Mediterranean" plants, especially rosemary and lavender. Look for plants that have smaller rather than bigger leaves and are usually more of a gray-green than a deep green. These seem to be plants that are more tolerant of dry soil. (I don't think that is scientific but it worked for me!) I know it seems like a lot of work but I would suggest postponing your veggie garden and planting that space as a perennial herb bed and continue amending the soil. After a season or two more, see if the soil is holding more moisture. You can move your perennial herbs pretty much anywhere else you would like (even to pots) and then begin your veggies when the site is ready for them. Some great herbs that will do well include the rosemary and lavender I mentioned above plus sage, catnip, bread seed poppies (check out Renee's Garden for seeds), nasturtiums, marigolds or calendula, santolina....that has tapped my "dry useful plants" well unless you want to get crazy and go for something like mint, or sunchokes, or a prickly pear cactus (which I don't recommend - all of them come back everywhere - if you want them, put them in pots). I would recommend soil testing - your county extension should be able to do this for you. It will help you figure out what you should be putting back into the soil. My final recommendation if you have to have veggies this year is to make the area into a raised bed. It doesn't' have to be terribly deep - maybe 8 - 10". You can frame it out and fill it in with good soil and you will have an instant garden. It is not as much work as you think - I highly recommend checking out the most recent issue of Hobby Farms that has a nice article on building a raised bed. I guess I should mention I garden in zone 7 (New Jersey) to give you some perspective. Also included in the links below if one to a great "tough spaces" .pdf that I have found helpful in the past. Good luck!