For people who want to grow more food with less work. 🌱 This is my weekly newsletter loved by 38,000+ subscribers—here's what one of them had to say: "These are not the regular run-of-the-mill garden-based emails. You actually touch on more unusual tidbits that encourage me to keep growing and learning."
herbs you can grow outside all winter ❄️
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I talk about my perennial herb beds a lot, and that's because I absolutely love how low-maintenance they are... especially in fall and winter. I do cut back some of my plants this time of year to keep them nice and tidy, but they otherwise take care of themselves. My zone 5 microclimate often sees a few nights of single-digit temps in winter, but these plants hold steady and bounce back beautifully once temperatures start to warm up in late February. They're often the first harvests I get each year. While herbs like basil and shiso are too sensitive to grow outside year-round (unless you live in a warm climate), there's a surprising number of herbs that actually thrive in cold weather, will survive a hard freeze, and then come back in a few months. Whether or not the leaves stay green will depend a lot on where you live and the growing conditions. I personally cover my beds with frost cloth to extend the season—my plants stay harvestable for longer, and grow back quicker in late winter. No greenhouse needed! I've even picked lovage and parsley with a dusting of snow on their leaves. Anyone with little kids recovered from Halloween yet? 😄 Hard to believe, but we walked nearly 8 miles on Halloween night! And this just proves that even my 6-year-old is capable of hoofing it that far, despite her claiming she can't go more than a couple miles backpacking. Guess she'd rather trick-or-treat with a 10-pound candy bag than hike with an 8-pound pack on her back. 🤣 My kids dressed as a princess fairy and a mermaid fairy, complete with LED-lit, fluttering wings. We started at the Old Mill (an outdoor shopping district in Bend) to watch the witches' paddle, a fun annual tradition where people dress up as witches and warlocks and take their paddleboards, kayaks, canoes, and floating docks out on the river. All the stores hand out candy during this event, so it's fun to go door to door and along the river, enjoying all the costumes and performances. Then we met up with friends to trick-or-treat in their neighborhood (and the neighboring neighborhoods, whew) until all the homes ran out of candy! It was a great night and I loved some of the streets we ended up on, where all the neighbors were hanging out in their driveways with fire pits, music, and projector screens. Definitely feeling a little sore today since I basically hiked in leather combat boots all night 😆 but the kids said this was their "favorite Halloween ever!!" so mission accomplished. ❤️ P.S. These herbs will grow outside all winter without a greenhouse. P.P.S. I found some more Egyptian walking onion topsets in the garden this weekend while tidying up that bed. If you haven't purchased your topsets yet and want to grow this fun and unusual vegetable in your garden, I'm selling the last few sets I have for this year.
You can plant them any time the ground isn't frozen (they actually love cooler weather). Here's a growing guide I wrote on how to plant, harvest, and care for these no-fuss perennials. |
Garden Betty
For people who want to grow more food with less work. 🌱 This is my weekly newsletter loved by 38,000+ subscribers—here's what one of them had to say: "These are not the regular run-of-the-mill garden-based emails. You actually touch on more unusual tidbits that encourage me to keep growing and learning."