Herbs: Multi-purpose Plants

Echinacea – Herb and Perennial

Some herbs have dual lives. Consider Echinacea (Echinacea species), aka coneflower. Is it a perennial or an herb? The answer is yes to both. If we use it ornamentally, it is classified as a perennial. If we use the roots and leaves in tea, it is an herb. Echinacea has a long history of use by American native peoples for a variety of medicinal and spiritual uses and it was considered to be a symbol of strength and health.

Echinacea is the perfect example of an imperfect understanding of an herb’s use. As a tea, it has immune-boosting actions, but it is meant to be used for short periods of time, not as a daily drink.

As a perennial, echinacea feeds a variety of wildlife. Nectar and pollen for bees, butterflies, skippers, and moths, and seed for several bird species. This is one plant you do not want to deadhead. Along with feeding the birds, this lovely native is a short-lived perennial. Letting seeds fall to the ground ensures that your coneflower patch will be present for years and years.

Oregano

Oregano (Origanum vulgare ssp. hirtum) is one of my favorite groundcovers and one of my favorite multi-purpose herbs to use in the kitchen. From a garden perspective, oregano covers the ground with its many seedlings. This offers several benefits. The plants shade the ground and act as a green mulch that prevents evaporation of moisture from the soil on hot days. And oregano out-competes weeds for sunlight and nutrients, so your weeding time is reduced.

Oregano offers a lot of vitamins and minerals along with its sharp herbal flavor to our food. I harvest it when I need it for a recipe, but there are two times when I harvest a larger amount. Early in the season – before oregano blooms and the oregano flavor is milder – I make oregano salt. Later in the season, I use it as a part of my Mediterranean pesto – a combination of parsley, basil, thyme, rosemary, winter or summer savory, and oregano – that I freeze for that taste of summer when snow is on the ground.

In the Language of Flowers, oregano symbolizes joy and happiness. And that is what I feel when I use this pesto in a soup, stew, or spaghetti sauce.

Ginger – For gardens, flavor, and medicinal purposes

My love affair with ginger began when I learned how to stir-fry food. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) gives food a spicy bite and subtle heat that has become one of my favorite flavors. Soon ginger showed up in muffins, mandelbrot, and meatloaf. Then I learned that ginger is a multi-purpose herb for digestive and combats nausea. Carrying ginger essential oil has become a part of my traveling routine.

Ginger is a sub-tropical to tropical plant. Unless you live in cold hardy zone 9 or warmer, you either grow ginger in pots or you start your ginger in the winter to plant out when the soil is warm 70-75 degrees. Ginger does not like to dry out when growing. But it also must be planted in well-drained soil or the rhizomes can rot. Harvest time is before a hard frost or anytime you want young fresh ginger which has a lovely mild flavor and bite.

Growing Ginger:

I plant ginger every other or every third year. So, what do you do with 36 hands of ginger? Preserve chunks or slices in a good sherry to grate into a stir-fry or other dish. Make ginger pesto that is two ingredients, ginger and olive oil, and freeze. Pickled ginger is a must for sushi and when you have an upset stomach.

One growing and preserving note for ginger: in colder zones, the rhizomes do not have time to develop the outer covering that you see on supermarket ginger. This means that young ginger will dry out faster. Do not wait too long to preserve your extra ginger.

I have yet to have ginger bloom for me in the garden. The season is too short in Ohio. But this year I planted a few ginger rhizomes in pots. I am hoping for some joyful red blooms in the middle of winter. Z. mioga is hardy in zone 5 and comes up every year. But, it takes a lot of work to get the soil out of the flower in order to eat it.

*National Garden Bureau does not wish to advise or recommend herbs for medicinal or health use. The information here is intended for inspirational and educational purposes only. Please consult a health care professional before considering any herbal treatments.

“This post is provided as an educational/inspirational service of the National Garden Bureau and our members. Please credit and link to National Garden Bureau and author member when using all or parts of this article.”