There are two incredibly lush plants flourishing in our herb garden right now. Both I would recommend growing depending on your culinary preferences.
Veitnamese Mint
This is not actually related to our traditional mint family, but does spread quite readily like mint and needs cutting back regularly. It has a strong, pungent smell and flavour and is not to everyones taste. But if you love Asian food - laksa, curry, stir fry, noodles - it is an absolute must in the herb garden. I first encountered it when I used to garden for my neighbour who was Thai - she taught me how to use it in curries and I was hooked. It grows really well in the driest hottest part of our garden where the soil is quite sandy and not particularly rich - perfect for a difficult area in a hot garden. I love the look of the leaves too - it's a pretty plant that fills an otherwise bare space.
Lemon Verbena
I adore this bush even though it turns into a bare stick over winter and I always think it has died. Out of all of the lemon scented plants I grow - lemon balm, lemon grass, lemon thyme, lemon geranium - this is the most intense. It smells like a delicious lemon sherbet and has heaps of uses. You can dry the leaves and put them in a bowl to release their scent into a room, you can add it to olive oil for dressings, marinade chicken, use it as a flavouring for citrusy desserts and steep it for a herbal tea - it also has many health benefits.
These two "V" plants are so special to me and I would highly recommend them.
The top picture is Lemon Verbena, the bottom picture is Veitnamese Mint.
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