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#46 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: NJ Bayshore
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Grub -
Any progress on your herbs ? Its getting cold here, so I just have a pot of flat leaf parsley in the kitch window .. Tom
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My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view. ~ H. Fred Ale |
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#47 |
Tomatoville® Administrator
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: The Bay State
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Ok, my French Tarragon came back up this year and I'm wondering who else is growing it in '07?
My four plants never reached over a foot last season and I'm wondering how tall it grows for other folks. The flavor was great, but I didn't cut too much off of the plants. I wasn't sure if it would stunt the plants and cause them not to come back this season. This is one herb that's well worth growing, IMHO. There's no comparison between the dried stuff you buy at the store versus a few sprigs of fresh. ![]()
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Mischka One last word of farewell, Dear Master and Mistress. Whenever you visit my grave, say to yourselves with regret but also with happiness in your hearts at the remembrance of my long happy life with you: "Here lies one who loved us and whom we loved." No matter how deep my sleep I shall hear you, and not all the power of death can keep my spirit from wagging a grateful tail. |
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#48 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: NJ Bayshore
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Funny you should mention this as I planted my tarragon from seed last season (not sure if its french or the russian one), anyway it came back this year as well.
It looks like tarragon, its in the same spot as the tarragon from last season, but when you pull a piece off and smell it? It smells like grass - ![]() Does it take some time to mature to get that good flavor we know ? ~ Tom
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My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view. ~ H. Fred Ale |
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#49 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Den of Drunken Fools
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I don't know if anyone mentioned this or not but tarragon goes great in chicken and dumplings.
![]() An herb garden is in the works for next year as soon as I take out the fence in the back yard. Then dig holes and fill in with good soil so the stuff can grow. ![]() Worth |
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#50 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Adelaide Hills, Australia
Posts: 349
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My French Tarragon grows about 1m high or so. It dies back in winter and comes back with a vengeance in spring.
As far as I know, French Tarragon is not propagated by seeds, only by root cuttings. Russian Tarragon is propagated by seeds. French Tarragon is absolutely fabulous with chicken, I totally agree. |
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#51 | |
Tomatoville® Administrator
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: The Bay State
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Mischka One last word of farewell, Dear Master and Mistress. Whenever you visit my grave, say to yourselves with regret but also with happiness in your hearts at the remembrance of my long happy life with you: "Here lies one who loved us and whom we loved." No matter how deep my sleep I shall hear you, and not all the power of death can keep my spirit from wagging a grateful tail. |
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#52 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Adelaide Hills, Australia
Posts: 349
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It thrives on neglect. No fertilizing, no watering. Just the occasional weeding. It's in with my globe artichokes which receive exactly the same treatment.
Hope it does well for you. ![]() |
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#53 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: SW Colorado
Posts: 74
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It's very easy to propagate the French tarragon from cuttings, as well as dividing the roots. The plant is day-length sensitive, I tried growing it in containers in a greenhouse and it would still die off and start coming back in early March. Here, it is one of the earliest plants up in the spring, and I look forward to chewing on the stalks and leaves in April. When it gets hot, above 90ºF, it will get woody, and if it is cut back, will grow again when its cooler later in the year.
For use, aside from all the excellent suggestions above, I would add that it also makes great pickles. We do fillet green beans as well as cucumbers, the beans are very popular. I've yet to add too much tarragon in a jar, and white wine vinegar is the way to go. Also, any thing that takes a hot pepper heat is complemented by tarragon. Some time try adding leaves to a salsa, or on a burrito, anything with green chili.
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#54 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Tulsa, OK
Posts: 630
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I'm assuming the dried store bought tarragon is French? That's the only kind I've ever eaten, and its grrreat!
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#55 | |
Tomatovillian™ Honoree
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 507
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There are several wonderful spice companies online that do specifically carry French tarragon. Me - I hate & despise tarragon no matter where it comes from. Just tastes nasty to me. ![]() |
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#56 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Tulsa, OK
Posts: 630
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Thanks, Granny. Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks I guess.
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#57 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: SW Colorado
Posts: 74
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I did a dozen starts using Clonex, using bottom heat from one of those standard heating mats. But I used some clippings from an established plant, and the whole process from clipping to setting on the mat took all of 5 min.
Once you have it established in the garden, its fairly hardy stuff. Here, we say that Clonex would put roots on a nail. I wonder what it would do for baldness??
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That last tomato, dear? What last tomato? That stain on my shirt collar? Um, er, lipstick. |
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#58 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Butte, MT
Posts: 811
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I started a small plant from a cutting that received (french tarragon) and it made it through the cold Montana winter wonderfully. It is larger than I planned for being in montana and is growing into the mint plants. Oh well I think it looks pretty there. Ill post pics in a bit too
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#59 |
Tomatovillian™ Honoree
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 507
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Lovely! The reason that French tarragon is started from cuttings has little to do with its' hardiness. It rarely sets seed. Miserable to raise from seed.
The kiddo came running in yesterday to tell me she thought we had an herb growing in the front lawn. Lo & behold, Miss Sharp Eyes was right on the $$ - oregano, dead center of the grass. Guess I'll have to put a little fence around it. Still wondering how it managed to get there. |
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#60 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Posts: 2
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Hi Everyone,
Last spring, thanks to this forum I think, we learned about the difference between French and Russian Tarragon, and it was mentioned that Mexican Tarragon is a very acceptable substitute for French. It was suggested that the only way to really know if a tarragon in a greenhouse was real was to taste it; the Russian would be tasteless and the others would numb the tongue and mouth a bit. We proceeded to do that, and at the third greenhouse found a winner. I ended up drying it, and it was so strongly licorice-smelling that I could not imagine eating it. Then I put it on fish I was cooking in olive oil and a little butter, and I became a huge fan! It smelled so different, so aromatic, and it tasted wonderful. I dont know if our one plant will survive the winter here, but even if it does, I plan to put in more plants in the spring. I was going to do the taste test again at greenhouses, but I love that idea of rooting it from sprigs bought at a grocery store that I read in this thread. I think that I would sneak a little taste test of the grocery store tarragon before buying it, though, just to be sure. ~C |
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