Rosemary. The exotic rosemary, which is so good in southern dishes with its aromatic scent and flavour – for potatoes, chicken or Italian pizza. This herb can easily be grown in Denmark both indoors and outdoors, depending on what you prefer, and you can either grow the plant from seed or start the growth with a fully grown plant. Whichever you choose, the care requirements are the same, and we will tell you more about the whole process in this post. So read on, and get ready to spread a Mediterranean mood in your home, on the balcony or on the terrace.
Sowing rosemary
However you choose to sow your rosemary, you just need to have the right amount of light and warmth under control. If you want to plant seeds, they must be pre-germinated for 8-10 weeks before you can plant them out during the first summer months – be aware that it takes approx. 4 weeks before they germinate. You can also choose to sow a fully grown plant, which can grow with the right care. You can with advantage plant your rosemary in a raised bed, which makes it easier to move your herbs around as needed.
Caring for rosemary
As soon as your rosemary germinates and grows, it doesn't require a great deal of care from you. As with thyme, it is a good idea to water rosemary regularly, but the herb can tolerate drought, so it is not fatal if you are not very good at watering.
Another advantage of rosemary is that you don't need to prune your rosemary at all. That happens completely automatically when you continually harvest stems from the plant. Remember, though, that you must not remove more than a third of the plant at once, so that it has time to grow again.
Is rosemary an annual or a perennial?
Rosemary is a perennial herb – however, it requires you to bring it indoors over the winter or cover it up if it stands in open ground. If you plant in pots or raised beds, it is easier for you to move the plant indoors as needed. When your rosemary overwinters, you must wait until the night frost is completely over before you put it outside again.
You can also dry your rosemary for the winter by placing it in a warm, dry place away from sunlight. In this way the shelf life is extended, and you get other nuances of flavour.