Sweet Marjoram Is Not To Be Confused With Oregano

Marjoram.—Two species of marjoram now grown for culinary purposes (several others were formerly popular) are members of the Labiatæ or mint family—pot or perennial marjoram (Origanum vulgare, Linn.) and sweet or annual (O. Marjorana). Really, both plants are perennials, but sweet marjoram,because of its liability to be killed by frost, is so commonly cultivated in cold countries as an annual that it has acquired this name, which readily distinguishes it from its hardy relative. Perennial marjoram is a native of Europe, but has become naturalized in many cool and even cold temperate climates. It is often found wild in the Atlantic states in the borders of woods.

The general name origanum, meaning delight of the mountain, is derived from two Greek words, oros, mountain; and ganos, joy, some of the species being found commonly upon mountain sides. Under cultivation it has developed a few varieties the most popular of which are a variegated form used for ornamental purposes, and a dwarf variety noted for its ability to come true to seed. Both varieties are used in cookery. The perennial species seems to have had the longer association with civilization; at least it is the one identified in the writings of Pliny, Albertus Magnus and the English herbalists of the middle ages. Annual marjoram is thought to be the species considered sacred in India to Vishnu and Siva.

Description.—Perennial marjoram rises even 2 feet high, in branchy clumps, bears numerous short-stemmed, ovate leaves about 1 inch long, and terminal clusters or short spikes of little, pale lilac or pink blossoms and purple bracts. The oval, brown seeds are very minute. They are, however, heavy for their size, since a quart of them weighs about 24 ounces. I am told that an ounce contains more than 340,000, and would rather believe than be forced to prove it.

Annual marjoram is much more erect, more bush-like, has smaller, narrower leaves, whiter flowers, green bracts and larger, but lighter seeds—only 113,000 to the ounce and only 20 ounces to the quart!

Cultivation.—Perennial marjoram when once established may be readily propagated by cuttings, division or layers, but it is so easy to grow from seed that this method is usually employed. There is little danger of its becoming a weed, because the seedlings are easily destroyed while small. The seed should be sown during March or April in flats or beds that can be protected from rain. It is merely dusted on the surface, the soil being pressed down slightly with a board or a brick. Until the seedlings appear, the bed should be shaded to check evaporation. When the plants are 2 or 3 inches tall they may be transplanted to the places where they are to remain, as they are not so easy to transplant as lettuce and geraniums. The work should be done while the plants are very small, and larger numbers should be set than will ultimately be allowed to grow. I havehad no difficulty in transplanting, but some people who have had prefer to sow the seed where the plants are to stand.

If to be used for edging, the dwarf plants may be set 3 or 6 inches apart; the larger kinds require a foot or 15 inches in which to develop. In field cultivation the greater distance is the more desirable. From the very start the plants must be kept free from weeds and the soil loose and open. Handwork is essential until they become established. The plants will last for years.

Annual marjoram is managed in the same kind of way as to seeding and cultivation; but as the plant is tender, fresh sowings must be made annually. To be sure, plants may be taken up in the fall and used for making cuttings or layers towards spring for the following seasons beds. As annual marjoram is somewhat smaller than the perennial kind (except the dwarf perennial variety), the distances may be somewhat less, say 9 or 10 inches. Annual marjoram is a quick-growing plant—so quick, in fact, that leaves may be secured within six or eight weeks of sowing. The flowers appear in 10 to 12 weeks, and the seed ripens soon after.

When it is desired to cure the leaves for winter use, the stems should be cut just as the flowers begin to appear, and dried in the usual manner. If seed is wanted, they should be cut soon after the flowers fall or even before all have fallen—when the scales around the seeds begin to look as if drying. The cut stems must be dried on sheets of very fine weave, to prevent loss of seed. When the leaves are thoroughly dry they must be thrashed and rubbed before being placed in sieves, first of coarse, and then of finer mesh.

Uses.—The leaves and the flower and tender stem tips of both species have a pleasant odor, and are used for seasoning soups, stews, dressings and sauces. They are specially favored in France and Italy, but are popular also in England and America. In France marjoram is cultivated commercially for its oil, a thin, light yellow or greenish liquid, with the concentrated odor of marjoram and peppermint. It has a warm, and slightly bitter taste. About 200 pounds of stems and leaves are needed to get a pound of oil. Some distillation is done in England, where 70 pounds of the plant yield about one ounce of oil. This oil is used for perfuming toilet articles, especially soap, but is perhaps less popular than the essential oil of thyme.

Beautiful Lavender Fields of Provence

Lavender, (Lavendula vera, D. C.; L. Angustifolia, Moench.; L. spica, Linn.), a half-hardy perennial undershrub, native of dry, calcareous uplands in southern Europe. Its name is derived from the Latin word Lavo, to wash, a distillation of the flowers being anciently used in perfuming water for washing the body. The plant forms a compact clump 2 to 2½ feet tall, has numerous erect stems, bearing small, linear gray leaves, above which the slender, square, flower stems arise. The small violet-blue flowers are arranged in a short, terminal spike, and are followed by little brown, oblong, shiny seeds, with white dots at the ends, attached to the plant. The seeds remain viable for about five years.

Cultivation.—Lavender succeeds best on light, limy or chalky soil, but will do well in any good loam. In gardens it is usually employed as an edging for flower beds, and is most frequently propagated by division or cuttings, seed being used only to get a start where plants cannot be secured in the other ways mentioned. In cold climates the plants must either be protected or removed to a greenhouse, or at least a cold frame, which can be covered in severe weather. The seed is sown indoors during March, and if crowding, pricked out 2 inches asunder. When the ground has become warm, the plants are set in the open 15 to 20 inches asunder. It delights in a sunny situation, and is most fragrant on poor soil. Rich soil makes the plant larger but the flowers poorer in perfume.

Uses.—The plant is sometimes grown for a condiment and an addition to salads, dressings, etc., but its chief use is in perfumery, the flowers being gathered and either dried for use in sachet bags or distilled for their content of oil. In former years no girl was supposed to be ready for marriage until, with her own hands, she had made her own linen and stored it with lavender. And in some sections the lavender is still used, though the linen is nowadays purchased.

   In southern France and in England considerable areas are devoted to lavender for the perfumery business. The flower stems are cut in August, covered at once with bast matting to protect them from the sun and taken to the stills to obtain the thin, pale yellow, fragrant oil. Four-year-old plants yield the greatest amount of oil, but the product is greater from a two-year plantation than from an older one, the plants then being most vigorous. Two grades of oil are made, the best being used for lavender water, the poorer for soap making. In a good season about one pound of oil is obtained from 150 to 200 pounds of the cut plants.

Hyssop For Landscaping & Colorful Hardy Flowers.

   Hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis, Linn.), a perennial evergreen undershrub of the Labiatæ, native of the Mediterranean region. Though well known in ancient times, this plant is probably not the one known as hyssop in Biblical writings. According to the Standard Dictionary the Biblical "hyssop" is "an unidentified plant ... thought by some to have been a species of marjoram (Origanum maru); by others, the caper-bush (Capparis spinosa); and by the author of the 'History of Bible Plants,' to have been the name of any common article in the form of a brush or a broom." In ancient and medieval times hyssop was grown for its fancied medicinal qualities, for ornament and for cookery. Except for ornament, it is now very little cultivated. Occasionally it is found growing wild in other than Mediterranean countries.

  Description.—The smooth, simple stems, which grow about 2 feet tall, bear lanceolate-linear, entire leaves and small clusters of usually blue, though sometimes pink or white flowers, crowded in terminal spikes. The small, brown, glistening three-angled seeds, which have a little white hilum near their apices, retain their viability three years. Leaves, stems and flowers possess a highly aromatic odor and a hot, bitter flavor.

  Cultivation.—Hyssop succeeds best in rather warm, limy soil. It may be readily propagated by division, cuttings, and seed. In cold climates the last way is the most common. Seed is sown in early spring, either in a cold frame or in the open ground, and the seedlings transplanted in early summer. Even where the plants survive the winters, it is advisable to renew them every three or four years. When grown in too rich soil, the growth will be very lush and will lack aroma. Plants should stand not closer than 6 inches in the rows, which should be at least 18 inches apart. They do best in partial shade.

  Uses.—Hyssop has almost entirely disappeared from culinary practice because it is too strong-flavored. Its tender leaves and shoots are, however, occasionally added to salads, to supply a bitter taste. The colorless oil distilled from the leaves has a peculiar odor and an acrid, camphorescent taste. Upon contact with the air it turns yellow and changes to a resin. From 400 to 500 pounds of the fresh plant yield a pound of oil. The oil is used to some extent in the preparation of toilet articles.

Fennel (FÅ“niculum officinale, All.), a biennial or perennial herb, generally considered a native of southern Europe, though common on all Mediterranean shores. The old Latin name  derived from fÅ“num or hay. It has spread with civilization, especially where Italians have colonized, and may be found growing wild in many parts of the world, upon dry soils near the sea coast and upon river banks.

Sweet Fennel

It seems to be partial to limestone soils, such as the chalky lands of England and the shelly formation of Bermuda. In this latter community I have seen it thriving upon cliffs where there seemed to be only a pinch of soil, and where the rock was so dry and porous that it would crumble to coarse dust when crushed in the hand. The plant was cultivated by the ancient Romans for its aromatic fruits and succulent, edible shoots. Whether cultivated in northern Europe at that time is not certain, but it is frequently mentioned in Anglo-Saxon cookery prior to the Norman conquest. Charlemagne ordered its culture upon the imperial farms. At present it is most popular in Italy, and France. In America it is in most demand among French and Italians. Like many other plants, fennel has had a highly interesting career from a medical point of view. But it no longer plays even a "small part" in the drama. Hints as to its history may be found on.

Description.—Common garden or long, sweet fennel is distinguished from its wild or better relative (F. vulgare) by having much stouter, taller (5 to 6 feet) tubular and larger stems, less divided, more glaucous leaves. But a still more striking difference is seen in the leaf stalks which form a curved sheath around the stem even as far up as the base of the leaf above. Then, too, the green flowers are borne on more sturdy pedicels in the broader umbels, lastly the seeds are double the size of the wild fennel seeds, ¼ or ½ inch long. They are convex on one side, flat on the other, and are marked by five yellowish ribs. Though a French writer says the seed degenerates "promptly," and recommends the use of fresh seed annually, it will not be wise to throw away any where it is not wanted to germinate, unless it is over four years old, as seed as old even as that is said to be satisfactory for planting.

Cultivation.—In usual garden practice fennel is propagated by seeds, and is grown as an annual instead of as a biennial or a perennial. The plants will flourish in almost any well-drained soil, but seem to prefer light loams of a limy nature. It is not particular as to exposure. The seed may be sown in nursery beds or where the plants are to remain. In the beds, the drills may be 6 inches apart, and not more than 1-3 inch deep, or the seed may be scattered broadcast. An ounce will be enough for a bed 10 feet square. When the plants are about 3 inches tall they should be transplanted 15 or 18 inches asunder in rows 2 to 2½ feet apart. Some growers sow in late summer and in autumn so as to have early crops the following season; they also make several successional sowings at intervals of one or two weeks, in order to supply the demands of their customers for fresh fennel stalks from midsummer to December or even later. The plants will grow more or less in very cold, that is, not actually freezing weather.

If sown in place, the rows should be the suggested 2 to 2½ feet apart, and the plants thinned several times until the required distance is reached. Thinnings may be used for culinary purposes. For family use half an ounce of seed, if fairly fresh, will produce an ample supply of plants, and for several years, either from the established roots or by reseeding. Unless seed is needed for household or sowing purposes, the flower stems should be cut as soon as they appear.

Uses.—Fennel is considered indispensable in French and Italian cookery. The young plants and the tender leaves are often used for garnishes and to add flavor to salads. They are also minced and added to sauces usually served with puddings. The tender stems and the leaves are employed in soups and fish sauces, though more frequently they are eaten raw as a salad with or without dressing. The famous "Carosella" of Naples consists of the stems cut when the plant is about to bloom. These stems are considered a great delicacy served raw with the leaf stalks still around them. Oil, vinegar and pepper are eaten with them. By sowing at intervals of a week or 10 days Italian gardeners manage to have a supply almost all the year.

The seeds are used in cookery, confectionery and for flavoring liquors. Oil of fennel, a pale yellow liquid, with a sweetish aromatic odor and flavor, is distilled with water. It is used in perfumery and for scenting soaps. A pound of oil is the usual yield of 500 pounds of the plant.

Finocchio, or Florence fennel (F. dulce, D. C.), deserves special mention here. It appears to be a native of Italy, a distinct dwarf annual, very thick-set herb. The stem joints are so close together and their bases so swelled as to suggest malformation. Even when full grown and producing seed, the plant rarely exceeds 2 feet. The large, finely cut, light green leaves are borne on very broad, pale green or almost whitish stalks, which overlap at their bases, somewhat like celery, but much more swelled at edible maturity, to form a sort of head or irregular ball, the "apple," as it is called, sometimes as large as a man's fist. The seeds are a peculiar oblong, much broader than long, convex on one side and flat on the other, with five conspicuous ribs.

Cultivation is much the same as for common fennel, though owing to the dwarf nature of the plant the rows and the plants may be closer together. The seedlings should be 5 or 6 inches asunder. They are very thirsty things and require water frequently. When the "apple" attains the size of an egg, earth may be drawn up slightly to the base, which may be about half covered; cutting may begin about 10 days later. Florence fennel is generally boiled and served with either a butter or a cream dressing. It suggests celery in flavor, but is sweeter and is even more pleasingly fragrant. In Italy it is one of the commonest and most popular of vegetables. In other European countries it is also well known, but in America its cultivation is almost confined to Italian gardens or to such as supply Italian demands in the large cities. In New York it is commonly sold by green grocers and pushcart men in the Italian sections.

Fennel Flower (Nigella sativa, Linn.), an Asiatic annual, belonging to the Ranunculaceæ, grown to a limited extent in southern Europe, but scarcely known in America. Among the Romans it was esteemed in cookery, hence one of its common names, Roman coriander. The plant has a rather stiff, erect, branching stem, bears deeply cut grayish-green leaves and terminal grayish-blue flowers, which precede odd, toothed, seed vessels filled with small, triangular, black, highly aromatic seeds. For garden use the seed is sown in spring after the ground gets warm. The drills may be 15 to 18 inches apart and the plants thinned to 10 or 12 inches asunder. No special attention is necessary until midsummer, when the seed ripens. These are easily threshed and cleaned. After drying they should be stored in sacks in a cool, dry place. They are used just as they are or like dill in cookery.