Flavor your garden and add flavor to your dishes as well - here are five herbs you can raise the organic way

CULINARY HERBS ARE SOME OF THE EASIEST yet most rewarding plants to take care of. Aside from utilizing them in recipes, herbs you can also use potpourri, tea infusion, and medicine.

GOING ORGANIC like vegetables, the flavor and nutrients of herbs are lost the longer they are subjected to heat, so herbs are usually added to a dish towards the end of cooking. With this in mind, take note that any chemical fertilizers and pesticides present in the herbs will most probably end up in our bodies as toxins. To prevent this, the best solution is to practice organic gardening by growing our own herbs without the use of any chemicals. Pests and diseases are prevented manually removing visible pests from the stems and leaves, and plants are provided with a sterile, soil-free planting medium devoid of pests and pathogens. Fertilizers are mostly natural growth enhances like fish emulsion and worm castings (vermiculture).

BECOME AN HERB-IVORE although there are over a hundred known herbs, here are five of the most commonly used cooking herbs. All are similar in their growth requirements: They require full sunlight for optimum growth, and pots with fertile potting mix for good drainage and aeration - a 1:1:1 ratio of coco-coir powder, vermiculite or per lite, and vermin-compost. All require watering every other day during summer, and less during rainy season.

HERB MENTALITY

MINT

Good for : Lamb-based recipes, dessert

Grows from : Cuttings

Planting info : It is one of the most vigorous local herbs, and is highly resistant to pests and diseases.

CHIVES (onion, or garlic chives, also known as kutchay tips)

Good for : Chinese cuisine

Grows from : Seed

Planting info : It can also be easily propagated by division.

PARSLEY

Good for : Garnish, or mixed with other herbs

Grows from : Seeds

Planting info : This can take a while to grow, but once this perennial is mature, has a considerably long life span, and will provide a continuous supply of leaves.

TARRAGON

Good for : Poultry dishes

Grows from : Cuttings

Planting info : Responds well to regular pruning and doubles as an ornamental plant when allowed to flower.

BASIL

Good for : Pasta and salad

Grows from : Seed or young stem cuttings

Planting info : Snip off flowers growing at the end of a shoot to lengthen the life of the plant (the end of the basil's life cycle is signified by the onset of flowers).

The plant or leaves are cilantro, while the seeds are coriander. It is also called Chinese parsley family. Cilantro is native to Asia and the Mediterranean regions. It has parsley-like leaves, and produces a profusion of small white flowers. The seeds have a pleasant odor when ripe, and they taste sweet.

You'll find this useful herb in many ethnic recipes, including Mexican, Spanish, Mediterranean, and Asian Cuisines. The fresh leaves are chopped and mixed with other ingredients and may be used as garnish. It is perhaps best known as a key player in salsa. However, it is also used in soups, seafood, and main dishes. It is better to tear rather than chop the leaves; the chopped version gives out an odor reminiscent of bedbugs. Not appetizing. The seeds meanwhile, are an ingredient in curry. You can also use coriander seeds in breads, cakes, and main dishes.