Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) has been grown throughout the middle and southern countries of Europe for centuries. I’ve seen it growing wild on islands like Majorca, the Boca Valley is a classic location where it forms low growing shrubs shaped by the winds which sweep the island.
No garden should be without this herb as long as a warm and sunny spot is available for it to tumble about. When the sun is scorching the garden, wafts of rosemary pervade the air and when it is planted close to a path or hedge, brushing past it releases fantastic aromas. It also produces sprays of light blue and white flowers which literally shine in the sunlight. It is a grand plant indeed !
Rosemary is available in a variety of forms, shapes and colourful flowers which shower the ‘branches’ throughout late spring and early summer. We have both a standard variety as well as the rockery variety from the Prostratus group and the compact ‘Miss Jessop’s Upright’. The best location is a sunny, warm and sheltered spot and one that wont be hit by extreme frosts. The soil needs to be moisture retaining rather than too free draining although I’ve seen it in the Southern Mediterranean hugging cracks in rocks and in the roughest impoverished soils.
Pests are not really an issue. Frog hoppers that produce cuckoo spit, leafhoppers and capsid bugs can cause no more than cosmetic damage. The only major concern is the Rosemary Leaf Beetle but it isn’t prevalent in the United Kingdom. It is more an issue on mainland Europe.
The shrub benefits from picking regularly for stuffings especially lamb and pork or flavouring roasted vegetables like potatoes, otherwise light pruning and trimming in April and May reduces the size so that it doesn’t become too woody or lank. Remove overcrowded or dead branches and reduce any extended shoots by a third to a half to improve growth and shape.
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