Through the years the oregano has multiplied to a couple hundred plants. I never lack for the stuff. Now it is going to flower. I was wondering....should I cut the flowers off? Will I benefit from stronger plants? Normally I just let the plants do their thing. Maybe that is why I have a forest of plants. How do other people handle their oregano? Jerry
Jerry, I harvest ours so often that it's never flowered. I have found, however, with other herbs that after flowering the flavor changes, usually not for the better. If you can, whack the flowers off half the plants and let the others do their thing. See what happens. Gardening is a constant learning experience!
Done!! The Queen of hearts would be envious....OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!! The other half is shaking in their roots.(pun intended). The air is permeated with the smell of oregano. Jerry
We have oregano growing wild everywhere and sometimes we even harvest it as the flowering is just beginning or even better, just as the flowerbuds are starting to form. Normally a sunny warm day is best.
I have no idea what is the "right" way to deal with the flowers but I dry them right along with the leaves. I love the look of them in the jar. Despite my neglect oregano is the herb that has spread when others have succumbed.
I just let mine do their thing and cut off the dead stems the following spring. Mine are always covered in bees.
Not to be left out of the flowering festivities, the decapitated oregano regrew their heads and proceeded to flower. The plants appear to be of a single mind and will not be deterred from flowering. Jerry
I just read the Oregano post, and I chuckled as I was going to post the same things. I have never had so much of it in the garden, it seems to be taking over so I had to pull a lot of it up . Petals
The Oregano patch measures 3 feet in diameter and it's edges are being pulled to accommodate a daylily patch. I have two kinds and the Greek Oregano only a foot in diameter needs no pruning. Jerry
Our oregano is still going strong. I harvested a small basket full today, perhaps two cups when chopped and frozen. I've made onion/oregano bread, frozen oregano, dried oregano and used it in herb breads. We have the Sicilian and the Greek both, and the Greek seems to be a bit more restrained. Extra oregano has been potted up and given (thrust into the hands) of fellow gardeners with the mild warning "it spreads". I may have to find a new batch of fellow gardeners next season.
Hmmmm.....I clearly am doing something wrong. My oregano lives in a pot on my back stoop in herbal company with basil rosemary chives sorrel thyme and parsley. All the others flourish, the oregano not. ????
Cayuga, there is more than one variety of oregano. I grow the Sicilian because we have warmth here (understatement), but you, being in a cooler area, might have better luck with the Greek oregano. The difference in taste is so minor that most folks can't detect it. The Greek is more cold hardy and doesn't require as much sun or heat.
Oregano is such a good garden plant. You may have to investigate there locally which sort is the best for your conditions. I am embarrassed to say it, but I do not know what sort I have, but it is resistant to cold and moisture. It was in the lottie when I began renting it and has never disappeared. I have just transplanted it from time to time.
Thanks guys. Maybe I should try some Greek oregano in my community plot & then some on a pot on the back stoop. I suspect I will be more successful growing it in the ground.
