Borage

borage flowers
Borage flowers

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One of the first herbs I planted back in May, borage is an old favourite. Here it grows through winter, spreading to a rosette of hairy leaves, then in spring it sends up shoots that bear the blue flowers. The bees love it, but for us the flowers are also the useful part, to put in salads. The flowers and leaves taste of cucumber.

For picking the flowers,the blue petals are easy to separate from the hairy calyces, just hold the central dark part and gently pull down. The leaves are quite hairy in the mouth, so it’s best to shred them to add to salads.

As a nice contrast, some flowers on all plants are pink, so they make a nice mix.

I’m glad to see they have done so well here. Borage is a cool climate herb, but adapts well to warmer weather. There will be a lot of seed in the ground for next year, so I can watch for when they choose to germinate, and I will save plenty to spread it further. It’s a good blanket plant that overshadows winter weeds, and needs no attention.