Curry herb, Helichrysum italicum – care, cutting and propagation

Helichrysum italicum is also known as the Italian straw flower, and these names already suggest that the curry herb is not a particular fan of the German climate. Curry herb grows in Italy or south of it, depending on the species (see below) and region, the curry herb is overwintered indoors or it is worth trying to overwinter outdoors.

In any case, the curry herb would like a warm location if you plan to leave it outside in winter, preferably in the shelter of a beautifully sunlit wall.

The soil should be water-permeable, light and have a moderate nutrient density – in its home the curry herb grows mainly in the Mediterranean shrub heather (garigue) and in the hard-leaf vegetation zone (maquis), both of which are not exactly endowed with nutrients. Therefore the curry herb does not have great demands on the soil, any normal garden soil and any potting soil in which any other plants can thrive will be fine. The pH value is also pretty irrelevant, the curry herb tolerates slightly acidic, neutral and calcareous soil. In a loamy soil, sand should be mixed in to make it looser.

That is why the curry herb tolerates drought rather than too much moisture, especially waterlogging knows and does not like it at all. With the curry herb in the bucket, however, you would have to be careful that the soil does not dry out right into the root area of ​​the plant, which is quick with the small amount of soil on warm days. Simply pour the curry herb whenever the upper layer of soil just feels dry again, then you can neither go wrong in the garden nor in the container.

plant

You can plant or prefer curry herb as a young plant after the ice saints in mid-May. As early as mid to late February, the seeds are placed in nursery pots that are placed on the windowsill or in the greenhouse. The seeds require temperatures of at least 18 ° C and a lot of light, the light germ is only lightly pressed into the earth and carefully poured on. The soil in the nursery pots should always be slightly moist, then the seedlings should show up after about two weeks.

The young plants can be put outdoors when night frosts are no longer to be feared. In the garden bed, leave a gap of a good 30 cm between the individual plants. If you cultivate the curry herb in a tub, you should plant pots with a larger diameter so that it can grow nice and bushy.

Once isolated or planted, the curry herb should develop without further care, additional watering is only necessary in extreme drought, the curry herb is not fertilized at all. If you overwinter a curry herb and it has been growing in the same location for several years, you can occasionally mix a little compost under the ground, a curry herb in the bucket can be given a little herbal fertilizer every now and then.

To cut

The Italian immortelle (this is how the curry herb is also called) grows as a subshrub, the different species reach heights between 20 and 60 centimeters. Semi-shrubs are shrubs with a special growth habit: in the upper area the fresh twigs appear, with the curry shrub grayish-white and hairy like a kind of felt, the lower area lignified, and if it is not constantly cut back and thus forced, young To develop shoots.

If the already lignified part of the branch gets too old, nothing will sprout here anymore, the pruning of half-shrubs is often a constant struggle to keep the plant from lignifying further and further upwards. The length of time after which a woody branch is no longer ready to sprout differs from plant to plant. Sage and lavender are e.g. B. is difficult to prevent from lumbering more and more.

Such half-shrubs then actually have to be freed from all young shoots on an ongoing basis before they become lignified. This works well if you get used to a regular harvest (= regular pruning of the young shoots) from these semi-shrubs, and of course you can treat your curry shrub in this way.

However, the curry herb should also be able to regenerate for a long time in the already lignified parts, it should tolerate a cut in the old wood so well that you can cut down harder. You can make such a rejuvenating cut for the curry shrub immediately after flowering, but you can also shorten it by half or two thirds when it starts to shoot in early spring if it has become too big.

Curry herb is said to withstand the cut in the old wood so well that it can be grown as a low hedge or border with a correct shape cut.

Hibernate curry herb

Depending on the variety and climate in your garden, the Mediterranean curry herb is more or less hardy with us, see below. If you are not sure whether your curry herb can survive a winter in your garden, it is better to overwinter it in a cold house, in a cool, light stairwell e.g. B. or in an unheated garage with windows. The curry herb can only hibernate lightly because it is evergreen.

Safe and independent of the variety, the curry herb is only frost-hardy down to around minus 5 degrees, strong, older specimens can withstand significantly lower temperatures for a short time, and if you buy one of the winter-hardy varieties offered today in specialist shops, it can usually remain entirely in the garden. At least as an older plant, in a mild area and in a sheltered place near a wall. If you want to try that, you can give the curry herb a winter protection made of a thick layer of leaves around the roots and spruce branches in the upper area to be on the safe side.

You take little risk if you root a few cuttings in the summer and overwinter them in the house, which replace a frozen curry herb in case of doubt.

sorts

The curry herb belongs to the sunflower family, which gives us important salads and vegetables (including chicory, artichokes, lettuce and the delicious oat root), medicinal and aromatic plants (including arnica, wormwood, marigold, alant and chamomile) and oil plants (sunflower, Safflower and the extremely interesting ramtill herb).

Within these, it was assigned to the genus of the Ruhr herbs (Gnaphalium) at the end of the 18th century, some of which are used as ornamental plants in rock gardens. At the beginning of the 19th century, the curry herb was then rearranged into the everlasting genus (Helichrysum). Overall, however, the delimitation of the genus in this area of ​​the composites is still quite controversial, dysentery herbs and everlasting flowers are very closely related to other genera such as the cat’s paws (Antennaria), felt herbs (Filago) and the pearl baskets (Anaphalis).

In this area there is still a lot to discover for gardeners who love plants with useful value.These plants (the subfamily of the aster family) are valuable garden decorations and can then be used as medicinal plants or dried in a floristic work of art.

There are six different subspecies of Helichrysum italicum, which have developed slightly differently in certain regions:

• Helichrysum italicum subsp. italicum: The “basic form”, widespread in the entire area of ​​the species, only in a southern belt (Iberian Peninsula, Balearic Islands, Sicily, Crete), this variant does not grow.
• Helichrysum italicum subsp. microphyllum: This is the species that grows on the islands of this southern belt, as well as in Greece.
• Helichrysum italicum subsp. picardii: Grows in Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
• Helichrysum italicum subsp. pseudolitoreum: grows on the coast of Tuscany, on the islands of the Tuscan Archipelago and on Sardinia.
• Helichrysum italicum subsp. serotinum: This species has spread in Portugal, Spain, southern France and over some islands of the Balearic Islands to Algeria, dwarf curry shrub, which can also be grown as a small-leaved bonsai.
• Helichrysum italicum subsp. siculum: Has spread from Italy via Sicily to Tunisia.

There are also cultivars of the curry herb, z. B .:

• Helichrysum italicum “Dartington”, a variety with sticky and therefore more aromatic leaves. It is said to be hardier than the archetypal forms, has fine more gray-green than silvery leaves and sulfur-yellow flowers.
• Helichrysum italicum ssp. angustifolium, a new variety with stiff, upright growth and compact shape, improved winter hardiness, is indicated by German traders as frost-resistant.

These sub-varieties or cultivars could also be given to them without the addition “italicum subsp.” B. encountered simply as “Helichrysum microphyllum”. In the “normal plant trade”, which does not specialize in herbs or scented plants, you will in any case only be able to buy “Helichrysum italicum”, i.e. any of the varieties. In specialist nurseries you can ask about the exact variety, which can be worthwhile, some sub-varieties / cultivars tolerate temperatures down to minus 15 degrees and can usually overwinter in our garden.

Multiplication

Curry herb can be propagated well by sowing, the seeds can be obtained from the existing plants.

Or you can grow more currant bushes from cuttings, these actually take root quite easily all year round. It is best to cut the cuttings in summer and put them directly in soil, they should root in about a month.

Harvesting and using

Curry herb flowers from May / June to August, just before flowering, a branch of curry herb has the best aroma. You can then harvest this branch and use it to season rice or sauces, meat dishes and fish dishes, either add individual leaves to the food or cook the branches briefly (remove before serving). If you need sprigs of curry in the kitchen, it’s best to pick them fresh. Curry herb is somewhat reminiscent of the curry spice mix in taste, so it could therefore be added to all dishes that you would also season with curry. But actually the curry herb is a Mediterranean spice, which is also very reminiscent of the taste of the sage, if you feel that too, you will certainly use curry herb as a spice for Mediterranean dishes. Sniff and try and try,

You can still harvest the branches when they are already in bloom, the flowers can also be used as a spice. You can bundle these twigs and hang them in an airy place to dry. The dried twigs can then be used to make floristic bouquets of dried flowers, or you can make a great-tasting tea.

This tea is also healthy: when it is brewed, the essential oil of the herb is released, and this is said to have anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and anti-oxidation effects. In the medicinal herb lexicon, eight different phytochemicals of curry herb are listed, coughs and bruises as the main uses and 10 other healing effects and areas of application.

Conclusion