Fundamental Facts
HARDINESS: Frost tolerant
PREFERRED SOIL pH: Near neutral
PREFERRED SOIL TYPE: Fertile, well-drained
PREFERRED LIGHT: Sun
ATTRIBUTES: Edible leaves, blue star shaped blossoms; for herb or flower garden
SEASON OF INTEREST: Early summer to frost
FAVORITES: Blue-flowered species; white-flowered 'Alba'
QUIRKS: Chill seeds for 1 week before planting
GOOD NEIGHBORS: Lavender, purple-leaf sage, peonies, iris
WHERE IT GROWS BEST: Fertile, humus-rich soil; full sun
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: Slugs
CRITTER RESISTANCE: Good
SOURCE: Seeds
DIMENSIONS: 2 ft (0.6 m) tall, 2 ft (0.6 m) wide
Borage in the Landscape
There's an old New England saying that proclaims, "A garden without borage is like a heart without courage." At one time, this ornamental herb found its way into almost every piece of cultivated land because once you plant borage, it will self-seed and always stay with you. But then, with handsome, oval, edible leaves that taste like cucumber, crowned by a constant supply of sky blue or white, star-shaped blossoms, borage is one plant you'll want to keep around.
Standing 2 ft (0.6 m) tall when in flower, borage adapts to many situations. Because its leaves are edible, borage is usually linked with herb gardens. The leaves are often tossed in salads, tasting best when they're young and tender. Starting in late spring, the blossoms provide a welcome splash of soft blue color that combines well with the purple-tinged leaves of lavender and purple-leaf common sage, and with the silver foliage of artemisia and dusty miller. Borage is equally appropriate in the herb garden and the perennial border, where it pops up in a different place every year but always looks great whether it appears beside the peonies or the iris.
Increasing the Bounty
Borage is easy to grow from seed. Chill the seeds in a refrigerator for a week before sowing direcdy in the garden in early spring. Even though established borage enthusiastically self-seeds, it is not invasive. If you have extra seedlings, or if borage happens to be where it isn't wanted, dig the seedlings when they're small and transplant them with care. Wait for a cloudy day, moisten the soil around a plant several hours in advance, dig a circle 6 in (15.2 cm) in diameter around the plant, and gendy lift the seedling and surrounding soil. Transplant immediately, watering the seedling liberally when it's positioned in its new home. Shade the transplant for several days and continue to water regularly. In a week it should be safely settled in. In Zones 8 and 9, borage can be grown as a winter annual.
Growing Borage
Borage grows best in full sun, but it tolerates partial shade in the afternoon. It doesn't require fertile soil, but moisture-retentive soil is a definite asset. If direct-seeded in early spring, the plants send up flower stalks in early summer and continue to bloom for several months. If you don't want the plant to self-seed, clip off the flowers after they fade. Borage often wilts on hot days but will spring back to life when the sun sets.
Like many herbs, borage isn't bothered by diseases and is rarely pestered by insects, although slugs will occasionally chew holes in the foliage. If you see smooth-edged holes in the leaves, set out a commercial slug trap or a shallow saucer filled with beer at sundown to trap these nocturnal feeders. Attracted by the yeasty smell, the slugs will climb into the saucer and drown.
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