Monday, February 7, 2011

Growing Dill

Right in the middle of this photo is dill in flower from 2009.  Taylor's Outback has asked if I have grown 'Hercules' dill.  I have grown practically every other type of dill but that one, TO.  In my Richters catalog from Canada, it says:
HERCULES DILL (Anethum graveolens) Heavy yielding tetraploid (having four sets of chromosomes) (not sure what that means) strain.  Slow to flower so foliage stays green and succulent longer.  Best variety for the fresh leaf market.
It is the one to grow for foliage.  Very easy to grow from seeds.  Self-sows if happy.  You can sow it early in the season out in the garden.  I would say hard to start indoors because it has a long taproot and it resents being moved.  I have grown 'Mammoth', 'Bouquet', 'Dukat', 'Fernleaf', all grown from seed.  Richters has them all.  You can also purchase slightly different dill varieties at Johnny's Selected Seeds or Hometown Herb Seeds.  Hope you have success!  Love your comments and questions as always!

11 comments:

Penny Watson said...

Dill is one of my favorites...my hubby loves it! We use it almost every day in the summer once it sprouts. I have no idea what variety we are planting...I just grab a packet of seeds at the nursery. Should I be checking for a certain variety? I also love using the dill flowers in mixed arrangements.

This photo is making me a little sad. Sunshine!

Lemon Verbena Lady said...

Just check out, Johnny's Selected Seeds, Penny. Looks like 'Vierling' is the one for you. BTW, thanks for cheering me up!

PeggyR said...

We love dill here. I will have to watch this year though as I had tons of seeds and I know it reseeds, so I don't want it to overtake!

Lemon Verbena Lady said...

It is easily pulled out if necessary, Peggy! Thanks for stopping by.

Unknown said...

I love growing and using dill, too. I've grown several varieties though never Hercules, I'll have to try that one this spring.
Blessings,
Catherine

Lemon Verbena Lady said...

Hope you enjoy it. Thanks for stopping by CL!

Pat said...

Thanks so much for the feedback...my Cook's Garden catalog order informed me it was out of stock & I did find it in the Richter's catalog - so they get my order! I am most interested in growing the foliage for fresh use and for drying. We don't do any pickling anymore...just not enough time! Have had good luck with Dukat but it goes to seed quicker than I like and ends up about 6 feet tall!

Lemon Verbena Lady said...

You're welcome, TO! Hope you have good luck with it!

Anonymous said...

Oh! That is what I need to add this year. Thank you.

seanymph said...

I havent grown dill in years , until I moved here. Last year I got a plant of it, dont know what kind. And I put it in a pot on my back deck, figuring Ill transplant it once the beds were put in. They were put in very late last yr. tho.

And so this dill grew quite bit and tall in that pot. I got enough to make some dill pickles and still have a bit in my freezer. I was surprised!

This yr tho it will go in the ground. Never tried the one with mostly leaves tho. I might just have to get some this yr.

Lemon Verbena Lady said...

You're welcome, Mina. It is fun to grow.

I love dill, seanymph. Some years it grows very well. Some years it volunteers very well. Last year in the heat, it got buried by other plants and didn't do as well. I have a jar of it dried in my pantry and I use it all of the time.

Thanks ladies for stopping by.