How to grow tarragons

Tarragon is a woody-based perennial herb valued for the sharp, anise-like bite it lends to vinegars, sauces, and roasted vegetables, not for any bulk of foliage. It settles into a permanent spot, an herb bed or large container, rather than cycling through beds like an annual vegetable, and a healthy planting keeps producing usable stems for years. Gardeners grow it because fresh-cut tarragon carries an aroma the dried, jarred version rarely matches, and one established plant supplies far more than a household typically uses in a season.

The hardest part of growing tarragon well is starting it correctly. Utah State University Extension notes the culinary form seldom flowers and sets little viable seed, so it must be started from stem cuttings or root divisions, not a seed packet. A second-year gardener who reaches for a tarragon seed packet, as with most herbs, ends up with a coarser plant lacking the essential oils the crop is grown for. The mistake stays hidden for months, since the plant looks and grows correctly; it only shows itself once the harvest reaches the kitchen carrying almost none of the expected flavor.