At Bowood Farms, look for Geisha garlic chives, winner of a 2015 All-America Selections award. Chefs love its sweet garlic flavor and its ribbonlike beauty. Add Pokey Joe Cilantro, a slow-to-bolt variety that’s particularly good with Asian foods. Thai and Indian cooks use both leaves and roots. 4065 Olive, 314-454-6868, bowoodfarms.com.
Take home Mrs. Burns lemon basil from Crabapple Cove Nursery. Chefs love this New Mexican heirloom plant for its bright flavor and superior fragrance. And consider picking up Greek basil, whose tiny leaves and rounded growth habit works well in containers. 6961 Telegraph, 314-846-4021.
Stop by Garden Heights Nursery and select zaatar oregano, a zesty herb that also delivers notes of marjoram and thyme. Try lime mint, a zingy bronzed beauty that will jazz up your summer cocktails. Garden Heights also has mojito mint. Buy both and drink up. 1605 S. Big Bend, 314-645-7333, gardenheights.com.
Put Hardy Hill Rosemary in your shopping basket at Sugar Creek Gardens and Nursery in Kirkwood. This cold-tolerant rosemary also loves the sun, tastes terrific, and performs year-round. Consider Balsamic Blooms basil, too—the flowers taste as good as the leaves. 1011 N. Woodlawn, 314-965-3070, sugarcreekgardens.com.
