Wild herbs, meal plans, and zest for life – a great naturalness is on its way

The salad has a distinctly piquant note. Every salad lover notices it, even if they don't know where it comes from. The new spread tastes wonderfully fresh, the family agrees. But what's in it? "This soup is a poem!" the guests exclaim, asking about the ingredients. They all don't know the little secret that the clever family member simply fetches from the garden. It's called sorrel and is one of the wonderful wild herbs that migrate directly from the herb patch to the kitchen. Like so many of these plants that offer their distinct naturalness to find a spot in the garden, this sorrel can also serve the full range of meal plans. From appetizers to colorful salad bowls and from meat to fine pastes, it offers its culinary services. In addition to its individual flavor, it also packs a lot of ingredients beneficial for health. Vitamin C mingles alongside oxalic acid and many minerals.

But it also has a lot of companions. Once you've discovered the fantastic world of wild herbs, you won't be able to let them go. Quickly, other great and small contributions to an equally delicious and conscious diet are added. There's the persistent wild garlic with its unique garlic scent, which has already secured a top-ten spot in German kitchens today. But there's also the native ground elder, traditionally fought as a weed, although its young growth lends itself well to salads, soups, and as a spinach alternative.

The same often applies to ground ivy, as it tends to overgrow flowering plants if left unchecked in a rock garden. So, it's better to place it in the "wild corner" of the vegetable garden and use its edible blossoms as a garnish on vegetable casseroles. The leaves smell like a mix of mint and thyme and complement salads. But that's not all. Its special aroma is a good base for teas and even healing oils.

This brings us to an important point: wild herbs are usually also medicinal herbs. Whether it's yarrow with its pretty feathered leaves or plantain with its delicate stamens, whether it's Lippia that tastes like oregano, or chamomile with its glowing golden-yellow center – they all bring powers that combat numerous minor ailments and sufferings. Back to nature – it doesn't get any better than that.

Some people love to design their entire green space as a wild garden. But that's not necessary at all. Wild herbs are grateful and undemanding beings that thrive almost anywhere. They look splendid in a cottage garden or a rustically designed herb spiral. Often, cultivated forms, such as mugwort or wormwood, are already well-known, but the simpler varieties always fit into the wonderfully unconstrained atmosphere that wild herbs create. Like carefully cultivated plants, they bring everything a gardener loves: beautiful blossoms, interesting leaves, and plenty of fragrance!

Of course, you can also prune them back. This is even quite easy because they don't mind it. By the way, anyone who loves Mother Nature and treats themselves to a corner full of wildness and untamed plant vitality is by no means creating disorder. They are simply providing another little piece of happiness in their own garden.