"Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme," Simon and Garfunkel reminded us, are the quintessential English herbs. But the easiest to grow, by far, is rosemary.
It's simply always there for you, whatever the season or weather, and once established makes few demands. Every garden should have at least one plant, and they do well in pots on a stoep, too.
If you see a plant with a shape or flower colour you like, beg, borrow or steal a cutting. You need about 6cm. Strip off the lower leaves and plant it in a pot using rooting powder.
Of course you can just buy an established plant in a nursery, where you will get an idea of its growing habit and flower colour.
There are dozens around, all varieties of Rosmarinus officinalis, but the selection can be fairly limited. Prostrate growers such as McConnell's Blue are good for rockeries or box beds where you want them to trail down a wall, while the upright varieties, like Tuscan Blue, are better for planting in the garden - and they fit in with vegetables as easily as flowers.
Rosemary comes from the Mediterranean, so it likes being hot and even dry. It can tolerate sea air and just about anything apart from being waterlogged. So if you grow it in a pot, don't overwater it. It does best in sun but will cope with part shade, and needs an alkaline soil. It can grow up to a metre tall and can be clipped into a low hedge.
Prune it into shape at least once a year, after flowering. The plants eventually get old and woody and you may want to replace them.
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