Plant · P-617

Tarragon

Artemisia dracunculus

Tarragon is a rhizomatous perennial grown for its anise-flavored leaf, eaten fresh or dried as a potherb and used to flavor vinegar; the aromatic French form is a sterile clone increased only by division or cuttings, so most tarragon grown from seed is the coarser, less flavorful Russian form. Both fresh and dried plants repel insects and confuse pests, the basis of its long use as a companion for eggplant and sweet pepper, while its flowers feed pollinators and its dense foliage shelters overwintering insects and nesting bees. It thrives in poor, dry, well-drained ground - rich or wet soil shortens its life, and a wet winter kills it outright - and an established planting is strongly drought tolerant. It spreads by rhizome wherever the site suits it, so it wants a lean dry edge or a bed where it can run, with the margin cut or grazed to keep it in bounds.