Tarragon
Artemisia dracunculus
Aromatic French herb reputed to improve most of its neighbors.
- Type
- Herb · Perennial
- Botanical family
- Mixed / other
- Foliage color
- Green
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Watering
- Low–moderate
- Soil
- Light, dry, well-drained
- Feeding
- A light spring feed only — rich soil costs it flavor.
- USDA zones
- 4a–8b
- Frost tolerant
- Yes
- Pruning
- Cut it back in autumn, and lift and divide the clump every three years.
- Plant out
- at the last spring frost
- First harvest
- 40 days after the last spring frost
- Harvest ends
- at the first fall frost
- Mar–Apr Bud Break
- Apr–Oct Harvest
- Oct–Nov Growing
- Nov–Dec Leaf Fall
- Jan–Mar Leaf Fall
- Plant spacing
- 19.7 in
- In-row spacing
- 17.7 in
- Between rows
- 23.6 in
- Square-foot density
- 1 per square
- Root system
- Running rhizomes
- Working depth
- 4–12 in
- Can reach
- 18 in down where the soil allows
- Spread
- 24 in–4 ft across, about 2–4× the width of the plant
- Shallowest pot
- 12 in of soil
It travels underground, and it does not stop where you would like it to. Taking the tops off does nothing at all to the run, and every fragment left behind is a new plant. In open ground the only boundary that holds is a barrier sunk two spits deep, or a container with its rim standing clear of the soil.
French tarragon travels quietly by rhizome and is divided rather than sown, since it sets no viable seed. Anything grown from a seed packet labelled tarragon is the Russian sort, which is vigorous, hardy and nearly tasteless.
The habit is Tarragon’s own; the figures are what that habit usually comes to at this size, not a measurement of this species. Roots follow the soil either way: a compacted pan, a high water table or heavy clay stops them well short of any of it, and deep open ground lets them go further.
- Cats and dogs
- Recorded toxic
Recorded as toxic to cats and dogs by ASPCA.
- When
- Harvest French tarragon from late spring through summer; the anise flavor is strongest in early summer before any flowering attempt, and in the morning after dew has dried. Growth dies back with frost, so take a final big cut in early autumn.
- What to look for
- Stems 20cm or more with smooth, slender, glossy leaves that release a strong sweet-anise scent when crushed — a weak scent suggests you have inferior Russian tarragon or a tired plant needing division.
- How to harvest
- Snip the top 10–15cm of stems just above a leaf node with scissors; cut stems rebranch and thicken the plant. For bulk harvests, cut whole stems back by up to a third; strip leaves from stems in the kitchen.
- How often
- Pick lightly and often through the season — regular tipping keeps the plant leafy and delays the (sterile) flowering that pauses leaf production. Two or three larger cuts per year are fine on an established clump; divide clumps every 3 years to keep flavor strong.
- Storing the crop
- Fresh sprigs keep about a week in the fridge wrapped in damp paper. Tarragon loses most of its character when dried — preserve it instead by freezing chopped leaves in ice cubes, packing sprigs into white wine vinegar (the classic tarragon vinegar), or blending into butter and freezing.
- Powdery mildew A white dusty coating over leaves and shoots when roots are dry but the air is humid. Keep plants watered and mulched, prune for airflow, and remove the worst leaves.
- Root & crown rot Root rot where the soil stays wet
- Rust Orange-brown powdery pustules on leaf undersides, weakening the plant over the season. Remove affected leaves, avoid overhead watering, and clear all debris in autumn.
Lettuce, Aubergine, Peppers
Good neighbors
True French tarragon rarely sets seed, so it's grown from cuttings or division.
Green-leaved herbs, like this one.
The Cottage Garden Companion — the gardener's herbarium at cottagegardencompanion.com