Lovage – The Power of Fragrance

In short: Lovage is a strongly aromatic herb with a celery-like taste, used fresh, dried, frozen or salted. It grows 0.5 to 2 m tall, needs deep rich soil, compost and at least 50 cm between plants. Harvest leaves from May to November and add them to hot dishes 10 minutes before the end. Pregnant women should avoid it.

Lovage – The Power of Fragrance

Its origin is already typical, as this herb comes from the rocky areas of Iran and Afghanistan, but later it became completely naturalized in most European countries. Monastery gardens hosted lovage as early as the Middle Ages. This Apiaceae plant has a straight, multi-headed whitish rhizome in the ground and a hollow, slightly grooved stem. It has stiff leaves, double to triple pinnate. The umbels are composed of umbellets, in June and July greenish to yellow-green flowers appear.

Lovage can grow into a shrub or small tree with woody branches and leathery, oblong leaves. The herb's flowers are white, small and especially fragrant. Fresh fruits are not used as a spice. Older plants bloom in May. We most commonly use lovage leaves, which are excellent as herbs for soups, with fish and meat dishes, marinades for game, potatoes, for pickling cucumbers or even sauerkraut. We obtain the spice by picking young leaves anytime and then using them. If we want to dry lovage, the herb is harvested before flowering.

The lovage plant is perennial, but in our conditions it is an annual and seeds germinate under the condition that the seeds are fresh, meaning from last autumn, and germination success is around fifty percent. We can also purchase pre-grown young plants. We place lovage in large, deep containers on a balcony or terrace, as well as in the garden. If we grow lovage in the garden, it is advisable to place it in a perennial bed, due to its high nutrient requirements and sufficient moisture. Then lovage can grow to 0.5-2 meters. It needs plenty of compost, but also organic fertilizers. It thrives in sun, but also in partial shade, and a single plant is sufficient for a family's needs. If we grow multiple plants, there should be a distance of at least 50cm between them.

However, when growing lovage, we must be careful of cold. We plant it outside only at the end of May and then shelter it during autumn frosts. Watering must be sufficient, especially young shoots must not dry out. Tall-growing plants tolerate drought well. They are propagated by seeds, which unfortunately do not ripen in our conditions. We can also store lovage over winter by placing one or two strong plants on a bright window in autumn and continue harvesting. However, the shoots no longer regrow. We dry lovage and store it in breathable bags or it can also be preserved in oil. If we consume fresh lovage in heat treatment, it is added to dishes only 10 minutes before the food is ready.

Fertilizing lovage is very important, as only then will lovage thrive and we will subsequently benefit from it. If we don't have any compost available, add a handful of organic fertilizer to the substrate as a reserve fertilizer, such as horn meal. Lovage can be fertilized every 4 weeks with comfrey or nettle extract. Plants in pots should be repotted every year into fresh substrate. We harvest its fresh leaves from May to November. Plants then overwinter in portable containers in cool rooms, if we previously had the lovage placed in the garden. Then already in March we can place it outside in the light and regularly water it, and it will reward us with early foliage. We use it fresh, dried, frozen or salted. Pregnant women should not use lovage. Its taste is strongly spicy and we can even compare it to the taste of celery. It should not be used in large quantities, as its flavor is dominant.