Oregano is a popular perennial herb to grow in the herb garden, vegetable garden, and food forest. Here are six benefits of oregano in the garden.
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The Benefits of Growing Oregano
Greek Oregano (Origanum vulgare) is a mediterranean plant that is drought-tolerant and grows in hardiness zones 4-9.
The following are some of the benefits of growing it in your garden.
1. It is easy to grow.
Although this herb prefers a sunny, hot climate with well-drained soil, it can survive wet periods and a little shade, too.
In fact, it’s very versatile. I grow oregano in the rain garden, which receives ample rain in the spring, but hot and dry conditions in the summer months. This is one reason why it has made it on many gardeners’ lists of low maintenance crops and easy herbs to grow.
When grown on a slope, it helps to prevent erosion.
The dainty white-light pink flowers are an excellent addition to the edible landscape.
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2. Oregano is good medicine.
This herb is often used in natural remedies, and is a powerful—some say more effective—alternative to prescription antibiotics. Many people take oil of oregano internally at the first sign of cold or flu. It has been known to help with fungal and yeast infections, and allergies, too.
Adding this fresh herb to your meals and drinking homemade oregano tea are simple ways to reduce illness, especially when exposed to sickness, such as when traveling or visiting a hospital.
Here are more antiviral herbs for cold and flu season.
3. It is a staple in the well-stocked kitchen.
This herb can be used both fresh and dried in the kitchen. It is popularly used in Italian cooking in pizza and tomato-based pasta sauces.
To use it fresh, simply cut the stems and pull off the fresh leaves.
To dry it, cut and hang the stems in bunches upside down until completely dry and crispy, then strip the leaves from the stems. Crush the dried leaves between your palms before adding it to your favorite recipes.
4. Oregano attracts beneficial insects and pollinators.
Pollinators of all kinds, including bumblebees, enjoy feeding on the nectar-rich flowers.
Oregano provides food and habitat for beneficial insects, such as lacewings. When lacewing larvae emerge, they are voracious predators of aphids, whiteflies, cabbage moth caterpillars, and many other common garden pests.
For this reason, I enjoy planting it as a border along the vegetable garden, especially near cucumbers and cabbage family crops like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, and collards.
I also plant oregano in hedgerows and permaculture food forests to attract beneficial insects.
Here are more medicinal herbs to plant for the bees.
Here is a video of how popular the flowers are with pollinators in my garden:
5. It is a pest repellent.
The strong scent of oregano confuses pests sniffing out their favorite crops, which is another reason to plant it near the vegetable garden and under permaculture fruit tree guilds.
Speaking of pests, it is also deer resistant.
6. Oregano makes a good ground cover.
Oregano forms a walkable ground cover in areas that don’t get heavy traffic, such as in minor pathways and under fruit trees where pruning and harvesting only occur a few times per year.
In fact, it makes a great living mulch in perennial gardens.
Here are more reasons to grow this herb.
Ready to get growing?
Oregano is a perennial, so starting from seed is a slow but easy process. If you already have a plant, oregano is one of many herbs that you can propagate from cuttings.
Give it plenty of space, because it can grow to four feet wide!
Harvest this herb often to keep it naturally pruned, and cut it back each spring to keep an attractive shape.
Overall, you’ll love having this multi-functional, beautiful plant in your garden. How do you use oregano?
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Karen says
Your oregano plant is beautiful. Never seen one grow upright and have such big blooms. Your bees seem to love it. My plants work as a ground cover in a border planting next to stepping stones. After reading your post, I need to schedule a moving day for some of it out to the veggie garden as I have terrible whitefly issues with crucifers. Didn’t think about using it as a tea for medicinal purposes. When I make minestrone soup, I place oregano sprigs in with the soup while it’s cooking, then remove stems when done.
Amy says
It’s interesting the difference in behavior of our oreganos. I’m not sure why that is. I’m growing Italian oregano. Greek oregano can get even taller!
Great idea to add sprigs to soup!
Paula Bruno says
What synchronicity! I’ve had a sensitive tooth for several months. Since finances are tight, I have been putting an essential oil concoction on it and taking advil when it hurt. The longer this went on the worse it got and it started feeling like it was abscessing. My sister had given me Oregano Essential oil to use as an antibiotic for my dog’s infection, so I started taking 3 drops in a capsule 6 times a day. After the first day I started feeling some relief. Now it seems to be okay.
Amy says
That’s great feedback. I have several friends who swear by it!
Eleanor says
Thank you for all this info. Oregano has been in our kitchens forever for cooking. I did not know about the tea but I did know and use the oil and it is very effective. I do not have it I my garden which is always in somebody else’s back yard as I live in a sunless condo. I could not find oregano when I went to the garden centres as they had all been sold out. And I did not know they did so many things in the garden.
I planted sage this year. What can you tell us about this herb. Please and thank you.
Amy J. says
I can always find honey bees in my oregano. They love it.
Amy says
They are a joy to watch, aren’t they? 🙂
Nico D says
Thanks for the information about oregano, especially how easy it is to grow! I think I’ll add it to my beneficials garden this year. Since it is so easy to grow and attracts lacewings, I’m thinking of encouraging my mom to add it near her monarch milkweed. The aphid infestation on her plants has been huge in recent years and there haven’t been many monarch caterpillars. Do you happen to know if lacewings would be much of an additional threat to monarchs at any life stage?
Amy says
There will always be some degree of loss for the butterflies from beneficial insects, but I always err on the side of promoting more diversity whenever I can, and hoping that nature will balance itself out. I’ve seen spiders and preying mantids eating beneficial insects as well as pests, but I don’t plan to limit their existence because I think nature is far more complex than I will ever be able to understand. If you try growing oregano next to the milkweed, let us know how it goes 🙂
Carol says
Thanks for this info. Got your book and it is great! Thanks carol
Amy says
I’m so glad you’re liking it!
Jean says
I have huge oregano bushes growing outside of my pool enclosure here in Florida. But I am not sure what type of Oregano they are? They are 4 feet tall 2 of them and another smaller one. They smell like oregano and have the same lilac like color along with the white blooms. But they are smaller strands and grow outward. What type of oregano do I have. I have not eaten any of it yet but I love the smell of it and the bees love it. How can I have it tested to see if it is edible? Can I send a picture?
Victoria Degand says
Download the app “Picture This”. It identifies plants & trees. I use it daily in the 3 years I’ve had it.
Patricia says
I like reading your articles, you provide some good information for gardeners. I have never grown herbs like oregano in the garden, I am afraid that it will end up taking over when I am not looking. I will be incorporating oregano into the garden area, maybe as a ground area on the outside of the beds. Keep up the articles, and I will keep reading.
thank you!