Lovage

Lovage (perennial) tastes like celery crossed with parsley!  It’s really nice to use with fish and poultry, I like to make up a herb butter to stuff inside. It contains lots of vitamin C.

Start plants from seed in spring. Sow a few into a small pot filled with seed compost and cover with a thin layer of compost – don’t sow too many seeds, due to its size one plant is generally enough in the garden. Place in a heated propagator to germinate if sowing before April.

When seedlings are large enough, prick out into individual pots. Plant out well rooted plants into the garden in late spring or early summer. Lovage is a prolific self seeder so I like this one in a pot or it can be a bit invasive! Trim plants in summer to encourage a flush of new shoots.
Plants start to die back in autumn. At this time, cut stems back to just above ground level. Large clumps can be divided in spring.