Epazote???

[Marion Shaw]

I found a recipe in one of my Mexican cookbooks that called for Epazote. I just found some at Summerwinds nusery and would like any input on the care and feeding of it.

[Jeff Reich and Farraday Newsome]

I grew and dried some epazote for the first time this past late summer/fall. It grew well. The original plant looked pretty bad after the successive nights of frost though, but now it is leafing out and I think it may be okay! Anyway tonight I made vegetable enchiladas (with homegrown tomatoes, also homegrown greens, onions and jalapenos plus store-bought cheese & dried kidney beans that I cooked in the pressure cooker) and added some of the dried epazote in with the other herbs and spices. It smelled great! The strong smell of epazote is a wonderful flavor note added in a SMALL amount in a little oil and gently sauteed with other the spices  (cumin, red pepper,garlic, etc) in making the sauce. Dinner is in the oven now as I type, and I fully expect it to be delicious!

[Lyn Bilodeau]

In my garden, it's something like:

- plant one and only one small Epazote
- water just enough to get it established
- completely neglect it through the remainder of the summer
- allow to go to seed at the end of the season
- count on having epazote in random places in your design forevermore :)

Sort of like my approach to cilantro, now that I think of it . . .

[Marion Shaw]

love it. I am starting some cilantro right now. I will be doing more herbs as soon as i make the starter pots. got peas, chard and onions in yesterday. lettuce in a couple weeks.

[Marion Shaw]

That will work for me. I'll wait till they start to droop before watering. I wondered since they are native plants. I can get a little water happy. It's therapy for me.

[Caroline Van Slyke]

Hi...We have actually been growing epazote for years. My mother in law is from Oaxaca and they use it a lot in their cooking. Epazote is a warm season herb. It starts appearing in March and goes through fall. I then harvest bunches and dry them to use in the winter. Epazote is like a weed, consistently reseeding its self year after year. So stay on top of that or it will take over your garden. I leave it in one square foot area and everywhere else it comes up, I pull it, and I alway have enough for us, my mother in law and the lawn guys. Epazote also is great for keeping away pests and insects, they do not like the smell, so it is a great companion plant for tomatoes. Hope this helps!

[Marion Shaw]

Thanks. So it will take full sun even here? How about water and soil? Can I go native with it or should I put it in some "good" dirt?

[Caroline Van Slyke]

I have mine in full sun and it loves it. I just mulch it down in the spring and fall like I do all the other plants. It does better without fertilzer but it will need some water. Water it the same as you would basil and you should be good. We use it in black beans and it really works and the flavor it imparts is great. When my daughter was a baby my mother in law would make a tea for her out of it for colic and it seemed to settle her, but I have never used it for an upset stomach but my MIL swears by it. It definitely has a strong odor, kind of medicinal.

[Marion Shaw]

I will try it. Do they separate easily? I have multiples in the pots I bought. I would like to spreed them out but don't want to loose any.

[Caroline Van Slyke]

This plant is resilent! I bet you'll be fine. If not, I will dig one out of my garden for you.

[Marion Shaw]

I love this group. Thanks for the offer. I will try separating them and let you know how it goes.