English Thyme

English Thyme is the standard broad-leaf form of common thyme, Thymus vulgaris, and the workhorse culinary thyme of most kitchen gardens. A low, woody, evergreen subshrub native to the Mediterranean, it grows 6 to 12 inches tall in a mounding habit with small, gray-green oval leaves on wiry stems. Its warm, savory, slightly minty and peppery flavor makes it a foundational herb for stocks, roasts, soups, stuffing, and bouquet garni, and it dries and stores especially well. English Thyme is hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9 and thrives in full sun and lean, sharply drained soil, tolerating heat and drought once established. It bears small pale lilac flowers in early summer that attract bees. It can be grown from seed but named plants are usually propagated from cuttings or division.