We try every year to start oregano from seed. Use different conditions, different soils, different seeds, and our germination rate over the years is 0.00%. This year we sprinkled about 10-20 seeds in every pot, and still nothing! What is going on?

-- Anonymous, April 27, 2001

Answers

David

I started wild margorum(lavender purple flowers) seed years back with no trouble,but don't bother anymore as it can be readily propagated vegetatively by layering. Greek oregano(white flowers) does not come true from seed, so I have a plant that I will also layer if it grows enough this year.

As a side note greek oregano varies considerably in flavor dependent on your climate.You may get it rather bland. I grow it anyway for my own use. Those green flakes in stuff can't help but be good for you.Nick sometimes disagrees tho, when I get too heavy handed with herbs.

Which do you think you have? I'll check it out in my propagation guide.Can't remember that far back!

-- Anonymous, April 27, 2001

Sharon, We have Greek Oregano seeds from Jungs. By not coming true do you mean that we can't save seeds? Hardly a problem if we can't even get them to grow!!!

-- Anonymous, April 27, 2001

You'll get very variable results.So no, don't bother seed saving for it.I'll send you a start off mine this fall.It's still pretty small,now.You can then get more vegetative starts off of it by covering a sprig with soil till it roots.I do this with lots of things.Lazy way.

Some companies sell seeds to all sorts of things,but some plants are pretty hard to get to germinate.Got some I'm working on now. Native Angelica,for one.No luck yet.Wild yam too. I'll keep waiting.Some are unbelievably slow.

I'll try to pull up germination guides I found and put up a link.I did it over on CS a while back but don't remember the thread,now.

-- Anonymous, April 27, 2001

Good gosh, I've got it seeding itself all over the place! I put in one little plant about 25 years ago, and it has spread with wild abandon all over the unused side yard. It IS easier to just buy a plant that is going perhaps. They tend to spread out horizontally along the ground, and then start sending down roots as they go to form a good sized mat. It is easy to sever some of these and stick them where you want. But I have found seedlings in far-flung areas that could only have gotten there by seeding. HOW, exactly, I am not sure. But it has formed a large area of not much but oregano plants, and since I wasn't doing anything with that area anyway and the bees and butterflies love it so, I've left it/defended it against lawn mowers who don't agree with me that it is a beneficial plant.

I wonder how it MAILS....

-- Anonymous, April 28, 2001

David- from Rodale's Encyclopedia Of Herbs "if you plant the oregano seed sold by many seed houses you end up with a fetching little plant with all the flavor of lawn grass"

Still Useful medicinally,but if you want flavor for cooking,get the cultivar(hirtum or O.heracleoticum) that is propagated vegetatively.The seeds from it will still revert to the more wild "Lawn grass " state,so continue propagating vegetatively.That's how you get true greek oregano.

The other that julie mentioned may have started out true greek oregano, but by reseeding, it's now reverted to wild margoram or wild oregano, and is very nice for the bees. I have it in my medicinal garden.And it does spread nicely. Flowers dry well, also.

Oh,and oregano needs light for germination,so don't cover.Comes up readily in 5-10 days.From same reference.

-- Anonymous, April 28, 2001

Sharon, thanks for the info. I posted more out of frustration than anything else. We've given up on the seeds and just bought more plants today. Just seems silly to start seeds avery year and buy plants every year too! We even overwintered one plant inside, looked great all winter, put it out in the spring and it died! We can't live without it, so will keep trying.

-- Anonymous, April 28, 2001

David - forgot to get back to you on this.Greek oregano is perennial,so you must be getting the tender marjoram plants.Tasty but not hardy. I went down and looked at mine and it is still too small,but check with me in the fall and it should grow enough by then. If we ever get rain,that is.

-- Anonymous, May 04, 2001