Build a generous aromatic border with six kitchen herbs, evergreen structure, a low thyme carpet and a flowering edge. RHS recommends growing oregano with thyme and sage, and rosemary with other sun-loving woody herbs. The wider selection here applies documented site requirements and growth habits to a practical garden layout. Leave some flowers for insects while keeping the herbs you pick most within easy reach.
Choose a plant to explore its role, growing space and sources. Focus on one planting area or explore the whole selection.
Lines connect plants to their planned planting area. Colours and icons show the primary plant layer. This is a schematic; use the growing notes to set spacing.
Choose any plant in the diagram to see its role, placement and supporting sources.
Temperate Northwest Europe; rosemary needs a sheltered position and locally suitable winter protection.
Allow roughly 12–18 m² as an initial design allowance for the full selection, including access and a small separate flowering patch. Confirm each plant's mature spread before setting quantities: rosemary alone can occupy a broad corner. Arrange the three areas along the same sunny aspect. The flowering edge gives vigorous yarrow and catnip room away from the small culinary plants.
Each plant has a place in the design. Explore its role, growing needs and the sources behind the selection.
Low culinary patches and a creeping thyme edge, with clear light and access from the path.
Distinct bushes with air and growing room; the warmest sheltered corner belongs to rosemary.
An adjacent, separately maintained patch for taller, spreading flowers and insect visitors.
Thymus vulgaris
Compact culinary thyme
Planting area: Sunny picking edge
Common thyme supplies aromatic leaves from a small woody bush. It suits a warm, sunny position and light soil that drains well.
Where it fits Plant in its own accessible patch at the front, beyond the mature reach of sage and lavender. Keep leafy mulch off its crown.
Origanum vulgare
Culinary leaves and summer flowers
Planting area: Sunny picking edge
Oregano shares thyme and sage's growing conditions. RHS notes that its flowers attract bees and butterflies.
Where it fits Give its expanding clump a separate part of the picking edge. Keep some stems uncut for flowers and harvest from the rest.
Salvia officinalis
Evergreen culinary bush
Planting area: Woody herb structure
Sage gives regular leaf harvests and a persistent woody framework. Established plants tolerate dry weather, but poorly drained winter soil is a problem.
Where it fits Leave space around the mature bush at the back or end of the bed. Keep it reachable without stepping over the smaller herbs.
Lavandula angustifolia
Aromatic shrub and bee flowers
Planting area: Woody herb structure
English lavender brings fragrant summer flowers visited by pollinating insects. It needs full sun and particularly good drainage.
Where it fits Position as a distinct bush beside the woody herbs, allowing the nursery's full mature width. Keep this area out of low, winter-wet ground.
Rosmarinus officinalis
Tall evergreen culinary structure
Planting area: Woody herb structure
Rosemary provides aromatic sprigs and evergreen structure. RHS groups it with sage, thyme and hyssop for their shared sun and drainage needs.
Where it fits Reserve a warm, sheltered end position with room for a large bush. In cold locations, use a separate movable container and plan winter protection.
Satureja montana
Peppery perennial seasoning
Planting area: Sunny picking edge
Winter savory is a perennial herb whose leaves can season cooked dishes. It prefers sun, draining soil and dry to moderate moisture.
Where it fits Set a small, labelled clump beside common thyme, with open space around it so neighbouring oregano cannot cover it.
Hyssopus officinalis
Flowering culinary sub-shrub
Planting area: Woody herb structure
Hyssop is an aromatic culinary herb with blue summer flower spikes. RHS recommends fertile, draining, neutral to alkaline ground in sun.
Where it fits Use a separate patch between the taller woody bushes and the low edge, allowing up to about 1 m of eventual spread.
Thymus serpyllum
Low flowering ground cover
Planting area: Sunny picking edge
Creeping thyme forms a low mat on sunny, gritty or sandy ground, with flowers visited by bees and butterflies. It is included here for ground cover.
Where it fits Give it a small front strip beside stones or the path. Keep it outside woody plant crowns and trim the boundary as it spreads.
Achillea millefolium
Pollinator flowers
Planting area: Managed flowering edge
Yarrow flowers attract pollinators and the plant tolerates dry, draining soil in sun. It spreads through underground stems and seed.
Where it fits Keep it in the separate flowering patch with a clear maintenance boundary. Lift encroaching growth and remove spent heads before seed forms.
Nepeta cataria
Tall aromatic flowering clump
Planting area: Managed flowering edge
Catnip contributes loose, aromatic growth and summer-to-autumn flowers in sun and draining soil. Its leaves attract cats.
Where it fits Allow its own broad clump in the flowering patch, clear of the thyme carpet and regular picking route. Protect young plants if cats flatten them.
Mark full shrub footprints before fitting the smaller patches around them. A small nursery pot gives little indication of the mature rosemary, lavender or hyssop.
Put the lowest plants on the sunny side. Leave access between the picking edge and the woody bushes, and keep the separate flowering patch within reach for spread control.
Use repeated groups only after the mature spaces fit. The saved selection starts with one of each species; a longer border can use more thyme, oregano or savory without adding new species.
On heavy ground, plan well-drained raised growing areas or individual generous pots. Keep all drainage outlets clear through winter.
Watch the chosen site through a sunny day and after rain. Mark the warmest sheltered position and check where water collects in winter.
Draw the three areas and compare the plant profiles with the final sizes on nursery labels. Keep yarrow and catnip in their dedicated edge.
Plant in spring to early summer as conditions warm. Water each new plant in, and label common thyme separately from the creeping ground-cover thyme.
Set a simple picking routine: harvest culinary herbs lightly while they establish, and leave selected oregano, savory and hyssop shoots to flower.
These references support the growing conditions and plant roles described in this guide. The suggested layout is a design interpretation to adapt to your site.
Shared growing conditions with thyme and sage, culinary harvest and flowers visited by bees and butterflies.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Common thyme's culinary use, woody habit, sunny site, drainage and trimming.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Culinary sage harvests, woody growth, drought tolerance and winter drainage.
Reviewed 2026-09-06English lavender, sun and drainage requirements, pollinator flowers, planting and annual pruning.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Culinary use, grouping with sun-loving herbs, mature structure, drainage, containers and winter protection.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Perennial habit, culinary leaf use, sunlight, drainage and moderate to dry soil moisture.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Culinary classification, summer flowering, sun, soil pH and mature spread.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Low spreading ground cover, sun and drainage needs, flower visitors and management of growth.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Flower visitors, dry-site tolerance and vigorous spread by underground stems and seed.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Clump size, sun, freely draining soil, aromatic leaves and flowering season.
Reviewed 2026-09-06Catmint cultivation and the risk of cats flattening plants.
Reviewed 2026-09-06