HERB - Sun & heat resistant chamomile

[Gaylin Walli]

'wolf wrote asking for sun and heat resistant plants:
>after this hell-summer have a major sun-blasted area i want to turn into
>something else besides the less than desirable opportunistic grass that is
>invading ... so, any recommendations for good sun & drought resistent
>plantings that would be useful - herbs, vegitables, ....

Historically, low-growing chamomile lawns were planted for climates
with not enough water and hotter than England temperatures (not that
that's all that difficult). The plant you want is Anthemis nobilis,
true common chamomile, not german chamomile (which I think is Matricaria
chamomilla, though I may be remembering incorrectly).

Low growing chamomile can easily be mowed by a non-electric mower
and certainly won't be hurt by people walking all over it. It was
often planted in garden walkways as well as lawns because the smell
of the bruised plant was so agreable.

In Spain, the culture responsible for introducing the plant to
England (Scotland, Ireland), people call the plant Manzanilla,
meaning "a little apple." The Spanish have used the plant for
long time to flavour some of their famous sherries. If I
remember rightly, the Spaniards may also have been responsible
for the companion planting discovery that a Chamomile plant will
revive nearly any other sickly plant if planted nearby (I can't
seem to find any references to this in my notes, though).

As for what you can do with the plant....well, there are a
bunch of different uses you might be interested in (assuming
you're not mildly allergic, like I am). If you're interested,
I'd be happy to list them, but the list is pretty long. :)

Jasmine

jasmine at infoengine.com or g.walli at infoengine.com

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