French Tarragon

Question

I have bought French tarragon for 3 years straight and can’t get it to come back. I never bring it in at winter. What I was wondering is if you need one plant for it to spread or do you need more than one? It looks like when it grows it is just one long string. Do you water it during the winter when it dies out? If you can give me some good tips, I would appreciate it. When it gets real hot, I put it in the shade. Is that a good thing?

Answer 1

In your region, they should not have too much trouble coming back, especially with a generous layer of mulch in winter. You can, however, grow this plant indoors as well. You don’t water plants over winter, though those grown indoors may need watering once a month just to keep the pot from becoming overly dry. Placing the plant in the shade during hot weather is a good thing, though remember that potted plants require more watering than those planted in the ground (daily, sometimes twice, in temps over 85 F). These plants share similar growing requirements as regular tarragon, so these articles should help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/tarragon/growing-tarragon-in-the-herb-garden.htm , https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/tarragon/growing-tarragon-indoors.htm , https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/tarragon/growing-french-tarragon.htm Also, If you are trying to cover a large area with these plants, you will need more than one. To get you plant bushier, you may need to pinch it. This article will help with that: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/hgen/making-herbs-bigger-through-pinching-and-harvesting.htm