Keeping Lemon Verbena Plants Alive in Winter

Should lemon verbena plants turn up at end-of-season nursery sales, give serious thought to buying one.

A deciduous woody shrub (it sheds its leaves seasonally), lemon verbena is native to Central America. It doesn’t like cold winters, and must be brought inside or bought new each spring. Even if it can’t be coaxed through the winter, having the intense, sweet lemony leaves on hand for cooking or baking during the autumn is worth the price.

Botanically known as Aloysia triphylla (or sometimes Lippia citriodora), lemon verbena is wonderful in savory as well as sweet dishes. The finely minced leaves make a delightful addition to poultry stuffing, fish marinades and salad dressings, and are delicious mixed with rice and vegetables. The leaves also work well in fresh fruit salads, and are a perfect accompaniment in iced and hot teas.

Most of all, lemon verbena is the queen of dessert herbs, and brings magic to cakes, cookies, puddings and ice cream recipes. Try adding a few tablespoons of finely minced fresh lemon verbena leaves (or a few teaspoons of powdered dry lemon verbena) to a favorite pound cake or rice pudding.

Lemon verbena is also popular, especially in Europe, for cosmetic uses such as soap, bath products and perfume.

Some hints for overwintering the plant:

• Lemon verbena doesn’t like hot, dry inside air, which makes it a magnet for insect pests such as whitefly.
• A cool, brightly lit north-east location is best indoors.
• Don’t throw it away if it drops its leaves.The plants usually drop their leaves in winter (remember, they are deciduous) and it’s hard to tell if they’re still alive.
• Water lemon verbena sparingly during its winter rest.
• In early spring, prune it back and start misting its branches- the reward should be new green shoots that indicate the plant is waking up.
• If all else fails, the plant may green up once it’s set outside in mid-spring (bring it inside if a late frost is predicted).

It’s getting easier to find lemon verbena plants at nurseries or by mail order so it may be less trouble to simply buy new plants each spring. Lemon verbena grows quickly outside once planted in the garden after the last frost, and one or two plants should yield more than enough for a household’s cooking and crafting needs until the end of the growing season.

Nonetheless, if you find it on sale in autumn, buy it. Lemon verbena for a little while is better than none at all.