“A garden of purple is always in bloom!”
This adage, common among gardeners, points to the wide range of plants that have purple flowers.
If you incorporate a selection of these into your garden, it’s likely that their combined flowering season will extend across quite a large swathe of the year.
Adding herbs to your garden brings so much to the space.
Not only do you give yourself a ready supply of tasty herbs to liven up your cooking, but you tap into a whole new seam of flowering potential.
Here are sixteen contenders, all of which will look stunning in your garden regardless of the requirement for kitchen condiments –
1) Lavender
- BOTANICAL NAME: LAVANDULA
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Sheltered; Full Sun; Well-Drained Soil
- RHS AWARD OF GARDEN MERIT
Probably the first purple herb that comes to mind is lavender.
This distinct and varied family of herbs all feature long stalks tipped with purple (or sometimes white or pink) sprigs.
Rub your fingers on a sprig and you’ll get a waft of their famous scent: one you can find in all manner of essential oils, toiletries, and even recipes.
Lavender grows naturally in expansive bushes, often replete with bees going about their pollen-related business.
Bushes naturally exude the captivating scent, making them a lovely addition to any outdoor space.
Lavender also grows well in containers: great if you want to prevent it from getting too unruly.
2) Rosemary
- BOTANICAL NAME: Salvia rosmarinus
- HARDINESS RATING: H4
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SPRING / SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Full Sun; Most Soils
This is a good example of a herb that most of us never really see in bloom.
If you pick up a packet of rosemary from the shelf at your local supermarket, it’ll just be a few sprigs of dark green leaves.
Catch it in the right season growing in the wild, though, and you’ll find a dazzling array of purple flowers vying for your attention.
3) Catnip
- BOTANICAL NAME: Nepeta cataria
- HARDINESS RATING: H7
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER / AUTUMN
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Exposed Or Sheltered; Full Sun; Well-Drained Soil
If you have a cat (or if you are one, although this seems unlikely), then you should definitely try growing catnip if you have the space.
This member of the mint family has the fascinating effect of being completely irresistible to cats.
Some take a sniff and collapse into a puddle of cuteness and fluff, while others enter into a psychedelic new headspace for a little while, writhing about the place with dilated pupils. [source]
However your cat responds to this plant, it’s a nice experience to share together.
And what’s more, the gentle purple flowers will look fantastic in your garden, whether alone or nestled up against other purple herbs.
4) Chives
- BOTANICAL NAME: Allium schoenoprasum
- HARDINESS RATING: H6
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Any
The first time I saw purple flowers on chives was by accident.
I left my chive plant unattended for a while, and then came back to little pink-purple orbs balanced delicately on the top of each strand.
The flowers are not only visually intriguing, but they’re also edible.
Pick one off and plop it onto a salad or any other dish where a garnish tasting faintly of onions will contribute, and you’re good to go.
5) Sage
- BOTANICAL NAME: Salvia officinalis
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Sheltered; Full Sun Or Part Shade; Moist, Well-Drained Soil
No dish of lamb is complete without a sprig of sage, and in fact this herb lends itself so well to a selection of hearty, warming winter foods that we almost insist that any gardener with space should grow it.
Each summer your sage will erupt into a lively purple bloom, and it’s a real treat to behold.
6) Anise hyssop
- BOTANICAL NAME: Agastache foeniculum (Pursh) Kuntze
- HARDINESS RATING: H3
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER / AUTUMN
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Full Sun; Well-Drained Soil
With this herb, we’re entering the realm of herbs that most people may not be overly familiar with. And that’s alright!
It’s a good opportunity to learn what’s available in addition to the regular contenders we see in the supermarket herb section.
Anise hyssop looks a little like lavender to the untrained eye. It boasts purple sprigs atop long stalks and grows in dense bushes.
The scent and flavour are subtly different though: expect something a little like liquorice (hence the name), and ideal for using as garnishes or working through recipes.
7) Oregano
- BOTANICAL NAME: Origanum vulgare
- HARDINESS RATING: H6
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER / AUTUMN
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Any
This herb packs a very strong flavour punch, and is a common feature in Italian cooking.
Often you’ll find dried oregano in herb mixes on the table in pizza restaurants, but the fresh leaf also makes a great addition to cooking.
Oregano also boasts purple flowers, as you may have expected when you found it in this list.
Pinky-purple petals erupt forth from darker purple, almost red bases, giving this herb a real stunning colour profile.
8) Thyme
- BOTANICAL NAME: Thymus vulgaris
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Full Sun; Well-Drained Soil
We’ve written elsewhere on this site about the vast number of pun opportunities presented by thyme.
On the off chance that you’ve read one of those articles, we’ll spare you the onslaught of dad jokes here, and will suffice to say that thyme is another herb commonly found in supermarket which, in the wild, sports attractive purple flowers.
If you’re trying to identify a herb with purple flowers, or you’re looking for purple-flowered herbs to grow in your very own herb garden, we definitely recommend taking the thyme to familiarise yourself with this one.
9) Purple Coneflower
- BOTANICAL NAME: Echinacea purpurea
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER / AUTUMN
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Well-Drained Soil; Full Sun
Echinacea has a long and proud history in traditional cultures.
It also has purple flowers, too, making it a suitable entrant for this list.
While some of the other herbs here have small and dainty flowers, echinacea’s bloom is big and bold.
The centre of the flower is surrounded by big oval-shaped pedals that flirt with pink and purple in equal measure.
10) Blue False Indigo
- BOTANICAL NAME: Baptisia australis
- HARDINESS RATING: H7
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Exposed; Full Sun; Well-Drained Soil
- RHS AWARD OF GARDEN MERIT
11) Sweet Basil
- BOTANICAL NAME: Ocimum basilicum
- HARDINESS RATING: H1C
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Sheltered; Full Sun; Well-Drained Soil
12) Spearmint
- BOTANICAL NAME: Mentha spicata
- HARDINESS RATING: H7
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: PART SHADE; POORLY DRAINED SOIL
13) Foxley
- BOTANICAL NAME: Thymus pulegioides ‘Foxley’
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SPRING / SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Full Sun; Most Soils
14) Bergamot
- BOTANICAL NAME: Monarda citriodora
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Any Sunlight Or Exposure; Moist, Well-Draining Soil
15) Pennyroyal
- BOTANICAL NAME: Mentha pulegium
- HARDINESS RATING: H7
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Any Sunlight Or Exposure; Moist, Poorly Drained Soil
16) Coriander
- BOTANICAL NAME: Coriandrum sativum
- HARDINESS RATING: H5
- FLOWERING SEASON(S): SUMMER
- IDEAL CONDITIONS: Any
When growing herbs take care to familiarise yourself with the growing requirements of each.
While an untended (or even forgotten) herb box will hold its own for a little while, they’ll definitely do a lot better with the TLC that any plant deserves.
