Thyme/Oregano Perennials

[steelnut]

I've always been told that thyme is not a perennial and that oregano is. And that's how my herb garden has always worked until this year.

My thyme came back and the oregano died?

 

[Petee]

There are different varieties of oregano and thyme, some are perennial in one area and not in others.  Sometimes growing conditions can affect whether they survive or not, particularly moisture.

[lavender]

Both are perennials. An annual never comes back the second year. It may reseed but the  original plant is only capable of surviving for one year.  Whether it makes it though the winter does not make it an annual or perennial. It only makes it hardy or not hardy in your zone. The only oregano that never made it through the winter for me is a decorative one called 'Kent Beauty'. On the other hand thyme rarely lasts long for me. I suspect that this is because my soil is heavy clay and thyme is not happy in it. It likes sandy soil. You may be having the same problem with thyme. I do not believe that the soil actually froze last year or if it did it froze and thawed. This may be what killed off your oregano and preserved your thyme.

[Petee]

Perennial is a slightly vague term when dealing with plants, for example, a tomato is a perennial but it does not grow as a perennial in colder climates.  Here it is grown as an annual,

 

Your particular variety of thyme and oregano may be perennial in a warm dry year for many years but may die annually in a cold wet one.

[lavender]

If it is  a perennial that is not hardy in a particular zone it is a non-hardy or tender perennial or a perennial used as an annual. How a plant behaves in a particular zone does not define whether it is an annual or a perennial; its biology defines that.  Perennials are capable of living through more than one season, annuals are biologically incapable of doing so. They set seed and die. Biennials germinate and grow the first season and flower the second season. True biennials will die after they set seed. There is some blurring of lines with biennials and short lived perennials but an annual is an annual and a perennial a perennial. It is best to understand the terms as they are properly defined so you know what you are growing and what to expect from from your plants.

[steelnut]

Last years herb garden was the first year in a raised bed off the patio that hubby make for me. I just couldn't believe that the thyme came back, it was a first for me.  

[lavender]

Better drainage in the raised bed. The only time I got thyme to survive through the winter is when I planted in in a wall. The same with hens and chickens. They come through the winter growing on the top of the wall but die in the ground. You just never know with plants.

I grew a rosemary plant outside in a ceramic pot two years ago. I pulled it from the pot and took it into the greenhouse for the winter. It didn't do too badly and made it through the winter with some new growth. Put it back in the ceramic pot outside for the summer and it got so big that I decided to just leave it in the big pot and haul the whole thing  inside for its second winter.  Better than disturbing the roots on a large plant....right? Wrong, it promptly died. No signs or symptoms, it just dried up and died. I'm guessing that rosemary (or at least some of them)  is just a short lived perennial.