Here & There

Enlarge Image Image Gallery This is just one of Richters’ many growing fields.

“We live and breathe herbs here.”

That’s what they say at Richters Herbs, an internationally known herb nursery and mail-order business in the little town of Goodwood, just outside Toronto, Ontario.

For herb lovers, a visit to Richters is like being a kid in a candy store. Greenhouses are open year-round—even in the snowy Canadian winter—and crammed with a tantalizing selection of plants. Looking for lemongrass? No problem. Want to expand your echinacea collection? Richters has half a dozen kinds to choose from. Revel in the endless rows of scented geraniums or splurge on a baby bo tree (Ficus religiosa), a junior version of the one that sheltered Buddha during his meditations. An adjoining gift shop features books, pots, stationery, and seeds—enough to satisfy the most ardent herb-o-phile.

If you’re lucky, you might be able to attend one of the many free seminars or special events held onsite, such as soap-making or landscaping with herbs.

The company boasts more than 900 herbs—plants or seeds—for sale. American gardeners aren’t left out, either. “All our plants are pre-approved for entry to the U.S.,” says Conrad Richter, vice president in charge of this family-owned business. In fact, he adds, “We will give it a try to ship anywhere in the world.”

New varieties every year

There’s always something new to drool over at Richters. About a dozen new types of herbs are introduced each year. Some, like this year’s ‘Magical Michael’ basil, a 2002 All-America Winner, are widely known. Others are special finds exclusive to Richters.

Orange Spice thyme (a trademarked name), started out as a sport—a chance variation—in the nursery’s own fields. Other exclusives come from private gardens. “Because of the profile we have, people submit things to us,” says Richter. Homegrown discoveries include the trademarked Profusion chives and Profusion sorrel. Both are seedless varieties that stay tender and delicious throughout the growing season.

Richters takes a satisfyingly broad view of herbs. Traditional culinary herbs are the main focus, but their stock includes plants with an herbal heritage that are mainly beautiful or unusual. Boxwood, flax, the true tea plant (Camellia sinensis), and a fascinating collection of marigolds (Tagetes) turn up on their shelves and in their catalog.