Extending Useful Life of Fernleaf Dill
Answered by: Inge Poot
Question from: Jane McAllister
Posted on: May 13, 2004

Not a cooking question, but one on how to keep my fernleaf dill growing in my huge herb pot, all summer? I do trim it back from the main stalk, which sends usable side shoots out, but I seem to only be able to do this up to a point, and then, being an annual, it seems to poop out before the season is over. Can I keep it going longer, or is it just the nature of the plant to die off earlier than all the other herbs in my pots?

Being an annual, dill does not invest much energy in producing an extensive root system. As a result, if it is cut down repeatedly too heavily, it will soon run out of energy -- having stored none. Therefore cut it sparingly. Never harvest more than a third of the present growth and don’t do it too often. Once a month is quite often enough. This will mean that if you use dill a lot, that you need more plants to harvest from.

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