How to Select Licorice Plants

Licorice is an amazing plant. Licorice has been used for centuries for its sweet flavor and equally for its medicinal qualities. Gardeners are often more attracted to the fragrance of licorice. Fortunately that wonderful aroma is available in several easily grown garden plants. Here are simple ways to bring that luscious licorice aroma into the garden.

Instructions

1. Start with a licorice shrub. The various varieties have green to silver-grey evergreen foliage. They are drought-tolerant and some people say they are deer-resistant. Some licorice plants can be used in the garden as standing shrubs. Other varieties are ideal as mound-forming shrubs or can be planted in hanging containers as trailing plants. Use well-drained or sandy soil and plant in sun to light shade. Licorice plants come in a variety of leaf colors and shapes. The plants are native to arid lands so in cold climates treat as an annual or use as a container plant and replant in spring. The licorice plant can be irritating to skin and cause allergic reactions in some people. Handle with care until you know your tolerance for exposure to this plant.

2. 

   Plant fennel for a hardy perennial herb with feathery leaves and fine yellow flower clusters. The leaves and seeds have an anise or licorice flavor. In many parts of the world it is used as a vegetable in recipes. Fennel grows easily from seed. Give it rich soil, sun and water and watch fennel take over the garden. It can grow to four feet in height. In many parts of the world it is called a weed and can become a pesky and invasive plant.

3. 

   Use anise for a more delicate and beautiful flowering herb. This annual grows up to three feet tall. Plant from seed in fertile well-drained soil. Anise grows a tap root and does not transplant well. Plant seeds where the plant will mature. Anise smells like licorice and is used for licorice flavoring. Some people lightly roast anise seeds and chew them as a breath freshener. Herbal lore says that a few anise seeds taken with water will cure hiccups.

4. 

   Grow anise hyssop, often called licorice mint, for a perennial licorice-scented herb. This self-seeding herb is attractive to butterflies, bees and small birds like goldfinches. It is a hardy herb that grows up to four feet tall. This is an aggressive herb that will sow seeds rapidly and can crowd out smaller perennials. Pull the volunteer seedlings out to protect other plants. Allow only one or two of these prolific plants in your garden. The anise hyssop may die back to ground in winter and surprise the spring gardener by coming back strong in spring. Enjoy the lively licorice plants.