Crop guide
How to grow rosemary
How to grow rosemary means matching cited evergreen and container notes to your bed, keeping sources separate by geography. There is no single trick.
Growing guidance is general information. Timing, spacing, and care depend on cultivar, weather, soil, and local conditions. Check the sources and adjust the plan for your garden.
Steps (range, not a promise)
- 01Read cited evergreen notes — tender perennial and container notes stay source-specific.
- 02Match light and height notes to the sheet for your geography.
- 03Log the bed so next season is not a guess.
Rosemary plants in a home garden bed.
The season, on your ground
Save this bed — freeWhen to plantHarvestGarden pests
What the sources say — at a glance
One source per card. Facts are not averaged.
Illinois Extension (Illinois)
Evergreen shrub. Tender perennial. Containers if brought indoors.
Details and limits (3)
Types
Illinois Extension (Illinois): rosemary is a perennial evergreen shrub. Plants can grow to 4-6 feet tall with some varieties having a trailing or cascading habit. Foliage is dark green and needle-like. Identification.
Placement
Illinois Extension (Illinois): in the Midwest, rosemary often does not overwinter successfully and is treated as a tender perennial, bringing it indoors for the winter. If plants are to be brought indoors, plant them in containers for outdoor use and not in the ground. Establishment and container note.
Limit
Illinois herbs rosemary page. Identification and container notes only — not a start calendar.
Maryland Extension (Maryland)
Evergreen shrub. 5°F winter note. Full sun. 36–72 inches.
Details and limits (3)
Types
Maryland Extension (Maryland): rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a hardy evergreen shrub in areas where winter temperatures stay above 5°F. In the Northeast, this perennial should be moved indoors or to a protected location and kept as a container plant during winter. Identification and container note.
Sun
Maryland Extension (Maryland): prefers full sun. Grows to a height of between 36-72”. Older rosemary plants will have knobby growths called adventitious roots along the stem. This is normal and not a problem. Light and identification.
Limit
Maryland rosemary page. Identification, container, and light notes only — not a calendar.
Clemson HGIC (South Carolina)
Evergreen shrub. Needlelike leaves. Blue or white flowers.
Details and limits (2)
Types
Clemson HGIC (South Carolina): rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) is an evergreen shrub that comes in many forms from shrubs four feet tall or more to low-growing groundcovers. Typically gray-green or dark green needlelike leaves and blue or occasionally white flowers. Identification.
Limit
South Carolina combined herbs sheet. Rosemary identification only — not harvest.
Make it yours
Save the bed in the Field Book so next season is not a guess.
Sources differ
Verified suppliers only
No supplier on this page
When a partner is listed, it will be outbound and disclosed. Nothing to buy here. Fertilizer, soils, and pesticides stay off this slot.
What to record in the Field Book
Save the bed with the crop and the date. You may add a photo and notes. Compare entries you have recorded with each other — not with a diagnosis from this page. If you want an identification, bring the record to local Extension.
How we know — methodology. Ranges and assertions are cited per source, not blended.