Last edited by CloCkWeRX on November 11, 2026. View history
Tarragon
Tarragon
How to sow tarragon: Propagate with cuttings or division, seeds are generally sterile
Sun requirement for tarragon: Plant in Full Sun
French Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus var. sativa) is a deciduous perennial herb in the Daisy (Asteraceae) family cultivated for culinary use. It's leaves have a pungent anise flavor and will make the mouth feel numb. Fresh leaves are preferred for culinary use. It's leaves can also be harvested in mid-summer and dried. Tarragon is commonly used to season meat, egg, poultry, and seafood dishes, and added to salad dressings, marinades, and sauces. The plant requires well-drained soil and is susceptible to root rot in wet conditions. It is drought tolerant. French Tarragon seldom flowers, and any seeds it might produce are sterile, so it must be propagated through cuttings. French Tarragon can also sometimes be confused with Russian Tarragon (A. dracunculoides L.), which is a hardier, larger plant that is not as desirable for culinary use and becomes less flavorful as it matures. Wild Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) produces viable seed. However, because it is a polymorphic species, the flavor and aroma of it's leaves is variable, making it poorly suited for culinary use. Wild Tarragon has a long history of medicinal use.
- 12
- plantings
- 1
- harvest
- 2
- seed packets
Tarragon facts
Lifespan
Height × spread
90cm × 60cmRow Spacing
45cmGrown for
leaf harvested 1 timeCrop cycle
Optimal light
What are growing degree days?
A plant grows with warmth, not with days. A growing degree day is one day's worth of useful warmth: how many degrees the day's average temperature is above the lowest temperature the crop grows at. Add them up from planting and you know how far along the crop is, whatever the calendar says.
Say that lowest temperature is 10°C. A day averaging 17°C gives 7 growing degree days. A day averaging 8°C gives none, as it is too cold for the crop to grow. That is why the same lettuce takes about 50 days in a summer and 90 in an autumn: it needs the same total warmth either way.
For tarragon, the FAO EcoCrop database gives a lowest growing temperature of 4°C and a shortest growing cycle of 120 days at its best temperature, about 1560 growing degree days to a first harvest.
Where you've told us where your garden is, we use this and the weather there to predict when your tarragon will be ready to harvest. We don't use it for how long a plant lives or when it finishes: we go by what members have logged for that.
Growing tarragon
- Plant a French tarragon cutting or division at planting out
- Water the young plant at planting out every week
- Pick the shoot tips 8 weeks after planting out every 2 weeks
- Cut back in autumn at first harvest
- Divide the clump 3 months after first harvest
How members grow tarragon
Sunniness
Planted from
Harvested for
Photos
Photos
Tarragon crops
Tarragon plantings
Tarragon harvests
Video
Where tarragon grow
Only plantings by members who have set their locations are shown.
What people are saying about tarragon
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Who's planted tarragon
- shiny Fence garden · Wellington, NZ
- LeighS Garden · Melbourne Victoria...
- dlancellotti Garden - raised bed
- black_hound Balcony boxes and planters · Southeast...
- krh Herb Barrel · hillsboro, or
Tarragon harvests
-
shiny harvested not specified.
over 8 years ago
shiny harvested not specified.
Find tarragon seeds
View all tarragon seeds
- Purchase seeds via Ebay
- Sign in or sign up to list your seeds to trade.
Time to harvest
If sown now, expect a first harvest in about 120 to 210 days.
From the growing cycle in the FAO EcoCrop database, which is the same wherever it is grown.
Ecological requirements
Data from the FAO EcoCrop database for Artemisia dracunculus L.
| Family / Taxonomy | Magnoliopsida Asteridae Asterales Compositae |
|---|---|
| Killing temperature | growth: -5 °C, rest: -15 °C |
| Life form | herb |
| Life span | perennial |
| Habit | erect |
| Optimal soil depth | shallow (20-50 cm) |
| Optimal soil texture | medium, light |
| Optimal soil fertility | high |
| Optimal soil drainage | well (dry spells) |
| Optimal soil salinity | low (<4 dS/m) |
| Photoperiod | long day (>14 hours) |
Learn more about tarragon
Resources outside Growstuff.
