Rosemary is not growing into a dense bush.

[bdragule]

Hi everyone, first of all, I want to state that I'm a complete newbie with gardening right now, so take it slow please.

We planted this rosemary plant about 3 years ago, and while it's grown quite a bit, it's grown into tall, gangly branches that are thick with large leaves (Fig. 1). What we'd like to have is a rosemary bush that is dense and shapeable, with more delicate leaves and stems suitable for cooking (Fig. 2).

Are we just using the wrong species? What should I be looking for? Is there anything I should be doing while the plant is growing to make it split off into more stems, thereby making it more dense?

Thanks folks!

[Demosouthpaw]

Hi everyone, first of all, I want to state that I'm a complete newbie with gardening right now, so take it slow please.

We planted this rosemary plant about 3 years ago, and while it's grown quite a bit, it's grown into tall, gangly branches that are thick with large leaves (Fig. 1). What we'd like to have is a rosemary bush that is dense and shapeable, with more delicate leaves and stems suitable for cooking (Fig. 2).

Are we just using the wrong species? What should I be looking for? Is there anything I should be doing while the plant is growing to make it split off into more stems, thereby making it more dense?

Thanks folks!

Hey buddy,

I grow indoors using grow lights. However I recently came upon a pretty interesting discovery. I kept a couple rosemary plants (grown from seeds about two months ago) under my grow lights and the others on my windowsill. What I discovered was the ones under the grow lights are growing shorter more full, the windowsill are much taller by far, mind you these plants were all grown from seeds at the same time the only difference seems to be the amount of light they get. My grow light rosemaries get more light closer, my guess is they don't have to grow taller on search of better lighting. The windowsill guys are the opposite. Not sure if this helps or not, but I thought it was interesting to share. Good luck growing!
-Jonathan

[imafan26]

Most plants in full sun will grow shorter than plants grown in less light. Rosemary will respond well to shearing. It is not the fastest growing plant so it is best to shear it at the right time and gradually shape it. I have a rosemary that I use for my living Christmas tree. Do not give rosemary too much water, it will become more tree like with thicker stems and usually smaller leaves.

Marlingardener gave you good advice, it is best to shape the rosemary slowly by not cutting off more than a third of the branches at a time.

The sprigs make good skewers for shrimp and meat. My favorite way to use the sprigs is to throw them onto the coals (yes, I use a charcoal grill), when I am grilling chicken or shrimp and put the cover on. Fresh rosemary will smoke not burn and impart a wonderfull rosemary flavor without the bitterness you get when you end up biting into a piece of charred rosemary.