On Mon, 8 Mar 2010 08:03:10 -0800 (PST), PickyJaz >
wrote:

>On Mar 8, 7:33*am, "Steve B" > wrote:
>Snip...
>> This year, I believe I shall make a raised plot for that and other herbs.
>Be careful where you plant it because it will take over. Do know that
>Rosemary does make a very fast growing ground cover and seems to
>thrive forever. At least it does here in my California High Desert.
>A landscaping friend of mine planted Rosemary in an already raised bed
>all the way around the corner of a parking lot bordering a small
>shopping center here. Within less than six months the plants had
>spread out and grown to over three feet tall, near to completely
>blocking the center's store fronts from traffic view. A suggestion
>for growing it where you don't want it to take over is to pot it for
>containment.
>...Picky

Be aware there are two different cultivars of rosemary. One of these
grows as an erect plant, which is desirable. The other ("prostrata"),
stays short and spreading, both in stem and root. Stay with something
like the erect Tuscan Blue variety and you will be OK. The ones they
sell as Xmas bonsai are OK, but may not be of the best culinary
flavor. I grow maybe 3 or 4 different varieties and have not had the
spreading problem since I dug up my prostrate variety. They are frost
resistant, but not freeze proof. Container planting is OK, but when
they get to be a yard tall, the size of the pot may be a problem when
you try to move it. Rosemary likes heat, so if you plant it in a
sunny location which is protected from icy winds, simply covering it
with a polyethylene sheet may be enough to prevent it from freezing.

HTH

Alex