Herb
Dill
Anethum graveolens · Apiaceae
Also called: Dillweed
Dill (Anethum graveolens) is a moderate-water herb well suited to Tucson and the low desert. It's a fast-growing herb. Expect yellow blooms spring.
Dill at a glance
- Water use
- Moderate (established)
- Sun
- Full sun in the cool season; afternoon shade helps extend the harvest as spring warms in Tucson.
- Mature size
- 2-4 ft tall, 1-2 ft wide (feathery upright annual).
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Bloom
- Yellow, Spring (yellow umbel flowers) as plants bolt; seeds follow.
- Cold hardiness
- Cool-season annual; frost-tolerant when young but tender to hard freezes. Bolts quickly and declines once daytime temperatures climb into the 90s, so it does not survive Tucson summers.
- Soil
- Loose, well-drained soil amended with compost; tolerates Tucson's alkaline soil; dislikes being transplanted (long taproot), so direct-sow.
- Native range
- Mediterranean region and western Asia; not native to the Sonoran Desert
- Best used as
- Culinary herb (leaves and seed for pickling, fish, sauces), Pollinator and beneficial-insect plant, Butterfly host plant, Container herb
- Wildlife
- Larval host plant for black swallowtail butterflies; flowers attract bees, hoverflies, and beneficial predatory insects.
- Toxicity
- Non-toxic and edible for humans and generally safe; large medicinal quantities not advised in pregnancy. Considered safe around pets.
How to grow Dill in Tucson & the low desert
Watering
Keep soil evenly moist, especially during germination and active leafy growth; water 2-3x/week in mild weather, more in containers. Avoid letting it dry out, which hastens bolting.
Fertilizer & nutrients
Light feeder; incorporate compost at planting and apply a light dose of balanced or nitrogen fertilizer (e.g., fish emulsion) once or twice during growth. Avoid over-fertilizing, which weakens flavor.
Pruning & care
Pinch growing tips to encourage bushier foliage and delay flowering; harvest leaves regularly. Let some plants flower to harvest seed and to feed pollinators.
Notes
In Tucson, grow dill in the COOL SEASON: direct-sow seed September-October (fall) and again January-February for spring; succession-sow every few weeks for continuous leaf harvest. Direct-sow because the taproot resents transplanting. Provide full sun in winter and afternoon shade as spring heats up; plants bolt fast once it gets hot. Reseeds readily.
Sources: University of Arizona Cooperative Extension; Pima County Master Gardeners; Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum