Herb ideas wanted

Howdy Folks. I've volunteered to provide herb plants to a local garden group that is going to build herb beds for a local nursing home. I'd like to offer not only herbs that are low-maintenance and nice to admire visually but also ones that offer a nice scent.
I have basil of course, and mexican marigold, I'm sure I have some calendula seeds still as well as other things. My question is what do you think would be some other good choices for these folks?

LAVENDER, SHOE'''After it blooms some nice sachets can easily be made for keepsakes,smell soooo goood''' Most pleasant too is lemon balm and while a warm day outside with a glass of Sweet Tea,just pinch some and add for extra flavor' Mints are always a hit,so many to enjoy but keep'm in a container' You already know that though,lol' HTH, Sis'

thanks SIS...I am a big fan of lemon balm. By the way, I found out two yrs ago something really cool about it! We know it is often used to make a "soothing tea" that will calm us. Someone did some research and found that just picking it and smelling it will give the same calming effects as you gets from drinking the tea! cool, eh? Some days I just wanna stick some leaves up my nose.
By the way,will lavender grow good the first yr?

Your very welcome'
This last year was a first for growing lavender for me' All my research said it was hard to grow,love a challenge,mine is alive and well,lol' May be beginners luck but am in love with it now' My cuttings I took didn't live though got busy and negletted them unfortunately' I grew Lavendula augustifolia(lady)just sprinkled the seeds and let nature do the rest Shoe,go for it' Hey,we're gardeners,everyone already thinks we're all nuts anyways,up the nose it goes,lol' Wanna really feel good? Get some alfalfa tablets at the herb store and make hot tea with some honey and lemon balm,WOW' Makes me feel 16 again,lol'

Shoe,

You weren't clear: are they going to use these herbs, or just admire their scent and sight?

Don't forget Sage, both for its smell and for its medicinal/culinary characteristics. Sage, of course, is one of those plants that release their aroma when touched, which makes it very appealing.

For visual impact (that is, pretty flowers), possibilities include Echinacea, feverfew, borage, love in the mist, chamomille, peppermint.....well, the list there is endless. And a matter of taste. For instance, I happen to think that comfrey is beautiful, whereas most people think it's on the plain side.

Sweet Annie is always nice; it looks good, and older folks, especially, admire its insect-repelling characteristic.

In my experience, lavender is a [deleted] to get started. But once it does, it lasts forever.

Shoe-

I grew lavender last year and I also found it very hard to grow from seed. Out of about 50- I got one...and I thought it was going to kill me to get it going (assuming I didn't kill it first!!) However, I had wonderful success with stem cuttings. I wound up with about 100 of them from just a couple of long stalks. Let me know if you need some starts- I have plenty to share.

I also found Sage extremely easy from seed.

Trish

Lavender grows really well here

Shoe

How about, Alchemila vulgaris not much scent but pretty, Meadowsweet or Dropwort (Fillipendula), Hyssop, Sweet Woodruff (Galium), Honeysuckle (Lonicera), Sweet Rocket (Hesperis), Dianthus, Monarda, Agastache, Marjoram, Nepeta and Viola odorata. Stachys byzantinus may not have much of a scent but the leaves feel great.

Wow, all great suggestions! I've grown quite of few of them also. I also remember a bit of a hard time getting lavender going from seeds but maybe I'll find some and try again (from what I remember from some book somewhere it was recommended to get it from cuttings cuz it was so much easier.)
Brook, I'm hoping those folks will do both, admire them as well as use them--either for teas, foods, crafts (like sachets as SIS mentioned above), etc.
Thanks everyone for the input! (Now I better see how much room they're gonna have to grow in~)

One last suggestion, Mexican oregano has very pretty flowers, has a nice herbal scent and can be used in soups, stews, sauces. Not as strong as the oregano you buy processed. If you need something for more permanent planting, I think you can't beat rosemary. I like to hang it in my pantry and hallway for the scent to drift through the house. A twig thrown into the fireplace is quite nice, too.

Mr Horseshoe,Sir;you have mail. List of all different kinds of herbs and their uses.

Many thanks coco! Finally rec'd it! (was offline for a few days).
good info!

Horseshoe......Rue is a wonderful herb. Overlooked often. The color of the leaves is beautiful...bluish. It is also used to repel the Japanese Beetle.

Horseshoe.....germander is also an often overlooked wonderful herb.....forms almost a bush.....great for a border plant.....has beautiful purple flowers.....very hardy.

hey shoe u got mail......[[[[nana]]]]]

and don't forget Chamomile and Rosemary,,,,,

Gotta' add my kudos for rosemary. WONDERFUL plant that's extremely versatile. Some things you can do with it/use it in:
Cooking
Bath or other sachets
Prostrate kinds are good at the edges of a raised beds where they can tumble over the sides.
Upright kinds are just great all 'round ~ you can let them become big bushes, train them into topiary shapes or just keep them trimmed into a hedge ~ trimmings root easily or you can use them on your chicken (to cook it, 'Shoe, not for perfume to turn the rooster's head).

Did you know that if you plant rosemary by your doorstep, it'll keep witches away? And if a rosemary bush thrives in the kitchen garden, so will the authority of the woman of the house. (My rosemary bush is big and healthy, but I have noticed DH eyeing it every time he has a chainsaw in his hand. ;-)

This message was edited Saturday, Mar 30th 1:41 PM

Wingnut, I like that! And, you know, my authority improved after I planted that little cutting several years ago. My cats are now all female, too. It must be working. I love the smell of the rosemary everywhere, so I hang it all over the house, steep it, roast it, nuke it, and in general inundate myself with it.