As far as Herbals go: Lavender, roses, Vitex and Nepeta

Here in South Carolina my favorites are Rosemary and Oregano. I grow both in the ground and they require no care, just plenty of full sun. Oregano can take over though so don't put that one in the ground unless you really like it.

I love Culantro (Eryngium foetidum) a perennial substitute for Cilantro that handles the heat and is useful in bean dishes, salsas, gazpacho, ceviche and so much more...

Here is a link that might be useful: The Herb Garden

Most fresh herbs sold in grocery stores are rather expensive and often not in good condition. I'm in zone 7b, metro Atlanta area and have been able to grow from seed many of the usual herbs. Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. Just couldn't resist that grouping :~). Oregano, basil, and cilantro. A vegetable that I have found easy to grow in z7 area, which is often hard to find and expensive in the grocery stores here is Swiss Chard. Planted in early spring this year and it is still going strong.

Sage, alpine strawberries, dill, lettuces and pickling cucumbers are mainstays. The other 30 or so edibles are bonus material for munching.

Seed sowing brings extreme economic pleasure. A planted $2 pack of cuke seeds plus a $1 pack of dill seed combined with $4 worth of mustard seed, vinegar and sugar makes 10 quarts of the best pickles ever. Add to that the fact that tomatoes are going for $2/lb and you can get ten pounds out of a $2 pack of seeds.

You're on the right track ....

Martie

Well you HAVE to grow tomatoes if you like eating them fresh. The supermarket tomatoes are not only overpriced, they're completely unripe and flavorless (picked barely yellow and gassed into redness).

Basil and rosemary ought to be grown because they're only good fresh, and far too expensive in the grocery store. Likewise cilantro. Most other herbs are decent in their dried form, or have acceptable dried seeds or substitutes. But not those two.

I grow Hungarian sweet paprika for both the quality and cost. It's better than buying those pricey tins of Pride of Szeged.

Fruit-bearing vines and bushes are absolutely wonderful. They're more FAR flavorful, practically free, and you can get all sorts of varieties you'd never be able to get in grocery stores or even farmer's markets! Currants, gooseberries, raspberries, grapes, mulberries, blackberries, raspberries, black raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, loganberries, huckleberries, keriberries... The list goes on and on! Do you research and you'll be able to plant varieties that ripen in a staggered pattern, so you'll have fresh fruit from June to October!

A gallon of berries for practically nothing, or $3.00 a pint at the grocery store. Hmm....

Lavender...for beauty, fragrance, home decor. Once established the lavender produces heavily for years. Some also use lavender for cooking but I never found it to my liking in cooking. I bought my lavender bushes 11 years ago ($2.50 a plant back then, now $4 in most places) and while those bushes are now quite spread and woody their offspring are sprinkled all over my property. I make lots of Christmas presents with the lavender, and sell the excess on ebay.

Basil...very easy to grow from seed, great fragrance, wonderful fresh or frozen; and so expensive in the store. Easy to save seed for the next year, so you only need to buy seed once. Its also possible to root cuttings and bring a potted plant indoors for the winter.

Oregano...heavy production and easy to grow, once established you'll be giving plants away and still have plenty. Easy to use fresh or dried. I grow a variety that has beautiful flowers as well as culinary uses.

Swiss Chard...very easy, buy once and it will self seed and perpetuate. It is biennial and here in NC produces greens 9 months of the year.