Thanks to its plentiful hours of sunshine by day and cool temperatures by night, the Martell Valley in South Tyrol offers some very special growing conditions where both berries and herbs with the South Tyrolean seal of quality thrive. Exploiting this to the full is the Perkmann family, which cultivates a wide variety of plants at its Tasahof farm. Their produce ranges from strawberries, potatoes and cauliflower to diverse mountain herbs that bear the South Tyrolean seal of quality.

“Our herbs with the South Tyrolean seal of quality grow at an altitude of 1200 metres in the heart of the Stilfser Joch National Park. They are picked by hand and processed by us independently,” explains Franz Perkmann. The resulting products include herbal salts and infusions, in which gloriously scented mountain herbs such as lesser calamint, peppermint, scarlet beebalm, nettle, buckhorn, chamomile, mallow and marigold are used.

Cultivating herbs is more than a mere source of income for Tasahof; it is a self-confessed passion for Franz Perkmann, who is seen as a herb pioneer in the valley, and his family. If ever they need new motivation, this is always provided by the scent of the fresh herbs, “the best fragrance there is”.

This family farm business endeavours to set itself apart from mass producers with its high quality standards. For this reason, they are careful to ensure that production at Tasahof is environmentally sustainable. And this is likewise how the Perkmann family hopes to motivate its future generations for herb farming