You may be surprised to know that most of WA state gets considerably less rainfall than NY! We actually typically receive less than the US average :-) The idea that it is always wet and soggy here is really a myth (we encourage it to avoid an influx of folks from other states....unfortunately, it doesn't really work -)) and this is in fact a recurring summer drought area - we get almost NO measurable rainfall from late June through to the end of September.

All this is to say that oregano grows perfectly well here in regular well drained garden soil. Because oregano can spread aggressively - much like mint - I grow mine in a container - much like mint - with a standard, fast draining soil mix. Either in ground or in a container, oregano just requires good drainage, sun and enough water to keep it hydrated during dry spells. Like most other perennial herbs, it also requires minimal fertilization.....like almost never.

HTH

Well that is so good to know! Both about oregano and Washington state!! Thank you so much @gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9). I know what to do.

PNW rainfall comes in almost continual drizzle. Not big hard rainstorms. So things do seem to be wetter, even with similar total rainfall. I don't think oregano will care much, but a more mint-like plant will like the former better.

@daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa) : by former you mean drizzle right?

Things that like moist soil like continual drizzle.

"PNW rainfall comes in almost continual drizzle. Not big hard rainstorms"

And even that is a bit of an overstatement :-) We do get hard rainstorms, specially during the late fall storm season. But they are infrequent and not the gully washers received elsewhere. And the drizzle is not continual.....persistent during the wet season (Oct-June) but not continuous :-)) And it gets very dry in summer!

My point was that WHEN IT RAINS it comes in almost a continual drizzle. Hard rainstorms are rare, at least west of the Cascades. I lived there for 30 years, and go back frequently. Unlike up there, no one wears raincoat in Texas or even carries an umbrella because when it rains, BOOM! you don't want to be out in it. You wait five minutes under cover and it's done.

Yeah, very safe to say that when it rains in the PNW, it is nothing like the way it rains in Texas!!

I call it oozing rain rather than a drizzle :-)

I find that my oregano is much happier in the ground than in a container.

@HighColdDesert: I find that everything I grow, always grows better in the ground than in a container (when cultural conditions are appropriate). I just dont have a sunny area where I might be able to plant oregano in the ground so I am starting it in a pot. But, if it is as easy to grow as people are telling me, I might it try it in the ground somewhere next season...I would really like that. There really is no comparison, at least in my hands, between growing in a pot vs growing in the ground.

Folks who do grow oregano: is there an improvement in flavor when grown in a hot dry area vs a more shaded and moist area?