While not everyone has a backyard, most of us would at least have a windowsill in our kitchen big enough for a few small plastic pots of herbs. In addition to brightening up the room, you’ll have plenty of yummy greenage to spice up your cooking!
You can buy bunches of herbs that are already in little planters, or you can grow them from seed. When it comes to supplies, any supermarket or $2 shop should stock plant seeds, plastic pots, little gardening shovels, watering cans, and so on. However, if you have a proper nursery (a plant nursery, not the kind with drooling toddlers) within range, even better! Nursery staff are very knowledgeable on all things green and should be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.
Quick facts
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It’s common sense that you have to water your plants, but OVERwatering can kill them just as effectively as dehydration. Ideally, you want the dirt to be moist and dark, but not swimming in water which can rot the roots.
- Just like people, plants need sunlight. But also just like people, too much can burn them, scorching their leaves and stems. You might need to remove your plants from sunlight during the hottest hours of the day, especially if they’re withering or turning brown.
- Which herbs you grow is entirely up to you. The key question to ask is: what would you use the most in your cooking? Some great ideas include basil, rosemary, thyme, chives, parsley, mint, dill, or sage. Maybe even coriander, if you’re that way inclined.
- With herbs, you don’t need to do much in the way of trimming or maintenance, besides cutting away anything that turns brown.
- You can harvest your herbs as often as you like, but you need to leave enough of the plant intact to regrow. So don’t cut it all the way down to the soil!
- If your herbage becomes too overgrown, you can prune it back and hang the cuttings upside down, out of sunlight, until they go crunchy. Crumble up the dried herbs and store them in a sealed jar for future use.
And if your herb garden works out, just imagine what other things you could grow in your home?
