Clueless herb grower

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

dc2123

Cook
Joined
Jul 5, 2013
Messages
77
Location
NYC
Hey guys I just had the idea to grow some herbs this summer before it ends. My only problem is I know nothing about it. For instance; what I have to buy, what kind of pot or soil needed, how much sun they need/water. I have no knowledge so any tips will help.

Also if you have any suggestions on herbs to grow. I was going to do basil, tyme, and rosemary.
 
Hi. I've been growing herbs for over 20 years - they're among the easiest plants to grow. They don't need any special soil or pots - any good potting soil will do and they can be grown in pretty much any kind of container. Rosemary and thyme don't need a lot of fertilizer or water; I plant basil with my tomatoes, since they need about the same amount of water.

Rosemary will grow into a large shrub - say, 3 feet by 3 feet - if you let it, but it can be trimmed to keep it smaller. Thyme grows to about 6-8 inches tall and will spread out, but again, can be clipped back to suit your container. Basil can get a couple of feet tall, and will be more bushy if you cut several inches of stems when you harvest it. With all of these, you can harvest as much as you need at one time.

In the fall when they start to fade, I cut back thyme and rosemary and put the stems in dry vases. Then I let them sit in the kitchen till they're dry, strip the leaves off the stems, and refill my dried herb jars. This works for woody herbs, like rosemary, thyme, sage and oregano. For soft herbs like parsley, basil and cilantro, I whiz them in the food processor with an equal amount of water, then portion the mixture into ice cube trays and freeze. Then you can throw a cube into winter soups, stews and sauces.

I would suggest starting with herbs you like to cook with :) I started with parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme because I like the song :LOL: I also grow Genovese basil, cilantro, Thai basil, mint and a bay tree. Mint can be invasive, so I would plant it separately; I have mine in a strawberry pot. Hope this helps.
 
Last edited:
I grow all my herbs in a AeroGarden sitting on a table bookshelf in my kitchen. Its expensive but its almost foolproof and the herbs it produces is fantastic. I've even done cherry tomatoes and jalapenos. I've even used it as a seed starter before transplanting to pots.
 
So lets say I do Basil, tyhme, rosemary. Should I do any of them in separate pots? Do some need more sun than others or more or less water than others?
 
All herbs do best with at least 6 hours of full sun per day. My experience has been that basil requires more water than the others.
 
I would put the rosemary in its own pot, so you can bring it indoors for winter. Hmm, maybe you can bring in the thyme too.

Basil won't usually live through the winter.
 
I don't baby my herbs. I grow my thyme and oregano in a little garden, and throw basil seeds (an annual) in the ground in another plot. I dig my rosemary up and bring it in to overwinter as it's not hardy here. Everything can be grown in pots, but to save on watering, I like to put them in the ground. You might want to put them in big pots, and they would all survive just fine if you stuck them all in one big pot like a whiskey barrel rather than a bunch of dinky ones. I don't fertilize my herbs. My oregano, thyme and sage actually don't get that much sun. I have my mints in pots buried in the shade garden, as GG said, they are invasive. As is oregano. Don't overwater, anything with woody stems will be fine. Succulent stems like basil and parsley might need more water. I've actually overwintered both, they looked pretty ratty, but tasted great!
 
Last edited:
Double underscore growing Mint in pots. I too bury the pots in the ground, just so it visually fits in with the other garden herbs. It spreads and can really take over. Also, if you grow oregano, make sure you prune the flowers so they don't go to seed everywhere.
 
On the other hand, if you grow parsley, let it go to seed. It's a biannual - it has a lot of leaves the first year; it has less the second year, but then it goes to seed and you have new plants with a lot of leaves the third year, and so on.
 
On the other hand, if you grow parsley, let it go to seed. It's a biannual - it has a lot of leaves the first year; it has less the second year, but then it goes to seed and you have new plants with a lot of leaves the third year, and so on.
That's what I found out by accident. There aren't any flowers / seeds the first year. The second year surprised me. The third year surprised me even more, because I got so much parsley. I'm on the fourth year now and they are flowering.

With parsley, you might even consider planting some or putting in some seed the second year, so you have "both years" going at once.
 
Can anyone describe purple basil to me.

It's very pretty, but I find it doesn't germinate or grow as well as the common basil. The flavor is similar. If you just buy a plant or 2 for a pot, it adds nice color. There are so many varities of basil.
 
I agree with Dawg, although it grows pretty well for me - I think it depends on your climate. But yes, the flavor is similar and it looks nice in the garden or a pot.
 
Ok so I just what I think is a good deal. 2 nice size plants of sweet basil for $1.83. Now I don't have any soil area at home so I asked her if I can keep it in the little plastic pot and she said that was fine. So I have a few questions/concerns.

1. How should I maintain these two plastic pots?
2. When I take basil from it should I take stuff from the top or bottom?
3. What time is the best time to water? and how often do you think they will need water?
 
1. How should I maintain these two plastic pots?
2. When I take basil from it should I take stuff from the top or bottom?
3. What time is the best time to water? and how often do you think they will need water?

What is the diameter of the top of the pots? Is there an opening in the bottom? If yes, do you see roots there? If so, they need to be replanted into pots at least 2 inches larger than the current ones. What do you mean by maintaining the pots?

Harvest basil by pinching a bunch of leaves from the top of the stem. Never take more than 1/3 of the plant at once. Picked basil doesn't keep well, so only take what you will use at one time.

Water in the morning. I'd water at least twice a week, more if it's hot outside. If they start to wilt, they need water.
 
Ok so I just what I think is a good deal. 2 nice size plants of sweet basil for $1.83. Now I don't have any soil area at home so I asked her if I can keep it in the little plastic pot and she said that was fine. So I have a few questions/concerns.

1. How should I maintain these two plastic pots?
2. When I take basil from it should I take stuff from the top or bottom?
3. What time is the best time to water? and how often do you think they will need water?

Are you planning on adding any potting soil to the plants you bought? They really need some additional soil added to the pots they came in. And eventually you will have to transplant them to a bigger pot. :angel:
 
The diameter is a few inches. Very small pots. I will probably transfer to another pot.

What should I do about rain. Recently it's been raining almost everyday for a little bit. Should I leave them outside or bring them in at times?
 
The diameter is a few inches. Very small pots. I will probably transfer to another pot.

What should I do about rain. Recently it's been raining almost everyday for a little bit. Should I leave them outside or bring them in at times?
Leave them outside in the rain, but make sure they have good drainage. Plants like rain much better than water you pour on them, but they don't like to have their roots sitting in water.
 
The diameter is a few inches. Very small pots. I will probably transfer to another pot.

What should I do about rain. Recently it's been raining almost everyday for a little bit. Should I leave them outside or bring them in at times?

Put them all together in a bigger pot with a drainage hole. Pots and soil are not expensive, the little transplant pots are meant for transplanting, not growing. Basil is very hardy, leave 'em outside.
 
Put them all together in a bigger pot with a drainage hole. Pots and soil are not expensive, the little transplant pots are meant for transplanting, not growing. Basil is very hardy, leave 'em outside.

Should I break up the soil around the transplant pot. I've never gardened before! Just want to cover everything sorry
 
Back
Top Bottom