Herb Growing Help

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Sep 9, 2004
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Hi,
I have attempted to grow herbs here in godforsaken florida. I bought some Parsley, and 3 mature basil plants. It appears as if snails like basil, and kill it. I had it for less than a month, and I had to cut it down and freeze the measly amount I had. Not even enough to make pesto. My parsley was a full grown plant, but I cut is as I should have, but the problem was when the new shoots would grow, before I could cut them down, or before they were all bunchy again, they would turn brown & die. My rosemary is still doing wonderful. My question is this, has anyone attempted to grow herbs indoors in Florida. We keep the AC @ 80 degrees when we go to work, and I have a window that faces West, but there is light enough to grow something edible????? Anyhow, I want to grow basil and maybe some sage, and oregano. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
B.
 
Sage, oregano and rosemary should do well in the Florida heat; my sage and rosemary here in Charleston are now as tall as I am - even with some dieback in the winter!

Parsley and basil, although they like heat, also like shade and lots of water when it gets so hot. i've never had any luck growing herbs inside, even with gro-lights. My basil here is pretty shot right now, but I'll plant more in about a month; you could probably sow basil every couple of weeks throughout the winter and it would do fine. Parsley, too! (I had parsley coming up through the snow when we lived in NJ!)
 
Parsley will grow just fine in your window. Just give it plenty of water. Basil also requires a lot of water. The big leaf variety doesn't do as well inside, but there are a number of small leafed cultivars that taste great and do well in pots. Check with your nursery man for "spicy globe" and some of the others.
 
I must grow my basil on the screened porch because of the caterpillars. The others I grow in a flower bed - they do fine. Some better than others. My rosemary plants are about 2 feet high and 3 feet wide. My lavendar is about the same. Sage isn't as big, but very bushy. The salad burnet is a bit worse for wear because of the heat, but will perk up when the weather cools off a little.
 
Gotta get your digs in, right Red??? Well, right now with the Yankees playing like little league, I have nothing to say :glare: .

So, I guess my best bet would be to get a terrarium, to protect my herbs from the bugs, right?? But, my rosemary is not growing like you guys'. I have it in a pot, and it just started to sprout again, maybe I should transplant it into a bigger pot?? It is about a foot high, like it was last year in Seattle...hmmmm. Well, thanks for all the info. I'll keep trying.
Would you guys recommend I start w/ seeds, or try to find mature plants at Home Depot or Lowes? This particular nursery didn't even know they had herbs out there. I think that may have been part of the problem...they didn't take care of them, but I don't feel so bad as I only spent $4 on them...
B.
 
Put down some snail bait or saucers of beer for your slugs and they'll leave your plants alone.
Parsley and basil are easy from seed. Rosemary must be started from cuttings.
 
Saucers of beer???? Que horror, madame...As it is, I cannot find any microbrewerys in this state like Washington. Apparently they haven't caught the beer fever yet... But, I didn't know they didn't like beer. Interesting... I suppose snail bait is common sense, but I have no more basil to protect. I am going to try a mini hothouse and see what happens. My thumb is not green per say. I'm lucky I have the plants I have. At any rate, thanks for the thought. What is it about beer that slugs don't like???

B.
 
Slugs & snails like beer too much!:LOL: They get in it & then can't get out so they drown. I've used the beer method & it works very well. I normally keep a 6-pack of really cheap beer for that purpose.
 
You can also sprinkle broken eggshells around the plants. The snails don't like sliding over jagged material. Also might do something for the plants as well.

I've grown quite a few herbs and one thing I always see, rosemary could withstand a nuclear attack. It is so incredibly hardy, I've seen it sit through a week of heavy rain on not drown like my basil and mint, then seen it sit through scorching heat without water (wasn't home) and it still marches on.
 
Haggis, the broken eggshells are a great idea. And yes, they must do something for the plants. My mother and her mother always saved coffee ground and eggshells in an empty coffee can to put in their flower beds, and they sure had beautiful flowers!
 
Haggis said:
You can also sprinkle broken eggshells around the plants. The snails don't like sliding over jagged material. Also might do something for the plants as well.

I've grown quite a few herbs and one thing I always see, rosemary could withstand a nuclear attack. It is so incredibly hardy, I've seen it sit through a week of heavy rain on not drown like my basil and mint, then seen it sit through scorching heat without water (wasn't home) and it still marches on.

I don't know what I'm doing wrong then. I have had NO luck with rosemary. I'm at an elevation of 8600 feet - very short growing season so can't plant herbs in the ground outdoors. I keep trying to have potted herbs in my kitchen. I have one east window - nice morning sun. Chives do OK and basil does well but I can't keep rosemary. Any ideas?
 
Perhaps being in the Rocky Mountains might not exactly be the conditions to recreate the Mediterranean environment it thrives in :P.

If you grow it outdoors maybe it would do better if it was kept inside?

I'm not a big green thumb, don't really know much about plants so I'm guessing here.

I googled 'rosemary growing conditions' and it came up with quite a few sites, maybe check them out for ideas.
 
Rosemary can be tricky to grow inside. It needs as much sun as possible, and should be planted in a well-drained limey growing medium. But in spite of it's hardy appearance, it requires water, and since it doesn't wilt, it can be hard to judge when it's dry. The old finger in the dirt method is the best way.
 
Thank you, Constance. I think sun is an issue for me and maybe the soil. I might give it another try.:ermm:
 
Well - don't know where in FL you live so I can't look up the answer for you ... so break out your phone book and look up a couple of things.

You could try visiting a nursery in your area that sells herb plants ... and I don't mean talking to the 16-yo kid working a summer job in the garder center at WalMart or HomeDepot.

Your best bet would be calling up your local County Agriculture Extension Office. They know the climit, the soil, the gorwing conditions ... that's their job. They are probably your best source of information - usually for free! They may have some pamplets they might send you for a nominal charge (just to cover printing and postage) but I've never paid more than about $1 - and they will give you all kinds of info over the phone for free.

I don't know why so many people overlook this resource.
 
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Michael in FtW said:
Your best bet would be calling up your local County Agriculture Extension Office.

I don't know why so many people overlook this resource.

Absolutely right, Michael. When I was in the Master Gardener program sponsored by the Extension office here, I got a ton of information and advice for free. Our office even had a horticulture phone help line, and you could walk in with your plants or insects for a free consultation.
 
LOL - Mudbug ... I should have remembered this disgruntled guy (I just hope he doesn't work for the Postal Service and has a gun collection :ermm: ) ... I already told him how to contact his Ag Agent in another thread - complete with name, phone number, and e-mail address!:

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11599

... you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink ...
 
Well, Michael in FTW, I had forgotten about the post to my farms question earlier this year. Thanks for the reminder. And, no I don't work for the post office, no I don't own a gun, and no I don't have an actual set between my legs, altho I have been told mine are quite large for a girl!! Thanks for the reminder. I'll check it out.
B.
 
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