How to start an herb garden
Herbs are wonderful plants for a number of reasons. They are attractive to look at and they often produce a pleasant smell. They grow in various conditions and can live in small areas indoors. Furthermore, they can be used to make delecious meals. Imagine a complete herb garden growing in your own kitchen. All you would have to do to flavor a food would be to reach up and grab a fresh sprig of parsely or a bit of rosemary. Your friends and neighbors would comment on the wonderful herb garden and the food you prepare with it. Although you might love to grow an herb garden in your house or garden, it requires allot of special skills, doesn't it? Actually starting an herb garden is extremely easy and requires skills that everyone has. If you are interested in having fresh herbs for cooking or any other reason read the following guidelines for starting an herb garden.
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The first thing you need to do when you start an herb garden is to think about the types of herbs you will need. Unless you want them for aesthetic reasons, you only need the herbs that you plan on cooking with. If you like to experiment with your cooking you should add a few extra herbs into the mix to keep things interesting. Most herbs grow well in dry, warm, and sunny conditions, but necessary conditions vary depending on the plant.
Once you have identified the herbs that you would like for your herb garden, prepare the area. If you are going to grow herbs indoors make sure that you keep them in separate containers and give them plenty of access to sunlight. In the outdoors sometimes you will need to split your herb garden between various beds around your home. If there is a bed that gets lots of sunlight then put your sunny herbs there. If you want herbs that like shade make sure to find a dark location.
Like most plants, herbs like nitrogen rich soil so you should make sure to prepare the beds with fertilizer. Also, be sure to loosen up the soil so that it is filled with air. Water your herbs depending on the instructions you receive. The herbs that often do well in sunny, hot conditions are plants like dill, rosemary, thyme, basil, chives, and oregano. Plants like mint and lemon balm need much more shade and should be planted in totally different places.
There are many ways to plant your herbs; you can plant them from seed, transplant them, and grow them from a sprig. Some plants do better than others depending on how they are planted. Often transplanting from a store bought plant produces good results.
With some patience and careful attention you can grow healthy herbs in a matter of a few months. Some of these plants will continue to grow and thrive, filling your beds and providing you with more than enough herbs. Plants like rosemary, if placed in the right conditions can grow into beautiful and straong plants that are beautiful to look at. We used to have a gorgeous rosemary bush that was the talk of the neigborhood. Although we have moved since then, I'm sure that rosemary plant is growing strong today. It always provided enough herbs for us to use with cooking without looking like it had been cut up. With just a little bit of effort and the right conditions you will find that you can also grow herbs like our old rosemary plant.
