How to Grow a Herb Garden Indoors
Growing your own indoor herbs can be an enriching experience, in addition to providing tasty condiments for your table. A miniature garden is easy to care for and takes only a small amount of space on your kitchen counter. Some of the popular herbs to grow include basil, rosemary, thyme, sage, mint, tarragon, oregano and dill weed.
You will need:
- Container
- Potting soil
- Compost
- Tray
- Pea gravel
- Fertilizer
- Choose a sunny location close to a window, or setup a kit with a fluorescent light. If you use fluorescent lights, they will need to be on for at least 10 hours a day. Place the lights no more than 18 inches away from plants.
- Decide what type of herbs you want to grow.
- Plant the herbs in a container (8 inch x 8 inch minimum size). If you want to grow several plants in a larger container, space plants 8 inches apart.
- Lay a mesh screen in the bottom of container to allow for good drainage. Mix compost in some potting soil and lay it into your container.
- Fill a tray with pea gravel. Place your container inside of the gravel tray to ensure proper drainage.
- Water your plants no more than twice a week. Overwatering is a common mistake. Herbs do not like their feet wet.
- Herbs do not need a great deal of fertilizer. A light coating of fish emulsion once a month will provide excellent nourishment.
- Snip the plants often to encourage new growth. When pruning, be sure to never trim more than a third of the foliage as it will cause the plant to die.