How to Grow Herbs Indoors with Ease and Enjoyment

Herbs are the most popular plant group for indoor winter gardening for practical reasons. They’re easy to grow inside, but gardeners seldom grow anything just because it’s easy. Cooks enjoy a source of fresh seasonings grown just a few steps from the kitchen. I think that’s likely the motivation. Growing healthy vigorous herbs is easy, only if you provide them the basics. That’s the topic of today’s post. Choosing the herbs you’ll want to grow is a personal decision and I’ll touch on that as well. A My Garden Post vertical gardening system allows you to grow more herbs in less space (only 4 sf) with more enjoyment. That’s a practical approach that more gardening cooks are adopting every day.

The basic requirements for growing healthy herbs inside differ little from those when your My Garden Post is located on the balcony, deck or patio. The requirements include:

• Proper Soil
  • Herbs are not fussy about the soil mix. When you seed directly in the planters, transplant rooted cuttings or transplant starters you purchase from a garden center, any trusted brand of container mix will produce good results.
• Sunlight
  • Locate your My Garden Post near a large south or south west facing window and your plants will have all the light they need to thrive. Rotate your My Garden Post 90 degrees every week to provide a balanced exposure.
• Adequate Room Temperature
  • Herbs are very happy to live in the same temperature that most of us enjoy. They will enjoy a daytime temperature in the low 70 degrees and do fine with a nighttime temperature in the low 60s. A drop to the 50s is ok, for that is much like what they would experience growing outside.
• Water
  • The My Garden Post planters come with plugs for the drain holes. This allows you to water your herbs without risk of planters draining on the floor.
  • Monitor your planters closely. Herbs like consistent moisture, but don’t like wet feet.
• Food
  • I’m encouraging everyone to go organic. A tablespoon of fish fertilizer per gallon of water provides all the necessary nutrients. Fertilize your herbs once a week and incorporate it into your watering schedule.
• Grooming
  • We grow herbs to eat them and they grow best when they are trimmed often. That’s the primary concept we have to keep in mind. As a rule of thumb, when your plants reach 4” you can begin the grooming process.
  • There’s nothing complicated or difficult about providing for the six basic requirements listed above. That’s what qualifies herbs to fall in the “easy to grow” category. If I’ve convinced you to give it a try, you have to decide what varieties you want to grow. I’ll make that decision easy for you; grow the herbs you like to eat, drink and cook with. I took some time and researched the favorites. You might consider the following list:

• Basil
  • Genovese Basil is the best basil for Italian cooking (pesto, tomato-basil sauce, etc.) Similar to sweet basil.
  • It’s nearly everyone’s favorite for cooking and fortunately it’s fast growing.
• Parsley
  • Start from seed and be prepared to wait up to 2 weeks to see germination. It tends to grow more slowly than others and you’ll harvest less often. For this reason, use one of the large planters on My Garden Post for your parsley and seed it heavily.
• Chives
  • One of the easiest of the easy herbs to grow, it will grow in low light situations.
  • Purchase 4” potted transplants to get started
  • Cut about 1/3 of growth from the top to stimulate new growth
• Mint
  • Spearmint and peppermint grow quickly and aggressively. It’s best to give your mint a planter of its own. One of the three small planters on My Garden Post will do fine
• Rosemary
  • Choose an upright variety that remains compact
• Thyme
  • You have many varieties to choose from. Consider lemon thyme, a favorite of mine. Thyme is a perennial but short lived. The easiest way to get started is with 4” potted transplants available in grocery and garden stores. When they begin to get woody, buy new transplants and start over again.
• Cilantro
  • Start with seeds or starter plants and space at 4”.
  • Water when the soil is dry to the touch.
  • Pinch the growing tip to develop bushier plants

A My Garden Post vertical gardening system will accommodate all the herbs I listed and more. With the exception of mint, I have great success when 2 or 3 herbs share a single planter.

Winters seem to get longer as I get older. Fortunately, I’ve found planting, tending and harvesting a My Garden Post herb garden to be an enjoyable way to pass the winter months. If you are just getting started now, your MGP herb garden will be well established when the time comes to roll it outside for the spring and summer.

Thanks for following. Next week I plan to check back on our My Garden Post gardeners in Az, Eleuthera and Florida. I’ve been receiving some fun pictures. All the best, Oliver