Nothing quite rivals the fresh scent of fragrant herbs wafting through a home. Indoor herb gardens are simple to start and can provide you and your family with fresh, home-grown seasonings year round.
Garden writer Fern Richardson encourages everyone to try indoor gardening. “Even people who think they have black thumbs should give it a try,” she laughs.
1. Select a spot
To start growing your indoor herb garden, you’ll need a windowsill with at least six hours of sunlight per day, a 4-inch diameter flowerpot (or larger), potting soil, and herb seeds or plants. “Even though your windowsill may be pretty sunny, sunlight filtered through a window is not as ‘good’ as sunlight outdoors, so you need to pick plants that don’t need tons of sunlight,” Richardson advises.
2. Choose the best herbs to grow indoors
“Some fun herbs to try indoors would be any of the flavored mints. You can also try garlic chives.”
Tasty herbs you can grow indoors include:
Garlic—prefers full sun
Chives—prefers full sun
Mint—prefers a south-facing window
Parsley—prefers full sun.
Cilantro—prefers a south-facing window
3. Keep your herbs healthy
After planting your herbs, the next step is keeping them healthy. The key to a vibrant herb garden is good drainage. They won’t need watering as often as an outdoor garden, so only water when the top inch of the soil feels dry, provide enough water that it drains through the hole in the bottom of the pot, and make sure there is no puddling beneath your plant … herbs don’t do well with wet feet.
How to Grow Herbs Indoors
Three steps to a thriving window garden within
By Kristy Alpert
Nothing quite rivals the fresh scent of fragrant herbs wafting through a home. Indoor herb gardens are simple to start and can provide you and your family with fresh, home-grown seasonings year round.
Garden writer Fern Richardson encourages everyone to try indoor gardening. “Even people who think they have black thumbs should give it a try,” she laughs.
1. Select a spot
To start growing your indoor herb garden, you’ll need a windowsill with at least six hours of sunlight per day, a 4-inch diameter flowerpot (or larger), potting soil, and herb seeds or plants. “Even though your windowsill may be pretty sunny, sunlight filtered through a window is not as ‘good’ as sunlight outdoors, so you need to pick plants that don’t need tons of sunlight,” Richardson advises.
2. Choose the best herbs to grow indoors
“Some fun herbs to try indoors would be any of the flavored mints. You can also try garlic chives.”
Tasty herbs you can grow indoors include:
3. Keep your herbs healthy
After planting your herbs, the next step is keeping them healthy. The key to a vibrant herb garden is good drainage. They won’t need watering as often as an outdoor garden, so only water when the top inch of the soil feels dry, provide enough water that it drains through the hole in the bottom of the pot, and make sure there is no puddling beneath your plant … herbs don’t do well with wet feet.