How To Start Your Own Kitchen Herb Garden With Success

If you feel like your meals were lacking something but just can't put your finger on it

, then the lack of fresh herbs might be the answer? That is why I have my own kitchen herb garden.

For years and years I used to only use commercially dried herbs but over time I found that the flavors became less and less concentrated, to the point where I stopped using them because it just seemed like a waste of time.

That is when I decided it was time to start an herb garden.

What size herb garden should you grow?

For many years I had a herb garden outside my kitchen door with a good variety of herbs but then again in other instances I have had a window sill herb garden when we were living in temporary accommodation. In later years I have grown my herbs in containers because I keep them with my bonsai plants which makes for easier watering.

You can see how each living condition will give different people the opportunity to create different sized herb gardens. When the family were all living at home is when I had the larger selection and in the outdoor garden, but as they have left the nest I have reduced my selection and use the container method for growing.

What selection should you grow?

Your selection of herbs will be a very personal choice depending on the type of meal you like cooking.

For example, I personally like salads and roasts so now I grow a lot of basil, parsley, mint, chives, rosemary and thyme, plus a few others at times. My daughter likes cooking Asian recipes so she grows a lot of coriander, marjoram and some of the other Asian herbs.

Your time also needs to be taken into consideration when choosing the herbs to grow. Most herbs grow very easily but others take more care so consideration does need to be given to the amount of time you can give them.

When should I grow my herbs?

Some herbs will grow all year round but the majority of herbs either dies back in winter or don't grow very much. Where you live will have an impact on whether you can grow through winter or not. Obviously if you have very cold winters herbs won't grow outside, but if you live in the more tropical climates then many of them will manage to struggle through the winter.

It is possible to start growing herbs prior to spring by starting them in seed boxes inside and slowly acclimatize them to the outside during the first weeks of spring, eventually planting them in full sunlight. This is how you will get a start to having fresh herbs throughout summer. Some herbs only need picking at the end of their growing season, like fennel where you are using the bulb and dill where you are using the seeds as well as the leaves.

Keep in mind that herbs are weeks and they really do thrive on being harvested. If a few weeks have passed and you have not plucked any herbs, give them a quick trim to keep the new leaves coming. When you grow your kitchen herb garden only a few meters from the kitchen door you will find that you will use them more than if you grew them at the bottom of the yard.

Copyright (c) 2009 Kaye Dennan

by: Kaye Dennan

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