Herb gardening.

[tsmba]

I thought it would be interesting to hear how many of you are growing herbs.
I have limited space so mine are in pots or half-barrel planters. My summer "must haves" are: parsley, basil, rosemary, and thyme. Availability from stores is somewhat spotty around here and often the best culinary varieties aren't available, so I started ordering seed last year.

I've had good luck with basil and have a couple varieties going. Chervil is also easy to grow and its something the store never has. I have heard parsley is difficult to start from seed, but I'd like to try. Hopefully next year I'll get in gear and start my plants indoors so they're ready to go when the frost danger is past.

Some others I've grown are: summer savory, lavender, tarragon, and oregano. The mints are easy to grow, but I keep them in pots to keep them from taking over a flower bed!

[steveo]

I also love to keep herbs in the garden.I find they have become an everyday part of our family's cooking.Oregano,Marjoram,Thyme and Rosemary outside and always a pot of Basil on the kitchen windowsill.Basil is my current favourite.Happy cooking!!!

[tsmba]

I agree...basil is a "must have" in summer! It turns brown quickly, so its something you gotta have a plant in order to get it at its best.
It takes some adjustment to learn to use fresh herbs, but once you've tried them, nothing compares!

[burningdarkness]

There's nothing like fresh herbs. I've got a pot of Greek oregano and a pot of tricolor sage. I'm growing dill, lavender, and basil from seed this year.

[cthip]

this is something i've always wanted to do--is it difficult to grow herbs (for a guy who has never grown ANYTHING before)? is it as simple as getting a plant or seeds, put them in a pot, make sure they get light and water?

apologies in advance for the noob-ish questions

[TimmyBoston]

I've got thyme, rosemary, basil, oregano and mint. I usually have some jalapenos growing as well. The main reason I grow my own is financial. It is so much cheaper than buying fresh ones at the grocery store.

[Emmett]

this is something i've always wanted to do--is it difficult to grow herbs (for a guy who has never grown ANYTHING before)? is it as simple as getting a plant or seeds, put them in a pot, make sure they get light and water?

apologies in advance for the noob-ish questions

YES it is that simple! Go for it, man. You will love it.

[Luc]

I think chives are very easy to grow also...

Basil is a must. I got some at the market this week. The leaves are the size of my hand, just like in Italy... Those are awesome, 4 leaves and I can do a whole spaghetti pot!

I am currently growing orange chili. That thing is unkillable... I left it in the sun, it dried up. I took all the chilies and leaves off, almost a month later, the leaves are slowly re-growning... I can't wait to have chilies again has I eat some daily!

[mdunn]

I think chives are very easy to grow also...

Basil is a must. I got some at the market this week. The leaves are the size of my hand, just like in Italy... Those are awesome, 4 leaves and I can do a whole spaghetti pot!

I am currently growing orange chili. That thing is unkillable... I left it in the sun, it dried up. I took all the chilies and leaves off, almost a month later, the leaves are slowly re-growning... I can't wait to have chilies again has I eat some daily!

I grew chillis at my old place. Bloody fantastic to be able to lean out the window and cut some fresh ones for my food.

[Luc]

I grew chillis at my old place. Bloody fantastic to be able to lean out the window and cut some fresh ones for my food.

That's what I do, I need to get another plant since it's not growing fast enough

[dixee6]

I have rosemary, greek oregano, genovese basil, chives and spearmint. Herb gardens are excellent for the kitchen! Fresh rosemary, salt pepper and and garlic and maybe some onion slices aswell with red potatoes, in foil, on the grill or in the oven! MMMmmmmmmmm mmmmm!

[rmrdaddy]

We have a little herb garden right outside the door to the florida room. Well, it WAS little...
The rosemary is a bush now, it's probably 2 1/2 feet tall now and 3 feet wide. It started as a 10 inch plant in a 3 inch pot that Mrs. Daddy bought somewhere. There is also sage, lemon thyme, chives, and oregano. Mrs Daddy also has catnip in 2 or 3 places, she likes to treat the cats with it once in a while.
The other thing I went and did was plant peppermint and spearmint. Yep, you guessed it, in the open ground...let's just say I ALWAYS take mojito fixins to summer parties...

[tsmba]

I'd say they're very easy to grow. Parsley and dill are easy to find and practically fool-proof. Just plant them in a pot with nice soil, don't over-water (I always test with my finger), let 'em get a good start, then keep them trimmed so they don't go to seed.
I've never been able to keep rosemary alive all winter indoors. My sister lives in SC and it winters outside.

[letterk]

Dill, parsley, chives, basil, mint, rosemary, thyme, cilantro, sage, and probably more I can't remember.

Our garden has grown to probably 750 sq ft, now. We're growing just about everything.

[tsmba]

Wow, John, you have it made with all that space! Still, the cool thing about herbs is anyone can grow them, regardless of their location. You may not be able to grow enough to keep yourself in pesto, but you can still have fun.
I've noticed a small self-contained herb garden advertised. It has a plant light attached to the growing container and everything else included.

[letterk]

Wow, John, you have it made with all that space! Still, the cool thing about herbs is anyone can grow them, regardless of their location. You may not be able to grow enough to keep yourself in pesto, but you can still have fun.
I've noticed a small self-contained herb garden advertised. It has a plant light attached to the growing container and everything else included.

Well, at 7500 sq ft, our lot is probably small compared to the rest of the country. But it's slightly above average for Southern California. We've done a lot of work to give us growing space. We've even ripped out a lot of the previous landscaping and replaced it with more interesting and often times edible alternatives.

And yes, the cool thing about herbs is the ability to grow them in pots. The majority of our herbs are actually grown in pots because we find they do better. And it leaves more room for the pumpkin and corn!

[blantyre]

Chives, parsley, sage, thyme, mint (it's easy, honestly), rosemary. I usually use the chives, parsley and mint fresh and dry the others for winter use.

[behrendprof]

Lessee...tricolor, purple and standard sage, two sorts of basil, three sorts of thyme, lovage (very large plant but outstanding for soups), oregano, parsley, winter and summer savory, rosemary, peppermint, lemon balm.

In the other sorts of herb catagory: lots of lavender, rue, horehound, southernwood, chamomile, bergamot, anise hyssop.

My wife and I built a knot garden last year - about 1000 sf for herbs and perennials.

[xgunterx]

I only have herbs in pots right now because the garden will be completely redesigned.

You should also try Tropaeolum majus (Garden Nasturtium, Indian Cress or Monks Cress).
See a link here to wikipedia.
It is an ideal one year plant to cover the compost and is actually quite attractive.

The 'entire' plant is edible (leaves, flowers and the seeds). The young leaves and flowers are more spicy than rocket salad.
Actually, they tast between a radish and watercress.
The seeds are even more tasteful and can be used as a substitute for caper.

[tsmba]

This year, I'm trying "edible flowers". I have nastertiums (sp?) in a big planter and they seem to be doing well. I started them from seed I got in my last order from JH Scheepers.
From what I've read, they have a "peppery" taste and are a great garnish.