Starting an Herb Garden This Spring

This is my third year having a garden and herbs are by far my favorite thing to grow every year. Growing a herb garden is really easy! Personally, I find them easier to grow than vegetables and they elevate my cooking pretty effortlessly; sprinkle some fresh parsley on a dish and it’s instantly prettier and tastier.

So, if you’ve ever thought about growing your own herbs or want some fresh basil for a caprese salad then read on for the ins and outs of starting an herb garden.

A Few Reasons To Grow an Herb Garden This Spring

It’s a Great Way to Get Your Feet Wet (or Your Thumb!) with Gardening

Maybe you have dreams of having a full vegetable garden, but you’ve never gardened a day in your life and your nervous to dive right in. Well then starting with an herb garden is the perfect place to start.

It Saves Money (Eventually)

Starting a garden has some costs upfront, but I’d say by my second season of growing herbs I was definitely saving money. I mean herbs in the store cost anywhere from $2-4 for a tiny little plastic package with a few sprigs. I’m saving money now and cutting down on my plastic usage. How green of me. Also, some herbs will even come back the following spring! Hip hip hooray!

They are Perfect for a Container Garden if you are Limited on Space

If you live in an apartment with a sunny balcony you can still have a luscious potted herb garden. I have mine in both garden boxes and pots, but I think they look cuter in pots. Here are some other benefits to pots (other than cuteness):

• You can easily move them
• If you’ve got a little pupper or chickens that your worried will dig in your herb garden, I find that they don’t mess with pots as much
• Pots can be less expensive than building garden boxes

They don’t Attract Pests

Grow veggies for the first time and you’ll discover a world of bugs you didn’t know existed because they try to eat your crop, but I’ve never had a pest problem with any of my herbs. They naturally repel pests and can be great to have in a vegetable garden to help protect your vulnerable little veggies.

Supplies You’ll Need

1. Starter Herbs

I tend to grow a lot of my vegetables from seed, but when it comes to herbs I prefer to grow them from pre-started plants. Why? The simple answer… it’s easier! I don’t have a lot of space in my house for a grow light for seedlings in the winter and I don’t want to waste time in the spring planting seeds outside. So to maximize my harvest time, I choose to start with small starter herbs.

My favorite brand is Blue Label Herbs. They are organic and non-GMO, two things that are important to me if I’m going to be taking the time to grow my own herbs. I’ve found Blue Label Herbs at Wholefoods, Calloways and a nursery called Ruibal’s in Dallas.

2. Soil

I prefer potting soil for pots because it drains best, but in my garden boxes I use a mixture of topsoil and potting soil, because its cheaper. I also mix in perlite for my garden boxes (the little white flecks in the dirt). Perlite is definitely not a requirement, but it does help aerate the soil.

• 

3. Fertilizer

I only use organic fertilizer in my garden and I’m a big fan of this one by Down to Earth. I’ve only ever used the vegetable one (it can also be used for herbs), but they’ve got a bunch of different kinds if you plan to grow other things. I also use compost in my garden. I mix compost into my soil when planting new baby plants and I also dress my existing plants with it in the spring and fall.

4. Something to Grow Your Herb Garden in

You have a few options when choosing what to grow your herbs in:

• The Ground– This works great if you have a lot of space and don’t mind tilling up the ground.
• Raised Beds– Build some boxes and fill it with dirt! Just make sure to use untreated wood.
• Pots– Like I mentioned above, pots are a perfect option if you are limited on space or worried about pets digging in your boxes… ahem, I see you Fennel.

How to Grow Herbs

Put Them in a Sunny Spot

Herbs do best where they can get direct sunlight and minimal shade. I think its a really cute idea to try and grow herbs in the kitchen, but they never thrive inside in my experience.

Watering Your Herbs

Herbs enjoy a good watering, but they don’t like “wet feet,” that’s gardening slang for they don’t like their roots to stay sitting in water. Water your herbs thoroughly and then allow the top inch or so of the dirt to dry out a between waterings. They will need more water while the plants are transitioning to being outside and getting their roots established and during extremely hot times, hello Texas summers.

I try to grow all my potted herbs in terra cotta pots (the orange clay pots) because they breath better and help my plants not stay too wet. And, try not to water in the middle of the day. Watering in the direct sunlight can burn the roots and leaves. I prefer to water my garden in the mornings as part of my morning ritual.

Remove any Flowers

If you want your herbs to keep growing, make sure to remove any flowers. When an herb flowers it puts all its energy toward the flower and not the leaves and for plants with edible leaves this is kind of important. Basil is one of the herbs that I have to remove the flowers on the most.

If you get to them when they are just starting to grow you can just pinch them with your fingernails. This year I plan to plant a few extra herbs that I will let flower to attract bees, but if you want it for an herb garden, pinch off those flowers

Choosing Your Herbs

This is the fun part! I recommend picking two-four herbs your first time around. You should obviously pick herbs that you like and will cook with often, but I think basil is a beginners must. It’s pretty forgiving and it kind of teaches you how to take care of it. If you haven’t watered it in a few days it’ll get droopy. Water it and it should perk back up.

Here is a list of some herbs for you to choose for your herb garden:

A Few Tips for Certain Herbs

These herbs all pretty much like similar things that we talked about earlier like sunlight and good draining soil/pots, but here are just a few things I’ve learned over the years for specific herbs

Basil

My favorite herb. Oh I love basil and if you love basil as much as I do, it’s important to learn how to cut it. When harvesting basil do not pick the leaves off. If you just pick the leaves you are going to run out of basil real fast. And that’s sad.

How to cut basil – Cut it just above where four tiny leaves meet two big leaves. This causes the plant to branch out at the four tiny leaves. You get a much bigger plant and it’ll also help your plant not become top heavy.

Cilantro

I’ll be real honest, I haven’t had the most success growing cilantro in Texas. It bolts, meaning it tries to flower and go to seed the second the weather gets warm. I did manage to plant some last fall that I harvested this spring, but it’s already starting to bolt. I’ve heard some people have had success with succession planting, but I haven’t tried that method yet.

Succession planting – plant seeds every week or two and harvest the cilantro when its young. By planting it every week or two you’ll always have fresh young cilantro to harvest.

Mint

You can grow a lot of herbs together, but not mint! It doesn’t play well with others and will try to take over your other plants if planted together. Keep it separate!

Lavender and Rosemary

While all herbs prefer to have good draining soil, lavender and rosemary are a little more finicky about it. Adding some sand or grit to their soil will help them grow their best.

Well, I hope you all feel inspired to start your own herb garden. My biggest advice is start small and don’t over complicate it. I didn’t start out my first year gardening with fertilizer or perlite and I still grew things just fine. Just grab some herbs, throw em in some dirt, and show them some tender loving care. You’re gonna love having fresh herbs in your backyard.

Cheers and happy gardening,

Blue Label Herbs | Down to Earth Fertilizer | Terra Cotta Pots

Perlite | Scissors |Garden Markers

Garden Gloves and Shovel from Target Dollar Section

[This post may contain affiliate links. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I only share products I truly love.]