Herb Garden

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frash

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I've an area near my back door where I'd like to plant some herbs.

What ones would people recommend that will grow easily enough once planted. I know Rosemary will be fine planted outside but what other ones will do well.

Thanks
 
I'm growing parsley, sage, thyme, chives, rosemary and oregano. Just a word of caution - grow your oregano in a separate pot. Mine is trying to achieve world domination.
 
Should they all be in pots?
I had a rosemary before in a pot & it seemed to get too big for the pot very quickly. I've seen it planted in the ground doing well once used regularly.

Can they all be planted in the ground (with the exception of oregano as you've suggedsed above!)
 
add in common mint (for cooking with or making mint sauce which is a doddle) and peppermint for making tea. Really useful herbs.

Grow both either in containers or limit space by putting slate roof tile into the soil.

The herbs I find most useful are: rosemary (both upright and prostrate forms), thyme, parsley (2 types), mints, bay, sage. I have loads of fennel but don't use it much, still looks nice though, and you can eat the bulb too.
 
Thanks for the replies so far.
I've a bay plant on a window sill indoors - didn't realise it would do well outside.

Of the ones listed so far will they last all year outside once they're planted or are some of them just annuals?
 
Lemon thyme is another great one - kids (and the big ones) love to run their hands through it for the smell.
All depends on what herbs you use mainly - I have bay leaf, thyme & lemon thyme, rosemary, chives and sage.
Rosemary grows very well - but can be hacked back about a 1/3 twice a year. Friends love getting the cuttings.
Grow your chives in a wettish spot - will give you a better yield!
 
Most will last all year, but might die off during the winter - but you will still have a good supply of bay leave and rosemary during the winter. You can either dry or freeze some supplies during the summer for the winter months. I find that of you put stalks of thyme in a bag in the freezer, all you have to do is crush it a bit, and you will get a nice supply of leaves without having the hassle of removing them from the stalks. Works for me anyway :)
 
Agree with all the above - you may find though (as we did) that you might not make nearly as much use of some herbs as you do others (and vice versa) and that should be borne in mind.

In our case, we found that we rarely used rosemary or sage but didn't have enough parsley or thyme.
 
Caveat said:
Agree with all the above - you may find though (as we did) that you might not make nearly as much use of some herbs as you do others (and vice versa) and that should be borne in mind.

In our case, we found that we rarely used rosemary or sage but didn't have enough parsley or thyme.
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I use lots of rosemary but I reckon if I have all these herbs on my doorstep (literally) then I'll try my best to use them all at some stage.

Thanks for all the info so far!
 
I'd advise regular seeding from now and during the growing season of the herbs you like just to get started, its great to have a constant supply of easy growing herbs such as Parsley coming on as it gives you encouragement in the beginning, I have found we need the greater heat of mid summer for the likes of basil or corriander, but I have tried bringing them on indoors earlier. Another thing which is not to everyones taste is nasturtium, easy as weed to grow and you can eat the flowers in salads or to decorate deserts and more importantly they can deter greenfly which are the bane of many herb gardens as they are attracted to the smells (chives also deter them I think) Like you I like Rosemary and its a great year round plant, but I found it hard to maintain in a pot and needed to move it to the ground)
 
gillarosa said:
Another thing which is not to everyones taste is nasturtium, easy as weed to grow and you can eat the flowers in salads or to decorate deserts and more importantly they can deter greenfly which are the bane of many herb gardens as they are attracted to the smells (chives also deter them I think)
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I've planted this before & found it a bit too easy to grow - it took over a large area of the bed before I knew what was happening - will be more careful next time!
 
frash said:
I've planted this before & found it a bit too easy to grow - it took over a large area of the bed before I knew what was happening - will be more careful next time!
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I agress Frash, a little certainly goes a long way, and it will come back year after year, guess thats why I'd recommend it as I am quite good at growing weeds!! but other than that it is a good edible greenfly deterent and also for climbing up through bushes and other climbers for a bit of added colour.
 
Thanks again for the replies.
Is there anything I should consider about what herbs to plant beside each other or just the general layout of the herb garden?
 
Hi Frash, Have mine laid out in a checkerboard with small curved paving slabs between...this is detering the 'world domination' previously mentioned by both oregano or mint! Flat leaf and curly parsley, oregano, thyme, mint, sage, rosemary, french tarragon, fennel, lemon balm (keeps the bugs away), and chives. Basil is an annual, it pegs out in the winter. Either plant fennel or dill but not both in close proximity ~ they cross pollinate apparently.

Best of luck with your patch ~ mmmm I can smell all those lovely herbs already!
 
Sage grows great in my garden. I chop it down severly each spring and it comes back thick and strong. Great for Italian dishes, such as tortellini with sage butter. I find thyme quite hard to grow as my garden is too wet. It works better in very well drained pots for me.

best of luck

annikab
 
Silly question - but is it better to grow them from seeds or to buy them in the garden centre and then plant them outside?
 
Its much the same. If you can spend the time nurturing them, plant them from seed. If not, the garden centre ones might come from cuttings and might be a little hardier.
 
Thank you! Tried to grow them from seed last year...needless to say they died:-( was hoping to hear that the potted ones might just survive my dodgy care some how!!
 
Try potted this time if you've been unsuccessful in the past. They may well be stronger, especially cuttings.
 
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