Best Herbs for Starting an Herb Garden

BY: Deb Brown

What herbs are best for starting an herb garden?

—Sharon Frye, Loogootee, IN

People grow herbs primarily for culinary purposes, but also for cosmetic, household, and medicinal uses. If you’d like to grow edible herbs, think about which herbs you would use in cooking and baking. Maybe you’d like to brew mint tea, or you enjoy Mexican food with plenty of cilantro. How about parsley potatoes? Dilled cucumbers? Tomatoes sprinkled with fresh basil?

As with any new garden, start small, then expand by adding new herbs each year. Some herbs are annuals and must be replaced each year, and others are perennial. A few perennials may become a nuisance if they’re not contained. (Mints are notorious for this.) Most herb gardens contain both types. Check to see which perennial herbs are appropriate for your hardiness zone. If your favorite herb isn’t hardy in your region, grow it as an annual and replace it each year. You could also dig it up at the end of the season, plant it in a container, keep it in a sunny window all winter, and plant it outdoors again the following spring. Some popular annual herbs for gardens are basil, cilantro/coriander, dill, and parsley (technically a biennial). Favorite perennials include chives, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, and French tarragon.

Picture: The Kitchen Counter Herb Garden from Hammacher Schlemmerhttp://www.hammacher.com/

Comments

By rlaudermilk Thursday, July 15, 2010 8:38 AM

Any one know what Herbs will grow best in Central South Korea?
I have just started trying to grow they in an enclosed patio, I can open the sliding doors though.
Bruce
Daejeon, South Korea

By dbartley2 Wednesday, March 30, 2011 8:15 AM

Last year and this year I bought basil in a 4 inch pot to grow inside. I placed the plant on a window sill that is bright but no direct sun because the afternoon sun that comes in that window is too hot. Both years the basil has failed. The plant becomes limp and the leaves brown. I have tried more water and less water but neither seems to be what the plant needs. Can anyone help?

By gingerg101 Wednesday, March 30, 2011 9:15 AM

what part of the world are you? your basil needs warm sun but not direct for too many hours.
southern exposure is the best for growing. temps. 65-70 and it will flourish

By cdavis26 Thursday, April 21, 2011 10:43 AM

I've been growing my basil under a plant light watering maybe once a week.

By jstout1 Monday, April 25, 2011 9:58 AM

basil, chives, marjoran, and lemon balm thrive in my beds in sun to partial shade and even come back in the spring in Tulsa, OK. They will tell you when they need water in summer.

By glssldy57 Wednesday, May 04, 2011 10:01 AM

I have two 3x3 planters in my backyard that were here when I moved in, and had tomatos in both planters. That was last summer, and now I'd like to do some herbs in one planter and flowers in the other. My backyard in Memphis, has direct sunlight for about half the day and the rest of the day it is shady. Would this be a good condition for basil, garlic, marjoram, thyme & lemongrass? Also what flowers would do well in that type of sunlight? I have a rose bush next to the house that thrives all summer in the direct light, but not sure about starting out with roses... I've never had luck with them before.

By glssldy57 Wednesday, May 04, 2011 10:08 AM

I just went to the link above for the 'Kitchen Counter
Herb Garden' and they said it was discontinued... just letting you know.

By jwalker13 Wednesday, May 04, 2011 3:28 PM

I have just moved into a RI campground for the summer, and need advice on which herbs might grow under tall shade trees. I can either use window boxes (on blocks), pots, or plant in the ground. I fear there won't be much direct sun. Would very much appreciate all the help you can offer!

By nashagrows Tuesday, May 17, 2011 11:00 AM

I buy fresh herbs from the market that have roots. I plant the roots in well draining soil and grow my own for the rest of the season! I keep herbs in a spot that gets 6+ hours of sun each day and water when necessary. I've had good luck with scallion, basil, cilantro, parsley and sage so far this year. It's much easier than growing from seed.

By sherriec Tuesday, May 17, 2011 12:26 PM

I have the Aero Garden "kitchen counter herb garden" same thing and my stuff never ever looks like the pictures of their herbs do, anyone know why? Mine are usually very fragile.

By jmcafee1 Tuesday, May 17, 2011 5:16 PM

Hi I just moved into a gated assisted community for seniors I would like to know what kind of herb garden I can grow. I have a small patio(closed in) no grass, but love herbs for cooking. thks in advance. jm

By bpeeler Friday, May 20, 2011 3:02 PM

One year I had an old tree stump that we burnt down from the inside out. We piled other wood and old stumps around it to kill 2 birds with one burn pile. The next year the ground was still gray there and not alot of grass. It looked mulchy though so I decided to plant a few herb seeds to see what would happen. I planted Spearment, sage, lemon balm, and another kitchen herb that i cannot remember. Amazingly they took off like nothing i have ever seen. I did not know they would grow so well on an old ash bed. It was all flat and we would mow it down once in the summer just like mowing the yard. That only made it spread out more and thicker. It was the most beautiful thing i ever seen.

By wraup Wednesday, May 25, 2011 11:09 AM

which herbs would be best started in mid to late summer. i am new to gardening and need alot of advice. i live in montross, va., if that helps. thanks in advance....wayne

By ylavallee Wednesday, June 29, 2011 2:24 PM

I am a new to gardening.I Love my Herbs! I have an area,that is in direct sunlight for about 6 hrs.Can some one let me know what herbs do good in Utah (Bountiful) ????

By elcookieman Thursday, September 08, 2011 3:30 PM

I am a little disappointed in the scarce amount of information on how to plant herbs, which ones to grow where and when, like garlic.

I thought I would have a lot of information by joining a gardening club.
delia

By rmendel Tuesday, December 06, 2011 1:02 AM

I agree with you, Delia. Lori

By lwilmot Friday, January 27, 2012 12:34 PM

I live in central Louisiana and pretty much everything grows here if we have enough rain. I got interested in herbs when my mother was diagnosed with a heart condition. We experimented a lot with different herbs. We found that garlic can be grown from the packaged product in the stores. Take a clove of it and plant. Onions or chives have sets that are planted, but if you leave them they will go to seed and replant themselves.. Most feed stores carry the sets and of course Walmarts and Kmarts. We have spring onions here that will grow anywhere you throw them, I'm not sure if they are in other areas of the country. Basil will grow until frost kills it. Sage, oregano, thyme, rosemary, etc seem to stay alive here with our light frosts. I found out that when clipping to leave an inch of leaves and the plant will grow from that point. My plants have a shade from the southern side as we reach over 100 most summer days. I think the most useful thing I found out was not to water my plants with city water, it turns the leaves brown and kills the plants. I have a rain barrel to catch rain water in to water my plants. This past summer during our drought I filled a gallon jug and let it sit several days before I used it to water so the chemicals would disperse into the air. I hope this helps.
Lynn

By mstngs Tuesday, February 28, 2012 9:29 AM

container gardens you can almost do anything in them. plant bulbs then other plants that will come in after the bulb flowers are gone. I had several containers with a variation of flowers when I lived in AZ and now here in MO. Its nice having different ones come up thru out the blooming seasons.. If you have problems with small critters then put up a light weight chicken wire around the container it will keep them out.. I found out squirrels like bulbs for some odd reason!
Have a wonderful day!