How to Grow Oregano Indoors
Oregano is one of the most popular culinary herbs. It is a favorite in Italian and Greek cooking and has a distinctive, pungent flavor and aroma that makes it a savory addition to sauces, stews and marinades. Oregano is also easy to grow. A hardy perennial, oregano is undemanding in the garden and will survive freezing winters without complaint. If you want to keep a little oregano handy over the winter months to season your spaghetti sauce or marinate that butterflied leg of lamb, try growing a small pot of oregano indoors. Oregano will adapt well to living in a sunny window in your kitchen. Its delicate, small leaves make an interesting and attractive houseplant and one you can also eat. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Potting Oregano
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Select an oregano plant that is bushy, has vigorous new growth and has bright green leaves.
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Choose a pot that is one size larger that the pot in which you purchased the oregano plant. If bringing an oregano plant in from the garden, select a 6-inch pot. Make sure that any pot you choose has a drainage hole.
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Pot oregano with a quality potting soil to which you've added sand or perlite. A pinch of garden lime mixed in might be a good idea too, but don't over do it. Place pebbles or marbles in the bottom of the pot to increase drainage.
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Water the plant thoroughly after re-potting, making sure that the soil has been firmed into place to remove air bubbles that can destroy roots.
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Select a location for your oregano plant that received at least six hours of bright but indirect light each day. If exposed to harsh sunlight, oregano will burn, but it still needs good light in order to thrive. Anything but a northern exposure will work.
Keeping Oregano Indoors
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Water oregano once a week to start. When you water, check to make sure that dirt isn't pulling away from the side of the pot. If it is, increase the watering schedule to twice a week. Keep checking and changing the watering schedule as needed. You will probably notice that as the seasons change, the oregano's water needs will change too.
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Avoid keeping oregano in areas where it is near heating vents or exterior doors.
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Monitor the plant's lighting needs. If your oregano plant starts to bend toward the light, it needs a brighter exposure. Move it closer to the window or to another location or supplement its light with artificial plant lighting. If the plant starts to brown around the margins of the leaves, move it back from the window or to a different location with milder light conditions.
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Rotate the plant occasionally to be sure that new growth develops evenly.
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Harvest no more than half the plant's leaves over the course of the winter months. When trimming leaves, be careful never to pull on the plant, disturbing its roots.
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Place oregano outdoors from time to time in mild weather. A few weeks outside will do indoor oregano wonders.
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Tips & Warnings
Avoid terra cotta pots, as they are porous and steal moisture from the soil.
If you place oregano in a southern or western-facing window over the winter, everything should be fine, but if you plan on keeping it there year round, be careful to protect it from harsh sunlight during the hottest part of the summer. Adding shears or shutters can help cut down on the sunlight in too-bright areas.
- Photo Credit Courtesy of the author
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Comments
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Anonymous
Jul 09, 2011
The critical part is to be sure you don't water blindly. Herbs do not like to be flooded. Good reminder to change watering amounts with the seasons. -
My poor greek oregano has totally been suffering since I brought it home and put it on my front porch. The tag said "full sun" but it was wilting and drying out...this article was very helpful. From now on, my oregano will reside in my kitchen window where I can nurse it back to health!
