How to Plant a Homemade Mini Herb Garden

Use a garden container to create a mini herb garden.

Create a homemade mini herb garden in a clay or ceramic pot and keep it indoors at a sunny window or outdoors on the deck or patio. The container of herb plants is an attractive addition to your outdoor or indoor space. The rewards show in your culinary endeavors, as fresh herbs offer more pronounced flavors than dry herbs.

Things You'll Need

• Garden container
• Gravel or rocks
• Potting soil

Instructions

1. Place your mini herb garden where it will grow best. Herbs appreciate morning and midday sun, transitioning to a shaded afternoon. The advantage to creating a potted mini herb garden is that you can move the plants so they get this particular mixture of light and shade.

2. Include herb plants that are small in size even when fully grown. The larger the plant, the larger the root system. Some smaller herb plants to consider are chives, parsley, dwarf basil and thyme.

3. Fill the bottom of a container with drainage holes with gravel or rocks, about 1 inch in depth. This will improve water drainage and keep the soil from washing away.

4. Pour potting soil over the gravel. Fill the container up to 1 inch from the top of the container.

5. Arrange your herb plants so that the taller plants will not shade the shorter ones. Place the lower plants around the edges of the pot and the taller ones in the center. However, if the container is placed against a wall, you may need to turn the pot each day to ensure all the herbs receive sunshine.

6. Dig holes for each herb plant. Each hole should match the size of the herb's original nursery container in height. They should be just a bit larger around than the containers.

7. Place the plants into the holes. Pour potting soil around the sides of each plant, pressing down with your fingers to remove any air pockets.

8. Water your mini herb garden often enough to keep the soil moist, but not muddy. The frequency of watering will depend on the indoor or outdoor conditions. Check the soil with your finger to make sure it is not dry. Usually indoor herb gardens require less water than those kept outdoors.

Tips & Warnings

• Taller herbs, such as fennel and dill may be grown in larger, separate containers.

• Fertilizer is not required for annual herbs. The potting soil will offer plenty of nutrition for the plants. For perennial herbs, use a mild houseplant fertilizer once a year in the spring.

References

• West Virginia University Extension: Growing Herbs in the Home Garden
• Utah State University Extension; Herb Container Gardens; Maggie Wolf; August 2002
• Sunset: Home-Grown Herb Container Garden
• Colorado State University; Growing Herbs in Containers; October, 2010