How to Plant a Kitchen Herb Garden

Fresh, fragrant herbs are essential to thousands of dishes … but, what if you could have garden-fresh herbs within reach all the time? It’s possible with a kitchen herb garden. Here’s what the experts have to say about growing one.

How to Plant a Kitchen Herb Garden

Step 1: Decide What You’ll Grow

Loveleaf Co. suggests starting with three herbs you know you like, grown from healthy plants, not seeds. Their picks include basil, mint, thyme, rosemary, chives, oregano, sage, and lemongrass. We suggest trying those that dry well, including thyme, rosemary, and oregano. But, if you love chives on your baked potatoes or mint in your mojitos, you might choose differently.

Step 2: Find a Cute Container

Your herbs will live in individual pots with drainage holes. Since your garden will be part of your decor, pick containers that make you happy. Chive has some adorable pots and planters with drainage at affordable prices.

Step 3: Choose a Soil

Potting mix, particularly organic, is a solid choice for your kitchen herb garden because it’s lighter than potting soil. Loveleaf Co. suggests having a fertilizer on hand to use every two weeks. Neptune’s Harvest, a fish and seaweed fertilizer, is one reliable option.

Step 4: Plant

Sprinkle a layer of potting mix at the bottom of your pot, then remove your plant from its packaging. Gently squeeze the roots to loosen up the root structure. Place your plant into its pot and pack the top carefully with more potting mix.

Step 5: See the Light

Herbs need about six hours of sunlight every day, and experts suggest that you choose a window with southern exposure for the best consistent light. Rotate your herbs 45 degrees every week and change up the location as needed based on time of day and season.

Step 5: Make it Rain

Water your plants when the soil is dry, and make sure you’re not overwatering. You’ll know your herbs are thirsty if you press your finger into the soil and it feels totally dry.

Step 6: Harvest and Cook

HGTV suggests that you start harvesting as soon as your herbs are mature, but that you are careful to only take a little bit every time you harvest. “If you remove more than a third of the plant at one time, it takes longer to recover and produce new foliage.”

If your kitchen herb garden needs a new backdrop, check out our gorgeous kitchen countertop stone options. Want more home decor and DIY ideas? Read our recent articles, including bathroom remodeling ideas to try in 2020 and what to do with stone or granite countertop remnants.