I love rosemary. It’s easy to grow. It’s hardy. And it tastes great in so many dishes. But I also regularly end up with powdery mildew on rosemary plants – especially when I bring them indoors. Even though this seems to happen more frequently indoors, it’s not unheard of to end up with powdery mildew […]
Category: Spice & Herb Gardening
In the articles below, discover everything you need to know about spice and herb gardening, including how to grow them indoors, outdoors, in containers, in the ground, harvest, dry, and how to cook them!
The benefits of spice and herb gardening are numerous. They grow like weeds, can be dried and used all year long; they smell great and add color to foods. Oh, and they’re the core flavors of every delicious recipe that’s ever been made!
Need other reasons to grow spices and herbs? They can be grown in containers indoors and outdoors. They thrive in the ground, in raised beds, and even along the perimeter of a yard. Many herbs will deflect bugs that are hazardous to your vegetables, like basil planted with tomatoes. They’re ideal companion plants that way, and they don’t require very much from you as a gardener.
They don’t usually even need mulch, with some exceptions. Some early-season spices and herbs, like garlic or chives, may start coming in during a warm spell. A layer of mulch can help insulate them against temperature drops. And some mulches, like shredded leaves or compost, will add nutrients to the soil as they decompose.
When it comes to harvesting spices and herbs, that’s the easy part of spice and herb gardening. Trim them as needed for all of your recipes, and when the winter turns colder, you can cut them down to the roots to dry them or crush seeds into powders. Woody plants like thyme, sage, and rosemary dry well, while softer plants like basil and parsley are better frozen. Cumin seeds can be crushed into powder, while fennel can be used whole. For spices like ginger and turmeric, you simply unearth the root to enjoy it.
In the articles below, we share everything you need to know about spice and herb gardening. And you can learn even more in our How to Grow a Vegetable Garden: 10 Things Every Gardener Needs to Know Before Starting a Food Garden freebie. Enjoy!
How much water does basil need? I feel like I ask myself this every darn time I grow it (which is as much as possible, in case you’re wondering). I’ve had more than a few happy-looking basil plants turn wilty and depressed in just an hour or so. Basil has the ultimate “sad puppy look” down pat.
Basil is one of those wonderful herbs that makes life better. Pick a few basil leaves off the plant or chop them in your kitchen, and your nose is happy right away. Basil is also relatively easy to grow. But I’ll admit, I’ve had my share of issues with the plant, too. Rabbits have decimated my basil, some unknown pest has chewed holes in the leaves, and I’ve watched my verdant green basil leaves turning yellow.
I’m not gonna lie; it’s darn hot as I’m writing this. The heat index is over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and my parsley is looking at me like, “C’mon, woman! Where’s that AC?” My heat-tolerant herbs, however, are having a party. They’ve got the beach ball out, there’s some Stevie Wonder on the hi-fi, and I’m pretty sure the sunflowers are dancing.
Not gonna lie here. I love getting and giving homemade spice mixes for gifts. For the cook in your life, they’re the perfect gift. A spice mix is thoughtful, and it shows that you spent time and energy making something that reflects you as a person and as a cook or gardener. And, yeah, there […]
Cilantro shares a long history with humanity. Seeds of the herb were scattered in the tomb of King Tutankhamun. They were found in caves inhabited 8,000 years ago in Israel. The herb appears in ancient texts from Greece and Rome. And while a lot has changed, I’d be willing to bet that if we could […]
I’ll be the first to say that it’s kind of hard to go wrong with a BBQ of any kind. There’s just something about cooking and eating outdoors that feels so relaxed. But the right ingredients can turn a good BBQ into an unforgettable experience. And a BBQ herb garden is just the thing to […]
If you have herbs in your garden, you might have given some thought to how to prune herbs, so they grow nice and healthy. The good news? It’s pretty darn easy. The bad news? Well, there isn’t really much in the way of bad news. However, there are a few tips that will help you […]
If you’ve bought saffron at the grocery store any time in the last decade, there’s a good chance you’ve thought about how to grow saffron. There’s no way around it; saffron is pricey. In fact, it’s long been considered the most expensive spice in the world. The red, thread-like spice is actually the stigma from […]
I love deciding which herbs to plant in spring. I know many of them like spending warm summer days outdoors, but the way to get there is to start them in the spring. For many herbs, this means planting them inside several weeks before the last frost. Some herbs, however, are perfectly fine with that […]