Gardens are therapeutic by their very nature.
But you don’t need to settle for a standard outdoor space. There’s something else you can do to enhance your health and which can give you a tremendous amount of pleasure – a herb garden. Herbs are, essentially, no trouble to grow and you don’t need a lot of space. Once you have chosen your herb garden spot, the first step is to prep the soil.
Herbs aren’t fussy, and most of them don’t require any complicated soil preparation. However, it’ll do no harm to prepare the soil to encourage them. Whatever type of soil the garden has, you will need to add plenty of compost so that your herbs get the nutrients they need.
When choosing a herb garden, you’ll discover that most herbs prefer full sun. If your days just get too hot, consider planting in a patch where there is morning sun and afternoon shade.
Some easy growing herbs are –
• Fennel
• Parsley
• Mint
• Basil
• Coriander
• Sage
• Thyme
Growing Herbs from Seeds
Herbs are durable plants and you can grow them from seed or you can plant established herbs. Once you’ve chosen your seeds, read on the back of the seed packet to see how to grow them in terms of what the best month is to plant them and how to space the seeds.
You can plant them directly into the garden or first into pots. Most plants prefer going immediately into the ground, and for those that grow quite large, they do better in the ground from word go.
Bringing Herbs Home from the Nursery
Once you’ve brought your herbs home from the nursery in those tray pots, prepare the holes in the garden. Turn the small starter-containers upside down, tapping the bottom and gently coaxing the soil with the plant out. Once it is in the hole, fill the hole up with soil and press the soil down gently so that the herb plant is snug and firm in the ground.
Your herb garden will require regular care to flourish. You will need to water them and also harvest them to encourage new growth.
Other things to know –
• Know whether your herbs are perennial or annual.
• Find out how large the herbs get – some can get very large and you may not have the space for them.
• Most herbs need about 4 hours of sunlight each day. Give a light spray of water when you see the soil is dry. Do a little bit of research to find out which herbs prefer more water and which don’t.
Eden Restored is a team of passionate garden designers working throughout London, Kent and Surrey.
We deliver value-for-money on projects of any size, from inner-city courtyards to countryside cottages.
To discuss your ideas and how we can help throughout the entire process, get in touch.