Indoor Herb Gardening Made Easy

Indoor herb gardening is an easy and rewarding way to enjoy fresh herbs for cooking, their fragrances and their visual delights, not to mention the fact that you will be refreshing the quality of the air inside your house. Herbs in pots brighten any room inside, and a family member need only touch the leaves of the herbs for them to release their fragrant essential oils. Fresh herbs like marjoram, mint, or chives make mealtimes special, so whenever a pot is boiling on the stove it is easy to lean over and pick a few sprigs of your favorite herb to spice up your soup.

Growing herb indoors makes it possible for you to enjoy the freshest of herbs each and every day. It is a fun hobby to work in and is an easy garden to maintain. You can have as many potted herbs indoors as sunny windowsills and other spaces allow. If you follow a couple of steps your indoor herb gardening will be successful. The only quality required is a passion for herbs and some knowledge, as beginners can start with a very limited investment.

You can micro-manage herb plants very well when they are right on your windowsill. When growing herbs indoors instead of outside, you are in control of the three most important requirements: light, temperature and moisture.

Adequate sunlight or light
It is necessary to expose all herbs to 4 to 6 hours of sunlight a day on your window sill or chosen spot. If your window doesn’t allow in that much light, you can purchase special garden grow lights and hang them three inches above the plants. Some signs that your herb garden is not receiving enough light will be long stems and leaves, fading leaves or simply leaves that fall off for no other reason.

Watering
How often do you need to water your indoor herbs? That’s an important question. Herbs grown in containers do tend to dry out more quickly than those grown outside. But it’s very easy to check that. Simply stick a finger into the soil at least half an inch below the surface. If the soil feels dry to the touch, then you’ll need to water the plant.  However, don’t be tempted to overwater your indoor herbs as you’ll only be promoting root rot as well as the development of a disease called powdery mildew.

Additionally, during the winter months the air inside might be too dry for your herb plants. A quick remedy is to use a fine mist water spray and spray the herbs all over once a week. Another method is to place the herb in its container onto a tray filled with pebbles with water poured over the pebbles. As the water in the tray evaporates, it humidies the air around the plant.

Temperature
As far as temperature goes, it is essential to shield herbs from extreme temperatures. For example, if you live in a very hot climate shade the herbs during the hottest periods, and if you live in a very cold climate keep the herbs away from cold glass panes.

Which herbs to grow indoors?
Growing herbs indoors proves to be highly beneficial when you grow the herbs that have multiple uses.  Following are some of the most popular herbs for indoor herb gardening:

Sage is a versatile herb for a kitchen herb garden. It is a commonly used herb in savory meat or poultry dishes, and is also used medicinally, as a tea for sore throats and colds.

Chives are a must have for a kitchen herb garden as they can be eaten at almost every meal. Chives are easy to grow, you just need to cut them back often, to keep from toppling over.

Thyme is another powerful cooking and healing herb.The more you trim the thyme leaves, the more tasty leaves you will be rewarded with. Thyme is great for both savory dishes and in a tea for colds and flu.

Sweet Marjoram is a delicious herb that can be used in most dishes, and also in the place of oreganum.

Parsley is an often underestimated herb through its primary use as a food garnish due to its attractive deep green color and decorative curly leaves. Parsley is also a potent antioxidant that prevents damage to cells, and contains Vitamin A and C, amongst many nutrients. It is also highly effective as a breath and palate cleanser.

French Tarragon lends itself well to any dairy or egg dish and gives a savory taste to those winter comfort foods

And finally, for a lovely container filled with fragrant herbs, you could consider Rose Scented Geranium and Lemon Balm. As the name implies the Rose Scented Geranium has a delicious rose fragrance, but there are more scents to choose from, such as a variety of Citrus Scented Geraniums (which is a known mosquito repellent) or the Peppermint Scented Geranium). Apart from its fresh smell, Lemon Balm also reduces stress and anxiety, promotes sleep, improves appetite, and eases pain and discomfort associated with digestion.

Now the only thing left to do is watch, enjoy and allow time for your herbs to grow used to their new conditions. Once you see growth you can start using you herbs. Cut and use your herbs often to encourage them to grow full and lush.