4 Useful Tips That Will Help You Grow Herbs Indoors
Many of you may not know this but you can actually grow herbs indoors. This can be rather useful during the colder seasons as you can protect herbs from harsh weather. So how do you go about doing this? While it may seem simple, it can be rather tricky to grow herbs indoors. To help you out, we thought it would be useful to put together a couple of tips that will make growing herbs indoors easier. If this is something that you want to learn more about, read on for four useful tips that will allow you to grow herbs indoors.
Choose the Right Spot
If your windowsill doesn’t get enough sunlight, your herbs will be leggy, stressed, and have bad flavor. Make sure to place your herbs in a south or southwest window where they will get at least six hours of sun per day. If you don’t have a sunny window, you can use grow lights. However, you will need to place the grow lights close to the plants (within 18 inches) and keep them on for 10 hours per day to make up for the lack of intensity.
Pick Suitable Herbs
Pick herbs that are short and don’t spread too much, as they will do well in pots. Chives, basil, lavender, parsley, mint, rosemary, and thyme are good options. You can buy nursery plants or seeds. Starting from seed is usually cheaper. But it takes more effort, and you won’t be able to use the herbs for several months.
Care for Your Herbs
Different herbs have different water needs, so make sure to check the requirements for your specific plants. In general, herbs don’t like to sit in wet soil, so drain any excess water from the saucers immediately. Additionally, container plants tend to dry out more quickly than those grown in the ground, and dry indoor air can also increase your plants’ water needs.
Water your indoor plants until the water starts to come out of the bottom of the pot. If you only give them a splash of water each time, rather than enough to flush the soil, the salts from the water can build up and you’ll start to see a white film on the outside of the pot.
Different herbs have different fertilizer needs. Be sure to select a fertilizer that is meant for edible plants. Usually, if the plant’s growth appears to be weak and frail, then reduce the amount or frequency of fertilizer. However, if the plants look like they are struggling, give them more fertilizer. You will also need to change the fertilizer schedule according to the seasons. In general, herbs will grow more slowly during winter and will need less food.
Harvest Properly
Once your plants have settled in and begun to grow (or once seedlings have reached at least 6 inches tall), you can start harvesting them. For most herbs, you can snip 2-3 inches off the tips as needed. While this may seem a little tedious, this will also encourage more branching and full growth. For some herbs, such as parsley and cilantro, you can cut entire stems from the outside of the plant, and new growth will fill in. Remember to never trim more than a third of a plant’s foliage at one time. This could be detrimental to your herbs. Pruning more than that can stress the plant and cause it to decline.
Conclusion
To learn more about container gardening and get more tips about growing herbs, read more content from Blossom and Broom. We are a herbal gardening blog and will give you all the information that you need. Get all the home and garden aesthetics and help you need today. For more information, visit our website today!
