Getting Creative with Herbs
16 April, 2020
Its always a good idea to have some fresh herbs on your patio, just in case you forget to buy them at the store (which I always do). I also find that a lot of groceries stores, especially in a city, usually have a pretty limited selection of fresh herbs. If you grow your own, it can be way cheaper if you keep up with it every year. This year, since I have a lot more space, I am doing a couple different experiments with my herbs.
A couple of years ago I purchased a six pod AeroGarden system. They go on sale a couple of times a year from AeroGarden, Sur La Table, or Williams Sonoma. It’s been off or on over the years if I have been organized enough to use it. In February I decided to plant an herb pod kit. It took off, and within 6 weeks I had an overtaking herb garden just in time to transfer it outside for mid April. Of the six pods, 5 succeeded, and the thyme for whatever reason never sprouted. You can leave the herbs in the AeroGarden for a couple of months, but you have to stay on top of pruning the herbs. If you don’t, most likely the Basil will take over the other herbs.
Herbs in the AeroGarden Herb Kit
Thai Basil
Basil
Dill
Thyme
Curly Parsley
Mint
The AeroGarden/Seed Grown Herb Competition
Now that my AeroGarden herbs are established, I decided I wanted to move them outside so I can grow some edible flowers in the AeroGarden. I of course decided this was a great opportunity to do a science experiment, and compare how the hydroponic AeroGarden herbs do compared to your average grocery/hardware store potted herbs.
The challenge with gardening, is there are so many different elements that your plants are exposed to, that it is hard to pick the one thing that causes them to fail or succeed. You can do all of the prepping you want, but maybe you have a plant that just is not meant to survive in its environment. The challenge i found with replanting the AerGarden herbs was that they mature in a very controlled environment when they are inside their Aero Ecosystem, so you really have to watch how you invite them into the outside environment. You need to spend a couple of days slowly transitioning them to a natural sunlight environment. I have also found that they require a lot more water at first compared to your average store bought plants, because they mature under hydroponic conditions in the AeroGarden.
I have been surprised with which plants have thrived the most. The dill of all things (That is the herb I usually kill first), is flourishing in its outside pot. The Thai Basil had a rough time with the changes in temperature, and it did not survive the first week. I would either choose to plant it inside near a window, or wait until early summer to plant it outside. The regular Basil has been in a “battle phase.” It thrives in the head and sunlight, but also has challenges with the cold. I would probably delay planting it until late May, or plant it inside with the Thai Basil. I kept the Curly Parsley in the AeroGarden, to let it catch up to the other plants. It is slowly getting there, but it seems like a process……
I planted the mint in a separate pot, with the hopes that it would be so bountiful that it would encompass one pot to itself. Funny enough, mint usually grows like a weed in the dirt. This mint seems to be in a vertical growing phase, still flourishing, but not the weed like plant that over takes things like we are all used to! Maybe I should make a trellis for it to grow up? I got a store bought sweet mint plant to compliment it in the pot next door.
Herbs in general can be planted closer than your average vegetables, so they make great additions to flower boxes or porch plants. They key is to keep plants that grow like weeds in separate pots (such as mint), or they may overtake the other plants. Also, plants that tend to grow taller (like basil), place them in the pot so they don’t block the sun from all of your low growing herbs.
I hope this post inspires everyone to find their own way to grow herbs. Standby for updates as the summer progresses! (I had some extra hanging pots available, so I decided to add some strawberries to the ambiance!)