Before you get any seedlings or sod, ask yourself “Just why do I want to plant an herb garden?” Do you want to grow herbs to sell to local restaurants, or do want herbs for personal use? If you want herbs for personal use, then you won’t need to seed acres of soil. You also won’t need a greenhouse. You can plant an herb garden in a window box, in flowerpots kept in your kitchen, or and in more places than you probably thought possible.
The Broken Wheelbarrow
When I lived in England, I wanted to grow herbs for my cooking and herbal medicines. As I was literally dirt poor at the time, I couldn’t invest heavily in a lot of equipment and tools. But I had a broken wheelbarrow. It had a couple of holes in the bottom of it. That would provide drainage. If you have a tub, barrel or wheelbarrow you want to use to plant an herb garden, make sure there are some holes for drainage, otherwise your herb garden will become a sticky swamp.
I then found some large stones and placed them in a single layer in the bottom of the broken wheelbarrow. I then shoveled in some fertile soil and then planted herbs I’d bought from the grocery store. I left the wheelbarrow outside in a sunny spot. It only took one afternoon’s work to plant an herb garden.
The broken wheelbarrow worked very well as a portable herb garden until the river Avon flooded and took it away. I guess the river likes fresh herbs, too.
Choice Of Herbs
Before you plant an herb garden, take a serious thought as to what herbs grow well in your part of the country. There was no sense of me trying to grow basil outdoors in England – it’s just too cold to grow basil. But parsley and coriander (called cilantro in America) grew very well, considering they are tough little herbs. I was going to grow mint, but I had read that mint has a tendency to overtake the whole herb garden, so I nixed that idea. So, you need to read up on not only what herbs you like to have about the home, but about what can grow in your area and what kind of requirements the herb needs in order to thrive.
And you will make mistakes along the way. Before you plant an herb garden, be resolved that you will learn from your mistakes and not get upset by them.
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