4 Easy-to-Grow Culinary Herbs Ideal for Small Spaces

Fresh herbs are a great way to bring the flavors of your dishes to life. Unfortunately, they can be expensive to buy at the grocery store and they aren’t always in season. Although you can use their dried counterparts in your favorite recipes, they just don’t deliver the same flavor profile.  Fortunately, you can enjoy fresh herb flavor all year long and you don’t need a ton of space to do it.

If full-scale gardening isn’t your thing or if space is at a premium in your garden, you’ll want to get the most bang for your buck from your plant choices. Not only do you want to select herbs that are easy to grow, you’ll also want to select versatile options that pair well with a diverse selection of recipes. The following list of easy-to-grow culinary herbs can help you get started.

Here are 4 Easy-to-Grow and Versatile Herbs

Basil (Photo credit: Skrewtape)

1. Basil. Basil tops the list because it is so versatile and is super easy to grow from seed. All you need is a small pot and sunny windowsill and you can have fresh basil at your fingertips all year long.

After all, what could be better than juicy tomatoes paired with fresh mozzarella and fresh-picked basil?  Top with a balsamic reduction, some good extra virgin olive oil, and a little salt and fresh-cracked pepper and you’ve got a delicious and easy lunch entrée or dinner salad.

Basil is also an important ingredient in fresh pesto recipes and it pairs beautifully with tomato-based pasta sauces. For a unique twist, add julienned basil and Brie cheese to sourdough bread for a fabulous grilled cheese sandwich.  If you want to get even more creative, plant a pot of purple basil to make a beautiful and delicious purple basil jelly.

Fresh Cilantro (Coriander). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

2. Cilantro (Coriander).  This herb does double duty. The fresh leaves (cilantro) of young plants are a staple in Mexican cooking. Fresh cilantro is a key ingredient in homemade salsas and also adds a unique flavor dimension to salad greens. It can also be used in a wide variety of marinades for beef, chicken, pork and vegetables. It is especially well suited for marinating meats for fajita recipes.

Cilantro is also very easy to grow from seed. You can extend the life of your plant by keeping it plucked down and keeping it in cooler areas. In spite of your best efforts, however, it will eventually “bolt” to form lacy flowers that will set seeds that can be harvested. Those seeds can be lightly toasted and ground down to create coriander, which is much more mellow in flavor than its fresh counterpart and is a nice complement to many recipes.

Rosemary (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

3. Rosemary. Rosemary can also be started from seeds, but you may find it easier to pick up small plants from your local garden center each spring. They can then be brought indoors during cooler weather, but you will need to keep them moist and provide access to a sunny window, preferably with a southern exposure, * to keep them happy. If cared for properly, they will live for many years.

Not only is rosemary delicious in marinades for roasted chicken, pork, or beef, it also imparts a wonderful earthy aroma to roasted new potatoes and homemade focaccia bread.

Rosemary is also a very pretty plant with decorative appeal. It adds structure to the herb garden with its elegant upright growth habit. Plus, it can easily be shaped to look like a Christmas tree. As a result, rosemary makes a lovely hostess gift around the holidays.

Thyme (Photo credit: Erutuon)

4. Thyme. This is another classic culinary herb that is so easy to grow. Fresh thyme is a staple in many types of cuisine and adds a distinctive flavor to meat-based dishes and is wonderful in stews and soups, as well. For a special treat, grow lemon thyme to add an unexpected hint of citrus flavor to your dishes.

Another thing to love about thyme is its beauty. It has a beautiful growth habit that makes it ideal in pots next to taller herbs like rosemary. Use it outdoors to edge walkways and paths to add a fragrant element to your landscape.

Of course, these four easy-to-grow culinary herbs barely scratch the surface of what you can grow in a limited space. The herbs listed here are easy to grow and can be found in a diverse range of recipes, so not only will you enjoy growing them, you’ll love using them, too.

*Southern exposure in the Northern hemisphere.

5 Easy-To-Grow Herbs - For Kids Or Adults

If your kids are looking for something easy to grow in their little garden patch this summer, herbs may be a great option. And if you don't have kids, or if they're not the gardening type, these are still a great option for adult gardeners too! Herbs are one of the most useful items to grow in your yard or home.  They grow quickly and a quick snip of the scissors brings fresh taste to your recipes and dinner table.  Here are 5 tasty, useful, and easy to grow herbs, and tips for growing and harvesting them.

Basil

English: Thai basil with flowers (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are a number of basil types including spicy Thai Basil and Sweet Basil, which is commonly used in Italian cooking.  Basil can be grown either indoors on a sunny window ledge or in your garden once the fear of frost has passed.  Simply place the seeds in the ground per the package directions, The plants can grow up to two feet high which means you’ll want to start thinning them until they’re about six inches apart.  Leaves can be picked and used for seasoning when the plants are six weeks old.  If you’re going to dry leaves then pick them before the plant’s bloom spikes appear.

Mint
Mint is delightful in drinks, deserts and in many Middle Eastern dishes.  Mint, a perennial, is easy to grow because it really doesn’t care much about the soil it’s planted in.  This makes it good for even those with brown thumbs.  If you’re growing mint outside then take care because it spreads like a weed and can take over your garden or lawn.  This makes it a great herb to grow in pots, or indoors in smaller window ledge containers.  Leaves can be harvested as soon as plant reaches six inches. 

Dill
Dill is an easy to grow herb and fits quite nicely in a flower garden.  It grows to about three feet tall and produce yellow flowers.  Both the greens and the seeds from the flowers can be used to season food. Your kids may be interested to know that this is the herb most commonly used in making pickles! The leaves are best harvested before the flowers open.  The seeds can be harvested when the flower is open and they’ve ripened.  It’s advised to sow them from a seed as transplanting dill plants is difficult.  Like Basil, plant seeds after danger of frost has passed. 

Herbs: Thyme, oregano and rosemary (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thyme
In drier climates, Thyme is actually used as a xeriscape ground cover.  This means it’s quite hearty and grows like a weed!  You can grow them in a container garden, right in the soil, or on your window ledge.  Thyme is another one of those herbs that comes in a number of varieties.  It’s best to grow it from a cutting rather than directly from a seed because seeds take a long time to cultivate. 

Parsley
Parsley, either curly or flat leaf, is another easy to grow and quite versatile herb.  Like many other herbs, it grows quite quickly and reseeds itself, which means you could easily end up with a garden full of parsley if you don’t prune and keep an eye on it.  Sow from seeds directly into your garden.  They’re not choosy about their soil but they do like a lot of sun. 

Growing herbs at home doesn’t have to be left to the green thumbs in the world.  Many herbs are tremendously easy to grow and practically raise themselves, which  makes them ideal for kids who want to try their hand at gardening, and for adults who are new gardeners or simply haven't had much success with gardening so far.  Whether you garden with your kids or without, indoors or out, in containers or in a small plot in your yard, herb growing is a great way to add flavor and fun to your summertime meals.


Easy Herb Gardening Resources: 
   

All About Basil

Basil is one of the most common herbs grown in kitchen gardens - mainly because it is fast-growing, so it can be prolific even in a cooler climate, but it is also very easy to grow right from seed, dries well, and has many uses. There are several different varieties of basil, from Italian to Thai, and even flavored basils such as Lemon Basil, or colorful purple or red varieties. But the most common by far is Italian Basil.

Image via WikipediaOriginally, Basil was not the most popular herb in the bunch. Actually there were some who simply hated it in ancient times. The name basil means "be fragrant" but still various cultures battled with a love/hate relationship over basil. Americans and Romans loved it while Hindus plant it in their homes as a sign of happiness. On the contrary, the Greeks despised it, and those from India and Persia were not too fond of it either. One place that took a special liking to Basil was Italy, and to this day not many people prepare a classic Italian pasta sauce without the Basil.

To this day basil and tomato sauce have formed somewhat of a marriage almost globally. Basil is very easy to grow as long as the temperature does not fall below 50 degrees and is in full sunshine. It is popularly used both in the fresh form as well as the dried. A rare known fact about Basil is that the longer it simmers in a dish the more the flavor intensifies. This makes sense as to why Italians simmer their pasta sauces for so long, to bring out all of the rich herb flavors. Normally in pasta sauces Basil is used in combination with Oregano. However, Basil is not just used for pasta or tomato sauce, it is also used for flavoring fish, vegetables, meats, and soups.

If you decide to grow an herb garden, you can thank the Basil plants for keeping the flies away as flies are also part of the group that does not care for Basil. Another interesting fact about Basil is that it was considered a royal herb with a strong association pertaining to love. Basil had a relationship with how men of a much earlier time planned on proposing to their fair maidens. The man would bring a branch of Basil and if the woman accepted his gift she silently agreed to love him and be faithful to him for eternity.

Image by henna lion via FlickrBasil is related to the Mint family and just knowing that should give you a good idea that it will have many medicinal uses as well. Right away most people associate anything mint with aiding the digestive system and also for its anti gas properties. Herbalists use Basil quite commonly for health ailments such as stomach cramps, vomiting, constipation, headaches and anxiety. When Basil is used for these purposes it is generally made into a hot tea for drinking. Some also claim that a nice hot cup of Basil tea can contribute greatly to a good nights sleep. At herbal stores you can also purchase Basil capsules as well if you do not care for the taste of the tea.

Basil is still one of the most common household herbs used today and in most areas of culinary art it is a necessity there too. When used in its freshest form, Basil is torn from the plant and then just minced up with a knife. Usually somewhere nearby the Basil you will find some olive oil, garlic, and someone getting ready to prepare a fantastic tomato sauce!

Related Articles on Basil:

• 10 Tips For Growing Basil (casasugar.com)
• Freezing Fresh Basil and Other Herbs (thebittenword.com)
• Windowsill Herbs (awakeninspiration.wordpress.com)
• Cooking With Basil and Its Many Friends (online.wsj.com)

How to Grow Your Own Herbal Remedies

Herbs are a fun addition to the garden, and not only are they tasty in all kinds of dishes, but many also have medicinal properties that can be very helpful for all kinds of ailments. When you hear about someone who grows herbs for medicine, perhaps you picture a big garden or farm, and someone who has nothing to do all day but work in the garden. While that is a picturesque and perhaps enviable scene, Image via Wikipedia (Basil)most of us do not have that kind of time and space. The good news is, you don't have to let the lack of time and space discourage you. There are many valuable medicinal herbs that are easy to grow in small spaces and/or containers. Here are some ideas.

1. Rosemary grows very well in a pot, and overwinters indoors. This herb not only tastes good, but it is a powerful antioxidant due to the rosmarinic acid it contains. It also has compounds to help keep your mind sharp.

2. Lemon balm is very easy to grow - in fact, growing it in a container is advisable since it tends to take over a yard or garden. It is a very powerful antiviral herb that can be used to stave off colds and flu.

3. Fennel is an easy-to-grow perennial herb that can be planted in your yard. Its feathery foliage and licorice-like scent make it pleasant anywhere. Consider planting it by your front porch or back door. Fennel helps increase milk flow in nursing mothers, and it also helps treat gas and other digestive upsets.

4. Lavender can be grown in containers or in the yard. It likes its environment to be sunny and well-drained, even dry. Lavender flowers help promote relaxation and sleep.

Image via Wikipedia (Bee Balm)5. Bee balm (Monarda) is a perennial that thrives in sun or shade, but prefers partial shade. The aerial parts of this plant make a tasty, memory-enhancing tea. It tastes something like the citrus oil of bergamot used in Earl Grey tea, which is why bee balm is sometimes called bergamot.

6. Mints are the ultimate easy growers. They do fine in containers or open ground. All mints make good digestive aids, and mountain mint is an effective insect repellent.

7. Basil grows well in pots or open ground, but it is not cold-hardy. You will either have to plant new basils every year or bring your potted plants indoors before frost. Basil is antibacterial and anti-inflammatory.

8. Oregano will sprawl into a lovely ground cover or thrives happily in a pot. Its pink blooms attract beneficial bees. Oregano has antibacterial properties and is rich in antioxidants.

Herb Gardening Resources: