Herb Container Gardens

Cooking Herbs

• Grow a Mediterranean garden to flavor your Italian kitchen. Basil comes in a few delicious varieties and all of them like warm soil, sunny spots, occasional light fertilizer and good drainage. Oregano grows quickly and should be cut back to encourage new growth. Rosemary likes sun and water, but not too much of either. It prefers a bit of lime in the soil. Garlic will grow from a clove planted upright in its own small pot. Snip off garlic flower stalks so all the energy goes into the roots. Dig up the bulb when the leaves begin to go yellow and brown in midsummer.

Medicinal Herbs

• Medicinal herbs were the staple of the healer's and homemaker's gardens. There is a resurgence of interest in medicinal herbs and in growing them in a container garden. Lemon balm will thrive in full sun and smell wonderful. The crushed leaves were applied to soothe burns. Peppermint and chamomile happily inhabit the same well-watered container in a sunny or partially shaded spot. The dried leaves are brewed for teas to calm an upset stomach. Echinacea is pretty, but the tall purple coneflowers will need a large container. Try planting it in a half-barrel with other flowering herbs, including calendula and arnica. Echinacea tincture is used to support the immune system. Calendula is a topical healer traditionally added to lip balm and ointments. Arnica-infused oil will help to prevent bruising and reduce swelling.

Propagation

• Sow seeds indoors to start them off well. Plant under a light cover of soil, in a sunny window and try to grow the herbs at about 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool temperature stimulates the plant to flower. Anise, coriander, dill and fennel should be seeded in their permanent pots because they react badly to being transplanted. Harden off any seedlings grown indoors before they go into containers in the garden. Lavender, lemon balm, sage and Rosemary will grow from cuttings taken during late spring and summer. Growing these herbs in containers means fewer transplants, pots that can travel to catch seasonal sun and cuttings that can root in one summer and overwinter in their pots, becoming well-established by the next summer.

Containers

• Get creative with herb containers. A fragrant green herb spilling out of a pair of worn out boots or high-tops is a windowsill garden sculpture. An old tire in a sunny garden spot, painted with colorful cartoon daisies, makes a great raised bed. Gallon water jugs cut in half can easily be adapted to grow a tasty culinary crop. Herbs will grow well in the openings of a strawberry pot,and you can make a living green wall of herbs by slitting felt or fabric attached to a plywood backing and tucking in some peat moss, soil and herb seedlings. Broken-down straw and wicker baskets get one more season of life as mini-herb gardens. Toss them on the compost heap when the harvest is in.