How to Plant Seeds for a Home Herb Garden

Starting Seeds Indoors

• 1

  Determine the date to start seeds indoors by counting backward from the final frost date in your area. You can find out the final frost date from your local extension office or the National Climatic Data Center website. Start lemon balm seeds 10 to 12 weeks before the final frost. Start sage and basil six to eight weeks, chamomile four to six weeks and nasturtium two to four weeks before the last frost date.

• 2

  Mix warm water into soilless seed-starter mix until the mix feels moist to the touch.

• 3

  Fill individual starter pots or a starter tray with soil mixture, firming it with your hand and leaving at least a 1/4-inch space at the top for watering.

• 4

  Plant the seeds according to the directions on the packet. Generally, you should plant seeds at a depth twice the thickness of the seed. Since herb seeds tend to be small, you can often press them into the soil surface and then cover them with a fine sprinkling of soil. Do not cover chamomile seeds; these require light to germinate.

• 5

  Move the seed tray to a sunny, south-facing window or under a fluorescent lamp. Cover the tray with a sheet of moist burlap or plastic to keep the containers moist. Provide water to keep the soil moist using a spray bottle so that you don't disturb the soil over the seeds.

Planting Seeds Outdoors

• 6

  Prepare the planting bed by incorporating compost or well-rotted manure, if needed, so that water doesn't sit on the soil surface or drain so quickly that it leaves the soil dry. Herbs do not require extra fertilizer added to the soil.

• 7

  Loosen the soil surface and break up any large clods of earth. Wet the soil and work the water in until the soil is moist and loose.

• 8

  Cut a furrow in the soil surface to the planting depth indicated on the seed packet or twice the width of the seed. Space seeds according to instructions on the seed packet and cover them with soil. Do not cover dill seeds, which require light for germination.

• 9

  Cover the seedbed with wet paper or burlap to keep the soil moist until germination begins. Water the seedlings with a spray bottle until strong roots form that will resist dislodging by a strong stream of water.