If you live somewhere without a lot of outdoor space, or perhaps none at all, you may have never given a second thought to starting your own garden. As after all, where would you put it? A windowsill herb garden can be the perfect solution for those who want to add some color, interest, and delicious herbs to their indoor living space. This type of garden is extremely easy to maintain and requires very little money to get started.
The Joys of Indoor Gardening
Creating a windowsill herb garden full of tasty, healthy additions for all of your recipes is simple and easy to do. The most time it will take is an hour or so to get everything up and ready to go starting with the installation of the container and ending with the addition of the plants or seeds. This type of gardening requires very little maintenance as there will be no weeds to pull since your garden isn't outside so all that's left is watering and checking in on your crops.
The only money you'll have to spend will be on the herb gardening kit, usually just a few dollars or so, and found online or at your local nursery or home and garden centers. If you want to be even more frugal, ask family and friends with green thumbs for their clippings or seeds. Don't worry if you don't have any special knowledge about gardening or botany as all you really need to grow herbs are the right tools, which are good soil, plenty of light, ample water, and the proper drainage.
How to Get Started
To start planting your windowsill herb garden, follow these simple steps. Pick the best windowsill in the home, try the one facing south or southwest, that will receive the most sunlight per day, ideally four to six hours or more. Once you have a window in mind, find a container that will fit on the sill, remembering that size is more important than appearance in this case. Ensure the container will allow for the proper drainage, if there are no existing holes you can punch your own through the bottom so the water doesn't collect and rot your plant's roots. After the holes are made, add a few layers of sand alternating with gravel for the best results.
Fill the container with a soil-less potting mixture, or with potting soil, but don't use the regular garden soil as the nutrients it includes are formulated for outdoor gardens rather than growing herbs indoors. Although you'll want to make the most of your indoor windowsill herb garden you won't want to crowd them in the container, so leave sufficient space around each plant or seed to allow them to fully grow. Now simply add water and wait for your herbs to grow and add both beauty and aroma to your home!
Quick Tips to Remember
If you've never grown a windowsill herb garden before here are a few quick tips to remember to ensure success:
- Stick to herbs that will grow best indoors such as thyme, parsley, mint, chives, lavender, or basil.
- If you live where it's cold and darker in the winter, use fluorescent bulbs to make up for the lack of sun.
- Any excess growth should be cut and used in cooking or stored in the freezer for later.
Before you know it you will be enjoying the fruits of your labor with your indoor windowsill herb garden. Yet another benefit is all the money you will save without having the buy herbs from the supermarket, but instead have them fresh and ready at your fingertips.
Yilmaz Cesur is an Herb Garden Enthusiast and Author. You can find more information on herb gardening on his site at http://www.herbgardeningessentials.com/windowsill-herb-garden and you can receive his free eCourse by registering your interest at http://www.HerbGardeningEssentials.com.
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