Useful Herbs to Grow at Home

Herbs to Grow at Home

There are many great herbs to grow at home. Herbs have many uses, whether it’s for flavouring food, making tea or companion planting. My favourite aspect of herbs is that they are easy to grow, and most of them require very little maintenance.

Herbs are some of the easiest and versatile plants to add to our gardens. Many of them are beautiful, aromatic, attracts pollinators, are packed full of culinary and medicinal uses. They are also great for organic gardening, as adding a different amount of herbs throughout your garden, can help protect and aid your vegetables. The nectar the herbs produce attracts predator insects that will rid your garden of nasty pests.

Easy to Grow Herb Varieties

Here are some great herbs to try at home:

  • Chives – are very easy to grow from seed. They are great in salads, soups and stews.
  • Creeping thyme – is a low growing plant that gradually “creeps” out and spreads. It can tolerate mild foot traffic and, when touched, gives out a refreshing aroma. The leaves can be used fresh or dried.
  • Greek oregano – is the plant used for its essential oils for “Oil of oregano.” The reason is that Greek oregano has very high concentrations of essential oil, making it the most suitable for production, but this also makes it an excellent choice for us to plant in our gardens. This essential oil has amazing antibacterial and antiviral properties; it also boosts the immune system. Tea can easily be made with two tablespoons of fresh leaves and let steep for 8 minutes.
  • Lemon balm – can grow anywhere from 70-150 cm in height. As the name suggests is smells and tastes like lemon. It’s a delightful lemon aroma and flavour that is often used in seasoning meat or made into a great tasting tea. This herb is very easy to germinate from seed.
  • Basil – has been used for 5,000 and is very popular in many cuisines. There are many different varieties available these days. The leaves are best used fresh as they will lose flavour when dried. It’s really a great herb for anyone to try to grow as it is very easy to grow from seed. Basil loves the heat, so start the seeds outdoors too early in the season.
  • Parsely – An easy to grow herb. Mosscurled parsley has a more robust flavour, while Italian parsley is much milder. It can be grown indoors if place in a bright window or under grow-lights.
  • Mint – It’s best to buy plants from a nursery because the seeds do not produce true to the plant. Some varieties can be grown from seeds, and these are Mountain mint and menthol mint.

If you have any herbs to suggest, please comment below.

2 Comments

  1. Is Chia easier for growing than beans? Because beans are far more healthy than Chia in my opinion. This grains became very popular in the last few years and everyone is calling it super food and stuff, but simple beans has the same and even better nutrients, fibre quantities and omega-3.

    I’d suggest that people also grow parsley, dill, celery, cilantro, bay leaves, spinach and everything else green they can think of. Mint and nettle are also very healthy, but one should be careful with putting them in the open space garden, as they are pretty invasive.

    Regards, Allison from Gardening Services London.

    • Yeah, really all of those herbs you suggest are super foods. In fact, most common vegetables are super amazing for us. Chia is a super “grain” though. Most grains are not very nutritious unless they are germinated. And it does have some extra benefits for the digestive system.

      All of that said, I’m more likely to use split peas and beans though, as it tastes much better than chia :).

      Thanks for your comment!

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