Growing an herb garden at home is a great way to enjoy the fresh taste of herbs and is an economical and eco-friendly option. I love growing herbs, and going out into my garden and picking fresh herbs with the meal calls for it is a favorite pastime. With proper preparation and planning, anyone can start their own herb garden from seeds. Whether you have a full outdoor garden or just a few pots in your kitchen, starting an herb garden from seeds is easy and rewarding.

Preparing for an Herb Garden

The most crucial step in starting any type of garden is preparing the area beforehand. It’s essential that you choose a space that gets sufficient sunlight throughout the day so that your plants will get enough nourishment. If you have a kitchen window sill that gets daylight, that could be ideal. Additionally, you’ll want to make sure that any soil you use has good drainage, so your herbs don’t get waterlogged. If the ground space isn’t well-drained, consider planting your herb garden in pots instead. You should also check to ensure no weeds are growing near your garden, as they can hinder the growth of your herbs.

Planting Herbs from Seeds

Once you’ve prepared your space, it’s time to start planting! I prefer to grow my herbs outdoors. However, many herbs can easily be grown indoors if this is what you’d prefer. You can plant them outside, directly into the ground, or in pots depending on space restrictions. Regardless of where you decide to grow them, it’s always best practice to sow your seeds during their appropriate season. This helps to ensure that they’ll have time to mature before cold temperatures arrive and disrupt their growth cycle.

When planting seeds directly into the soil, sow each variety about 3 inches apart as root crowding can lead to stunted growth or disease. Alternatively, if planted in small pots, add 1-2 seeds per container before covering them lightly with soil and gently misting them with water every other day until germination occurs — usually after 10-14 days.

Best Herbs to Grow from Seeds

Different herbs are suitable for different climates and conditions, so it’s important to research which ones would be best suited for your location before adding them to your collection.

Herb	Ideal Temperature	Season	Peat Pot Size	Additional Notes
Basil	65-80° F	Spring/Summer	2 Inch	Easy To Grow
Mint	45-75° F	Spring/Fall	2 Inch	Quick Growing
Sage	40-90° F	Spring/Fall/Winter	4 Inch	Or direct sow
Thyme	55-75° F	Spring/Summer/Fall	4 Inch	Aromatic
Parsley	65-68° F	Spring/Fall	2 Inch	Easy to grow
Cilantro	70-72° F	Spring/Fall	2 Inch	Easy to grow
Oregano	60-85° F	Summer	4 Inch	Easy to grow
Rosemary	59-68° F	Spring/Summer	3 Inch	Moderate growth rate
Chamomile	68-77° F	Spring/Fall	2 Inch	Fast growing
Chives	50-80° F	All season	4 Inch	Fast growing

If successful, depending on your location, these herbs should give you harvests throughout several seasons without needing too much maintenance care. In Zone 8b, I can grow rosemary, sage, thyme, chives, and oregano outside all year long, but basil and parsley will die with the first freeze.

The Benefits of Growing an Herb Garden from Seeds

Besides getting fresh homegrown ingredients right off your windowsill or backyard patio, there are many other benefits of starting an herb garden: saving money (which would otherwise go towards buying store-bought products), eliminating pesticides (which organic gardening avoids) and reducing trash waste by avoiding packaged herbs whenever possible are among those actions one takes when opting for homegrown alternatives over preprocessed items found at stores like supermarkets who wrap each individual purchase in plastic bags regardless of size ultimately resulting in tons of global trash waste yearly.

The biggest reward for taking on such a project is simply enjoying something created with love and a little hard work. Feeling proud knowing that all effort put forth was worth it when harvesting those tasty fruits (or rather herbs!) first hand!

So why wait? Get started today – who knows where this newfound hobby may lead?