5 Easy Herbs to Grow At Home

Have you ever dreamed about growing your own herb garden? These plants look beautiful on your kitchen counter and prove useful for seasoning meats, spicing up teas, or just garnishing your favorite dishes. 

While all plants require a minimum of care and effort, we bring a list of herbs for beginners, so you’ll have no excuse to eat fresh and delicious food all year long. 

Mint

This herb is known for its fresh flavor, perfect for boosting salads, herbal teas, or a tall jar of mojitos. Mint plants grow in almost any soil and temperature. Actually, the challenge with this one relies on keeping it from propagating too far. 

Mint herbs like a large pot -so it can grow as fast as it wants- a rich, moist soil, and a little shade, but keep it warm. It's perfect for growing in the garden or on your windowsill during winter. 

Thyme

You may distinguish thyme by its aromatic quality and beautiful tiny leaves, we use when dried. It’s a herb commonly paired with meat and potatoes, a match made in heaven. 

And growing thyme couldn’t be easier. It can tolerate drought, being stepped on, mowing, no fertilizer, and more. You can plant thyme in a far corner of the garden and forget about it. The only thing this herb need is sunlight. Maintain it out of the shade, and it will thrive!

Basil:

This herb is a star in Italian cuisine. It is the base for an amazing pesto! Why not grow your own? Pick a space at home with full sunlight and keep it in moist, well-drained soil. If you need any help, ask your local garden store for a pot with holes. 

The thing with basil is to know when to cut its foliage. Pinch stems back weekly to foment a fuller plant and delay flowering so that the leaves remain flavorful.

Chives:

The stems of this herb have an onion-scented flavor, which makes it a perfect pair with potatoes and cheese. Also, chives are very easy to grow and maintain. Actually, it can last all winter with no added protection, such as mulch.

Pick a place in your garden or indoors with partial sunlight and keep the soil loamy, sandy, and well-drained with a bit of moisture as well. Extra bonus: they will bloom in the early summer with some beautiful purple blossoms! 

Oregano:

Season your pizza nights with home-grown oregano! While it's easy to maintain, you’ll have to pay attention to timing. Put the young plants outside with moist-free soil and only in spring, when the risk of frost is over.

Keep them in direct sunshine and mist water regularly. In summer, move it to a place with light shade, so it won’t have scorching leaves. And before winter, cut down all you can for cooking.

Follow me on Instagram @vegeheadchef for plant-based and seasonal cooking ideas you can make at home.