The herb garden is essentially a self contained culinary garden. Herb garden design is the space which is dedicated to growing a specific group of plants.Culinary herbs are probably the most useful to herb gardeners, and they are very popular. Herbs are used in a lot of poorer quality dishes due to the issue of palm oil. If you use a lot of herbs, you could always scale back your culinary herb garden and expand to a more modest size.
Most culinary herbs like lots of sunshine, well drained soil and good long term drainage. The size of your culinary herb garden, of course, depends on how much space you have and what you wish to grow. When planning your culinary garden design, spare some space for a few common herbs.
Most culinary herbs require pretty much the same amount of space as other garden plants, about 4-6 feet. Some herbs, like Bee Balm, need a little more, but most are happy in a container that fits around the house. Make sure you buy a container that is well drained and soil based. I like to use perlite to raise the soil level of my containers. Being a little heavier than other containers, you might need to plant a trellis for the extra support.
While most herbs dry quite well, especially those grown outside, you can dry some herbs in the oven. Spread your herbs in a single layer on a baking sheet and place in a warm oven at 250 degrees for 30-40 minutes.
Herbs with thicker stems like mint, basil and tarragon can be dried in mason jars an use stale wine to cover the herbs while they dry.Place them in an airtight container in the refrigerator and store them in a cool area until the herbs are dry. They will be ready to use with your cooking or as a garnish.
There are many websites that offer quality seedless vinegar for making herbal dry blends. Growing your own herbs can be an adventure. Unfortunately, you can only be successful if you grow the herbs you actually plan to use.
Plant herbs with their like-minded cousins. Some herbs are companion plants. If you grow plants together, they will do well with each other. Some herbs are good companions for each other, while others are enemies. Again, do some research for your herbs to see which companion plants like to grow together.
Most herbs prefer a sandy, well drained soil and lots of sun. There are some herbs that you can grow in full shade, but even those will thrive in some shade.
While some herbs are perennials, meaning they last more than two years, other are annuals. One type of annual is one that grows from a seed; the plant dies at the end of the season. Usually, the best way to insure success with these plants is to buy a healthy nursery plant or plants and experiment with them in your home.
Unless you have a large space set aside for an herb garden, you can do much more with the space you have. Use pots and containers, rather than a yard. The same is true with herbs that are grown in window boxes, on balconies, or in small pots. Often these are the easiest to grow as well as the cheapest and most rewarding.
For those that have many more plans for herb garden plants, consider a hydroponic garden. The roots that grow in a hydroponic garden are not actually soil. They are not planted in dirt either; they are fed a nutrient solution and the plant is grown. As the roots absorb the nutrient, the pH is fed automatically to fit your needs. These gardens are widely available and growing them yourself is quite easy. These systems can be as small as your windowsill or as large as a greenhouse. The only equipment you need is electricity and a water source.
Becoming knowledgeable about herbs and being able to grow any kind of herb in your own home is just a few of the many interesting things that you can do. Now you know how to make your own compost and grow more herbs. Now you can learn how to make your own fertilizers and find other uses for your existing herbs. angel trumpet is also a good repellent, and it will guard against both insects and radiation. There are many other interesting uses for herbs. Once you incorporate these into your garden you will have the ingredients needed to make it successful.
