Herbs for a beginner with a brown thumb

[valerian moon]

I say "brown thumb" instead of green because I've killed countless herbs already. I've got sage, lemonbalm, and peppermint that are growing nicely, but I wanted to grow more herbs, and do you have any tips? What kind of container should I put them in? How often should I water? Im also interested in growing veggies

[corvidus]

Kool

Aloe Vera! It's a succulent, so you only need to water it once a week and give it direct sunlight all day long, or as much sunlight as you can.

generally, if aloe vera starts turning the color of your thumb (brown ) it means you're either over-watering or under-watering (but when the lowest leaves start turning brown and dying off, it means the aloe plant is 'shedding its skin', so don't worry about that part)

[valerian moon]

Kool

Aloe Vera! It's a succulent, so you only need to water it once a week and give it direct sunlight all day long, or as much sunlight as you can.

generally, if aloe vera starts turning the color of your thumb (brown ) it means you're either over-watering or under-watering (but when the lowest leaves start turning brown and dying off, it means the aloe plant is 'shedding its skin', so don't worry about that part)

wow, thanks, my grandma has a lot of aloe, and i love it for bug bites and i use it on my fingertips to get rid of accucheck scars. it works a little bit.

[corvidus]

It's best for sunburns

[valerian moon]

It's best for sunburns

surprisingly, i never get sun burns. i mean, i live in florida, so i should, but i tan really well. but good to know for my mom. she's white all the way.

[dualhands]

Basil is a fairly easy herb to grow.

What is your setup for growing herbs if you don't mind me asking?

[YanaKhan]

I would also add marigold. It's not fastidious and has many qualities.

[Winter Wind]

Try mint, it's very easy to grow.
But be careful, it grows quickly and occupies a lot of space.

[HazelRain]

Herbs are really easy to grow in the windowsill, especially in the winter. In the summer, I plant them in pots and harvest them and freeze or dry them for use throughout the rest of the year. A really cool one is chamomile. It's really really easy to grow, it makes beautiful white flowers, and it's very useful (especially since I drink a lot of tea!)

[LoneWhiteWolf]

My advice would be to buy some books specifically dedicated to herbs! i have a few sitting about and they help loads.

I would advise you keep any kind of mint in a container. This includes pepermint, mint, Catmint/catnip. As they grow, they grow out tendrils called Runners. These grow outwards of the plant then down into the soil esensualy planting itself and it creates a new plant.

Lavender is a wonderful plant to grow, i have plenty of the stuff and its love but Bees and other insects. Its a Mediterranean plant, like Rosemary and Tyme. So they need Sandy soil which gives them great drainage. They don't like sitting in thick moist soil. Buy normal dirt and add sharp sand and grit to it.
Adding grit ontop of the container soil also helps water drainage and keeping in warmth.

There are places on the internet Like the RHS which will give you all the information you need to grow plants and even how hard they are to grow, so keep researching, and hopefully you'll have a lovely herb garden


ps: altho its not a herb and should not be eaten, i recommend Snapdragon's. There a wonderful flowering plant thich comes in a variety of colours and grow really well in containers

[blue_moon]

Aloe is great! And thyme was also already suggested.

I got a lemongras plant from my mom. I love it already! Can stay outside during our summers here (moderate climate here) but has to be taken inside like my aloe during winter.

I usually water every other day. Check the soil
- is it hard and dry? Definitely needs water!!
Or still moist? Take the plant out. Is there still water in the bottom of the pot? Pour it out - most plants hate that and will die!

Calendula are nice to have outside (depending on the climate... I'm not so lucky with my hot and windy balcony but they grow like weed everywhere around here)

Echinacea - they like it sunny and don't need to be watered alot.

Chives, parsley are easy to grow and keep.

Vegetables: well... what do you like eating? Pumkins/squash and zucchini are easy to grow.
I had carrots in a big pot on my balcony this year - loved em!
Will plant some swet potatoes in a big pot next year as well.

Tomatoes need it sunny and warm and have to be watered frequently - but they hate wind and water coming from above. They also need alot of "food" so you have to get compost or sth to put into the soil.

[blue_moon]

And lavender! Likes it warm, water frequently

[valerian moon]

Ahhhh thank you so much