Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Container Herb Gardening is a Practical, Flexible, and Efficient Way For Anyone to Grow Herb Gardens

Most herbs make great additions to most any meal and growing them is not as difficult as people might think. As a matter of fact, container herb gardening is a great alternative because gardeners are able to keep their containers in close proximity to their kitchens and harvest fresh herbs. This helps to explain why many people love gardening, particularly herb gardening. On the other hand, gardening cannot always be undertaken by everyone. For instance, people who live in apartments must consider alternatives so that they can garden too. Herb container gardening meets this need since folks can keep their containers anywhere due to their portability and small size.

But there are some guidelines that you need to follow if you want satisfactory results with your container herb gardening. The first one is making your mind up on what to plant. What is the purpose of the herb? While some people use herbs for aromatherapy, others choose to use the same herbs for culinary purposes. For beginners in herb gardening, they have the option of adding some essential herbs to their collections. The options range from dill and sage to oregano, basil and rosemary. The good thing with all these selections is that they need simple maintenance procedures, grow easily in containers and can be used for various dishes.

The other important thing to do is figure out the types of containers you intend to use. In case the container garden goes out in sun rooms or porches, it might be wise to consider the larger pots. On the other hand, when gardeners have limited space and plan to specifically use windowsills, the more compact and smaller pots are ideal. Ensure that all the pots are food-safe; terra cotta and plastic containers are the best alternative.

The third guideline for container herb gardening is deciding whether you prefer starting the garden using plants or seeds. In case you start the garden using locally available plants, you have the advantage of using those herbs without delay. Alternatively, in case one decides to plant their own seeds, the results will take a couple of weeks before they are mature enough to be cut and used. Quite a number of plants have rapid growth from the seeds. This means that combining seeds with some plants might not be a bad thing. After that, select sandy soil that is not an excessively rich soil. Ensure that you provide the herbs with the appropriate soil type.

Additionally, a lot of direct sunlight works best with herbs. This means that you can try positioning the pots in such a way that they get a minimum of six and if possible, eight 'sun hours' on a daily basis. After that, watering them on a daily basis is essential, provided the water amount is minimal and enough (not excess).

The best aspect with the container gardening is that gardeners can their pots inside when there is harsh weather.
Container Herb Gardening is a versatile and flexible approach to growing an herb garden since it is suited to many different locations and garden spots. It's especially suitable for beginners because of its ease in implementation. Check for more at TheHerbGardenExpert

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mary_Candler