Getting Started Growing Herbs
You can go over to the local home improvement, nursery or greenhouse to buy your herbs. You could also germinate your own plants from seeds. Those two are all fine and well, but a third method, called propagation is less costly than purchasing your plants or starting them from seeds.
Propagation is simply locating a friend or neighbor who already has some plants and then taking either part of their plant through division or by taking a cutting of their plant and growing roots for before planting it.
When using division, breaking up isn’t hard to do, you just cut the herb into smaller, separate plants. Some plants are easier than others to divide, like chives and chamomile. Dig all the way through the herb with your trowel and the roots, which will completely separate the plant into multiple herbs. If you are separating a creeping plant like English chamomile, it will be much easier.
For small herbs, you can use a couple of forks instead of a shovel when dividing. If you water the herb the night before, the soil will be nice and moist and ready for division. Next, all you do is replant the divided part just like a plant that you would buy at the store.
Another thing that is different is that you are going to want to fertilize the new little plant when you put it into its new home. above and beyond the fertilizer, I’d advise you use a root stimulator to assist those recently chopped off roots to grow fast.
Taking a cutting is even simpler than division because you won’t have to dig up anything. Just keep in mind that your cuttings will not have any roots and cannot be planted in the ground or in a pot until it does, which could take several weeks.. Another potential problem is that not all plants can be propagated by making a cutting from an existing plant.
New, immature plants are better to get cuttings from than the older, woodier plants . But like I always say; make do with what you have. When taking a cutting, follow these guidelines:
- Simply snip off a branch of the plant that includes at least three leaves and then trim off the leaves
- Now [here is|here’s] where I [am different|differ] from other [people|folks]: take your branch and let it sit for at least 8 hours in a diluted mixture of both root stimulator and water.
- One way or the other, once you do that you’ll want to then put the stem down into your moistened, rich earth. You’ll need to bury the stem so that no bare part (where you removed the leaves) is visible.
- Add some more water and keep soil moist but not flooded. From here, just be patient because it’s going to take several weeks for the new leaves to sprout.
Some of my favorite herbs to start from cuttings include: rosemary, salvias, scented geranium, vervain and white willow.
Good luck with your herb gardening. Be sure to let me know how your herb garden grows.
Here is more Herb Garden Information. Here is a website with a free mini-course dedicated to Herb Gardens.
