the garden in doing well (tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, summer squash and zuccini squash) so we went out and bought some herbs.

we purchased sage, thyme, sweet basil, oregano, spearmint, lavender, peppermint and lemon balm. i was going to plant the sage, thyme, basil and oregano in window boxes and plant the rest in the ground next to the house (hoping it will go crazy like my friends mint did).

any advice, suggestions, dos and donts? i havent had much luck growing herbs, of course we would usually move right after i would get some planted...

You should have no problemo with your mint - and the lemon balm - going crazy if you plant it in the ground. The other herbs should grow quite easily for you in a window box - though the oregano is also a bit aggressive and might threaten some of those others.

Sage can get pretty tall - maybe not the first year, but once established it can grow to 3 feet or more - so that's something to keep in mind. Basil will "bolt" - meaning go to bloom/seeds pretty quickly in the heat of summer, so keep an eye out for it - if you keep the flower stems pinched back, you can prevent it. Once it bolts, the flavor in the leaves changes and it can become a little bitter - and once it makes seeds, the plant has fulfilled its purpose and will often die off.

Lavender is tricky to grow in humid climates - it thrives in dry, desert conditions. We tried many different varieties in our garden when I was growing up - and finally gave up. (we lived in SC)

And in the heat of summer - depending on where you live - you might have to be watering that window box every day. Herbs love full sun and drier soils, but window boxes don't hold much moisture. A good organic soil mix will help though.

Good Luck!

Sage can get pretty tall - maybe not the first year, but once established it can grow to 3 feet or more - so that's something to keep in mind.

Lavender is tricky to grow in humid climates - it thrives in dry, desert conditions. We tried many different varieties in our garden when I was growing up - and finally gave up. (we lived in SC)

And in the heat of summer - depending on where you live - you might have to be watering that window box every day. Herbs love full sun and drier soils, but window boxes don't hold much moisture. A good organic soil mix will help though.

Good Luck!


our salvias are all 2-3' tall and are 1 year old. beautiful flowers. not edible varieties though...but they all flower. i have photos in my thread about the mutant coreopsis...the purple flowers in the bed are salvia/sage.

lavender...i grow it successfully in full sun in my front bed. it is between two wormwood plants, in front of an echinacea/coneflower and behind two salvias...in terms of companion planting in the ground that works well for us. water WELL the first month and then back off to once a week. an inch a week of water the first year through till dormant/frost. now (mine is 2y) i let it go with the weather (aka little rain.)

i use a TON of manure/compost/mushroom compost in my beds. i dig a hole 2x the size of the rootball and then dump a spade-full of compost into the hole, then i place the rootball and fill in around it with more compost, THEN put the native soil back around it, tamping down with my foot around the base. then i water the heck out of it...even if it is daytime i douse it good and heavy immediately (to prevent shock) and then i water slow and long in the dark.

right now my lavender is 2' tall and blooming up to 3', profusely. did not bloom the first 2 years.


using window boxes? mulch well. mulch helps retain moisture. they'll dry out quickly.

I love mint and lemon balm in ground. The mint can get out of control but if you don't care, then it is great. The lemon balm I have (in its third year now) grows to the size of small bushes by August - it is insane. I have crappy soil where they are planted too - I ammended a bit, but didn't have the cash for a ton of add-ins the first year and they just go go go.

I like to companion plant in pots - so peppers go with my oregano. Thyme and dill go together, and rosemary is picky about being hot and dry, so it is on its own. I think that most herbs, being mostly mediterranean plants, like lots of heat and sun, not too much water, and frequent picking to keep them growing out and not just up.

In pots I try to fertilize since the soil cannot keep up with the plant for a whole summer - fish emulsion or a liquid which contains some trace minerals (there are even "organic" options).