Gardening | Growing herbs indoors

There is no hindrance to gardening but yourself. Guyanese- home and abroad- love to flavor food with herbs or as we would say ‘seasoning.’  We love how they make our foods smell and taste, Try growing your own indoor- even if you live in an apartment or condo- if you don’t have space to grown outdoor. Remember growing your own food is therapeutic, healthy, helps your purse/wallet, and you know what’s being put in your body. Follow these simple advice from Bonnie Plants.

Find the best spot for an indoor herb garden
Herbs need as much natural light as possible such as a sunny spot near a window that faces south and receives at least 6 hours of sun daily. (While indoor light is not quite as intense as direct light outdoors, light coming in through an unblocked, south-facing window is enough for most herbs.) Herbs like mint, parsley, and thyme requires less light and can also grow well in west-facing windows.

One easy way to ensure indoor herbs are getting enough light, no matter where they are placed, is to use a grow light, which mimics direct sunlight. It’s a great solution when short on southern-exposure window space, and an excellent way to provide extra light in the winter, when there’s less daylight.

Give indoor herbs good drainage
Be sure to use a saucer, liner, or drain pan under the pot to catch water and protect your surface. A clay saucer lets moisture pass through, so opt for plastic, rubber, or metal instead. Clay pots help with drainage, but they can dry out quickly. If you live in a dry climate or are growing herbs indoors during winter, when furnace heat causes homes to get especially dry, try a glazed or plastic container that won’t dry out as quickly as clay.

Use a premium potting mix, such as Miracle-Gro® Indoor Potting Mix, to pot your indoor herbs. In Guyana, the good old manure will work. And by all means, be sure your pots have drainage holes!

Indoor herbs are happy with typical indoor temperatures
Herbs can grow inside any time of year.  Indoor herbs prefer the same temperatures that most people do—around 65 to 70 degrees F—so if you’re comfortable, they probably are. At night, temperatures near a window may drop to 55 or 60, but most herbs like that, too. Keep foliage from touching glass to protect from getting nipped by cold.

Basil is trickier. If you have plenty of sun and warmth indoors, basil should thrive, but don’t keep it on a cool windowsill. Basil leaves will droop and fade after a short time in cool air. It prefers indoor temperatures in the 70s day and night.

Remember, the air next to a window will be cooler in winter (or hotter in summer) than your average indoor temperature, so adjust the plants accordingly. Dry air, whether from air conditioning or heating, is hard on most herbs, so you may want to consider increasing the surrounding humidity.

Indoor herb plants will probably stretch and be spindlier than plants in the outdoors, but they will still give you plenty of fresh clippings. To encourage lots of growth, fertilize regularly with plant food, such as Miracle-Gro® Water Soluble Plant Food for Vegetables & Herbs, especially if you are harvesting leaves regularly. (Be sure to follow directions!). In Guyana use the good old manure mixture.

Grow in water
One easy way to grow herbs indoors is to grow them in a water-based (aka hydroponic) system. Your plants grow directly in water or a soilless medium, so moisture and nutrients are delivered directly to plant roots, and a grow light provides all of the “sunlight” needed by the plants. The Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ Indoor Growing System is a great choice for growing herbs, as it’s easy to use, doubles as an attractive end table, and can be managed from your smartphone.