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Our list of the best herbs to grow indoors – plant a mini herb windowsill garden today!
A windowsill Herb garden is a wonderful thing! Here are our favourite herbs and spices you can grow indoors year-round.
The best thing about growing herbs and spices indoors is that you don’t have to worry about how hot or cold the weather is.
You also don’t have to worry about whether or not the plants are going to get enough sunlight or water. These are all things you can control and keep an eye on while your plants are growing inside.
Plus, you’ve got your fresh herbs basically at your fingertips! So, it’s fast and easy to snip a few leaves to add to your meals. Soups, stews, salads, vegetables and meat all benefit from enhanced flavor when you add fresh herbs.
Best Herbs to Grow Indoors
If you’re looking to make your own indoor garden to grow your favorite herbs and spices, here are the best plants that you can easily grow indoors no matter what time of the year it is.
Later in this article, we’ll go over how to plant herb plants and the lighting requirements but first here’s our list of the best herbs to grow indoors.
You can start your plants by seed, but the better option would be to buy a plant at the garden center. You can even order complete window sill Herb kits. Ready to get started?
Grow Oregano Indoors – An Easy Indoor Herb
A favorite herb for cooking Italian dishes, oregano can be grown indoors pretty easily. This herb tends to like having a lot of sun so you can easily put it in a sunny window with good light to help it grow.
Once it has grown, work the herb into your sauces or main dishes to give it some extra flavor. Keeping Oregano well trimmed will keep your plant smaller.
If it gets too large for its pot, transplant it into a container one size bigger. Oregano will grow for years.
Growing Basil Indoors
If you have a nice warm sunny spot, your basil plant will thrive. Basil is the middle plant in the photo – look at those healthy leaves!
You’ll want to be sure you pluck the leaves before the small white flowers appear so that you get the full flavor.
If the plant starts to bloom, the leaves will be less potent and won’t be as flavorful when you add them to a dish.
Basil is wonderful in all kinds of pasta, pesto, salads, pizzas and anything using tomatoes.
Growing Mint Inside
Mint can be refreshing in a salad and it makes a great addition to your warm or cold tea drinks throughout the year.
It’s also popular with various food dishes and luckily, it’s simple to grow indoors with full sun and moist soil. Snip a few leaves of mint for a hot cup of tea!
Mint is another herb that will grow continuously for years – transplant it if it gets too big for its pot.
Growing Parsley Indoors
Parsley is full of health benefits and is a well-known delicious garnish for many dishes and is even included in a lot of different sauces.
With parsley, the more sun it has, the faster it will grow making it a great herb that you can easily control.
And it’s easy to harvest; just snip a stalk!
You Can Grow Curry Indoors
You may be surprised at how fragrant a curry plant can be and that’s what makes it a great addition to any indoor herb garden.
While it may not have much aroma when it’s being cooked, the herb will give a nice aroma throughout the house. Use Curry in sauces and meat based dishes.
Grow Chives Indoors
Chives are popular in potato dishes. When used, they give an onion like fragrance and taste to the dish.
If you’re looking to grow your own chives, they love the sun but can easily be grown indoors where there is plenty of light coming through the window.
Chives also tend to regrow once you’ve trimmed the leaves down, so you’ll continuously get more herbs to use. Be sure to trim Chives before flower buds appear.
Growing Rosemary Indoors – a Wonderful Fragrant Herb
Rosemary doesn’t require a lot of water, it really doesn’t like a lot of water at all, which makes it a great option to grow indoors.
This is another herb you’ll want to keep in a indoor spot where there is plenty of natural light.
Because it can easily drown, make sure you are not giving it too much water. Rosemary tastes wonderful when it is added to roasted potatoes – find lots of ways to add Rosemary to cooking!
Other Herbs You Can Grow Indoors
There are many other herb plants that will grow indoors, so consider these:
- Bay Laurel – add a bay leaf to any soup or stew!
- Lemon Balm – pretty foliage and lovely in baking.
- Sage – delicious in roasted meats, sausages and with roasted root vegetables.
- Thyme – goes perfectly with potatoes and meats.
- Anise – use in soups, stews and mulled wines.
How to Plant a Windowsill Herb Garden
When it comes to herbs and spices you can grow indoors, these are a few that you’ll have the best luck with.
Other herbs like dill, cilantro and fennel often need more sun than what the indoors can provide.
If you’ve never grown herbs indoors, the above are great starters to get you going. Just like any other plant, be sure to water them moderately and keep them in the window or area where there is plenty of sun coming through.
All you need to get started are a few small pots with drainage holes in the bottom, one small bag of good quality soil, some small nursery herb seedlings and a sunny windowsill.
Holes in the bottom of any planting container is very important – this provides good drainage, which helps prevent against over watering, resulting in too much moisture.
Good air circulation in the room is also important, so having an opening window or a fan will be a help.
South-facing windows will give the most direct sunlight and heat, with west-facing windows also working well. Either exposure will give enough hours of sunlight (6 – 8 hours of sunlight a day) to grow both annual herbs and perennial herbs inside the house.
And, trim the foliage! Regularly use the leaves of your herb plants. If the plant becomes root bound, then transplant the herb into a pot one size larger.
More on Growing and Drying Herbs
Want to learn how to dry Herbs? Here’s the easy way I dry Parsley, Lovage, Oregano and so many other herbs.
The very best way to preserve Basil is to freeze it – here’s exactly how to do it.
This beautiful large Herb is just too big to grow indoors, but it looks beautiful planted in a flower bed! Here’s everything to know about how to grow Lovage and use it in the kitchen.
Want to find out which are The 5 Easiest Vegetables to Grow?
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originally published April 2020; latest update September 2022