The Complete Guide To Planting And Growing Herbs In Pots (Including The Best Types)
Chris is a gardening writer and nature enthusiast. He graduated from Oxford Brookes University in 2022 with an MA in Psychology. Chris works with the Leeds Green Action Society, helping their food cooperative by growing various fruit and vegetables on their two allotments in Hyde Park, Leeds.
Reviewed By COLIN SKELLY
Colin is a Horticulturist and Horticultural Consultant with experience in a range of practical and managerial roles across heritage, commercial and public horticulture. He holds the Royal Horticultural Society’s Master of Horticulture award and has a particular interest in horticultural ecology and naturalistic planting for habitat and climate resilience.
Contributions From MALCOLM DICKSON
Malcolm is an award-winning horticulturist who is the treasurer of The Herb Society. Malcolm also is the owner and director of Hooksgreen Herbs, a specialist plant nursery that was awarded the first ever RHS ‘Master Grower’ title at the 2016 Tatton Park Flower Show. Malcolm’s experience in growing and caring for herbs has also been shared up and down the country, as he has been invited to perform lectures and talks at various botanical venues.
Herbs are the secret to next-level cooking.
Their rich and instantly-recognisable flavours bring colour to any meal, and having fresh herbs on standby is a quick and easy way to tap into this culinary game-changer.
Indoor herb gardens are a favourite on lifestyle blogs and Pinterest pages.
You can grow them in pots, sure, but are they really as easy to grow and to look after as people think?
We’re writing with the assumption that most readers will be planning a small herb garden, and one that most likely includes a couple of supermarket-bought herbs.
The information in our guide is tailored accordingly.
It’s about giving pre-bought herbs their best chance at a long, healthy life, and perhaps adding a couple of new ones to the mix.
Which Herbs Grow Well In Pots?
“Most herbs enjoy being grown in containers,” says Malcolm, the owner of Hooksgreen Herbs and Treasurer of The Herb Society.
“As long as the containers are large enough to allow good root growth and retain moisture, most herbs will be fine.”
Head to the fruit and veg aisle in your local supermarket and you’ll probably find rosemary, parsley, coriander, thyme, basil, and mint – but these are far from your only options.
The home herb gardener can also add bay, chives, fennel, oregano, dill, lemon balm, marjoram, sage, or tarragon to their arsenal.
It all comes down to how you’re planning to use them and how ambitious you’re feeling.
“Container-grown herbs will need more care than those grown in the garden,” says Malcolm.
“However, the more tender annual herbs like basil, dill and coriander will thrive in containers protected from slugs!
“Mint should also be grown in containers, otherwise it will wander around the garden.”
Obviously looking after more herbs will be harder than having one or two, and there’s not much point in growing something that you’re never going to use.
As we said earlier, this guide is tailored toward people planning a small-scale herb garden, most likely including a couple of pre-grown supermarket herbs.
Which Herbs Should Not Be Planted Together?
Before setting out on your homegrown herb adventure, be aware that some herbs don’t thrive when planted together.
We’ll quote The Guardian here, as they offer a perfect explanation of what to avoid –
“You can grow herbs in pots together as long as you remember two rules: avoid mixing those that like plenty of water (such as chives, mint, chervil, coriander, Vietnamese coriander) with those that like a well-drained soil (such as rosemary, thyme, sage, bay, and oregano).”1Ridsdill Smith, M. (2018, August 2). Ten of the best herbs to grow in containers. The Guardian. Retrieved March 16, 2023, from https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/aug/15/ten-best-herbs-grow-containers
How Do You Keep Potted Herbs Alive?
Keeping potted herbs alive is a case of taking good care of them and, if you’re growing them yourself from scratch, giving them the optimal conditions.
Potted herbs from supermarkets are actually many seedlings growing together in a pot, rather than one plant sharing a root system.
This means they’re all competing for nutrients in the soil, which is why their lifespan is finite if you don’t intervene.
If you decide to keep your supermarket herbs alive, you’ll need to break up the seedlings.
Pull the ‘plant’ out of the pot, and separate the seedlings out. Identify the strongest ones, then replant these into pots with the right kind of soil to help them flourish.
Herbs like moist, gritty compost. Be careful not to let it get soggy, though, as this can cause damage to the plants.
Most herbs will do just fine in your average garden soil – this is especially true if you’re growing them casually in a window box.
Individual herbs vary in how long they can thrive in the same soil. Some, like mint, require frequent repotting to stay in their best condition, others like sage and rosemary can remain in the same pot for a very long time.
We recommend reading the specific care instructions for the herbs you’re planning to grow. This increases the likelihood of long-term good health of your plants.
How Long Do Potted Herbs Last?
If you take good care of them, some herb varieties can continue to grow indefinitely.
Again, we recommend researching each herb on a case-by-case basis, as the intricacies of each plant go beyond the scope of this introductory guide!
As a quick pointer, though –
- Parsley and coriander are biennial and will go to seed every two years
- Basil, dill, and sage are annuals – you’ll need to replace them each year
- Thyme, rosemary, tarragon, oregano, marjoram, and mint are perennials – they’ll keep on going if you treat them right
Do Herbs Need Full Sun?
Most herbs thrive in full sun, with at least six hours a day being favourite.
Growing on a windowsill practically guarantees this in summer, but in winter, or if your house is unusually dark, choose a herb that can survive with less direct sunlight.
Potential candidates include –
- Mint
- Parsley
- Chives
- Coriander
- Tarragon
How Much Water Do Herbs Need?
After replanting supermarket herbs, give them a healthy glug of water.
Separating them out and repotting them can be fairly traumatic, and a good amount of moisture helps to get them back on track.
“Containers dry out in warm and hot weather as they continue to transpire day and night,” explains Malcolm.
“Make sure to water regularly.”
The amount of water herbs need varies depending on their type and size, so the best rule of thumb is to touch the soil and see. If it feels dry, add some water. If not, leave them be for a while.
“Feeding is also important for container-grown herbs and should be carried out every 6 weeks with a seasonal, slow-release fertiliser,” Malcolm says.
Potted vs Ground Herbs
As we touched on earlier, herbs suit people without a garden or any outdoor space at all.
If you’ve got the luxury of choosing whether to grow in pots or in the ground, here are some pointers to help you decide.
Growing In The Ground
Obviously, all herbs started their lives outside initially as wild plants.
However, because growing herbs for cooking relies on keeping them under control, not all herbs are suitable for growing outdoors in this context.
See our list of hardy outdoor herbs for some firm inspiration.
Growing In Pots
Some herbs will give you a good harvest, others will produce for a while, then start to suffer.
Others, you’ll be hard-pressed to get to thrive in an indoor pot.
Firstly, the light inside your home during winter, even when next to a window, probably won’t reach the desired levels herbs need to thrive.
“My experience of growing herbs on a windowsill is that they are not easy to maintain for more than a few weeks due to uneven light levels and low humidity,” says Colin Skelly, Master Horticulturist.
“If you have space outside, even an outside window box (preferably south facing), this is a far better option if you want to grow your potted herbs (rather than consume them over a few weeks).”
They’ll likely only get an hour or two of direct sun per day, rather than the six or more they need.
Humidity in your home (if you live here in the UK) is likely way below what they need to fully flourish, too.
Each herb has different needs, and some suit being grown indoors more than others.
Parsley and bay, for example, are renowned as easy to grow indoors. Others, like chives, require cold treatment before thriving inside.
