How to Start an Outdoor Herb Garden

Have some extra space in your yard or garden?? I’m going to show you how to start an outdoor herb garden in just a few easy steps!

Happy Earth Day, y’all!! Actually, everyday should be Earth Day ?, but today is a great time for us to show our appreciation for Mother Earth and learn how we can help to keep our planet happy and healthy!

Taking care of the Earth doesn’t have to be hard, it can start with a few easy practices such as picking up liter when you’re taking a walk around your neighborhood, finding a way to use food scraps instead of throwing them away, or planting a garden.

Here are a few recipes featuring some of my favorite herbs:

• Sheet-Pan Lemon Basil Roasted Chicken & Vegetables
• Sparkling Fresh Mint & Grapefruit Spritzer
• Marinated Chicken & Basil Whole Wheat Greek Pasta
• Peachy Blackberry & Thyme Cocktail

I’ve been wanting to start an herb garden for quite some time now, but I was very intimidated. For some reason, I didn’t inherit that green thumb from my plant-loving mama…and I tend to kill almost every plant that I come in contact with!

I know how to preserve herbs, but I haven’t been successful at growing them. Despite my previous unsuccessful attempts, I decided to give it another go, and headed to the plant nursery to pick up a few herbs.

Here are a few recipes featuring some of my favorite herbs:

• Sheet-Pan Lemon Basil Roasted Chicken & Vegetables
• Sparkling Fresh Mint & Grapefruit Spritzer
• Marinated Chicken & Basil Whole Wheat Greek Pasta
• Peachy Blackberry & Thyme Cocktail

When starting an herb garden, some people start with like to start with seedlings, but I chose to start with bedding plants. The herbs that I purchased were lavender, thyme, sage, oregano, lemon thyme, basil, and rosemary. I also purchased a large planter box to house my herbs, and some additional soil.

How to Start an Outdoor Herb Garden

1. Pick a Location

Start by picking the perfect location for your herb garden. Any area that gets about six hours of sun a day is good. I chose this little nook in our back yard that gets a good amount sunshine and that is close to a large window so that I can check on them throughout the day.

2. Prepare the Area for Planting

If you are planting the herbs in the ground, prepare the area for planting by loosening the soil. If you are using a planter box or a container, make sure that it has good drainage or holes on the bottom. Also, be sure to choose a good-quality, fast-draining soil.

Here are a few recipes featuring some of my favorite herbs:

• Sheet-Pan Lemon Basil Roasted Chicken & Vegetables
• Sparkling Fresh Mint & Grapefruit Spritzer
• Marinated Chicken & Basil Whole Wheat Greek Pasta
• Peachy Blackberry & Thyme Cocktail

3. Add Plants to Soil

If you are starting herbs from bedding plants, you will need to create larger planting holes. Dig each hole to about twice the width of the root ball of the new plant and be sure to give the bedding plants a good amount of elbow room so that they have room to spread out and grow.

4. Water Regularly

Give the new transplants plenty of water. Once they are established, make sure your herbs get an inch of water each week throughout the growing season. Since, these are new plants, I make sure to check the soil and water them every day. So far, this method has been working out great because I’ve already seen lots of growth in just 4 days!

I’m thinking about starting a vegetable garden next! Do you have an herb or veggie garden?? I would love to hear some of your tips and advice in the comments below!

Here are a few recipes featuring some of my favorite herbs:

• Sheet-Pan Lemon Basil Roasted Chicken & Vegetables
• Sparkling Fresh Mint & Grapefruit Spritzer
• Marinated Chicken & Basil Whole Wheat Greek Pasta
• Peachy Blackberry & Thyme Cocktail