And for my next project...

[TobiWallis]

I have a plot in the garden with good deep rich soil, close to the kitchen door of the house and protected on three sides by trellises and I'm planning to make it my herb garden. It will get the sun in the morning and in the late afternoon as the house will shelter it from the sun at noon most of the year.

I have divided it with traditional red Welsh floor tiles, each nine inches square, in a cross pattern, giving me four beds, each roughly four feet square, so not huge. I shall plant fennel in one of the rear ones as it grows so tall, and I also want to plant sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley and a bay tree. I usually grow my basil in the greenhouse. The bay tree will be grown as a pom-pom so I can plant underneath it.

Can anyone see any difficulties with the plot being so small and what suggestions would you have for other small, compact herbs?

 

[Rosyrain]

I personally do not see any issues with planting herbs in small plots as I have done it before and was successful. Herbs do not need much room to grow. You should try chives as well as these herbs go great on baked potatoes and in sour cream based dips. I grew chives in flower pots and it was nice just to snip off what I wanted.

 

[TobiWallis]

Oooh - chives! Excellent idea. I love them chopped on top of dishes like risotto, especially on top of a dollop of yoghourt!

 

[Cereus]

I'd agree with Rosyrain that herbs really don't need much room to grow. They're happy in small pots or big pots, they're incredibly low maintenance and not fussy at all which is awesome haha. Cilantro/Coriander (same plant) adds a nice flavor to lots of other dishes as well if you decide to grow it. Serves dual purpose- the leaves are great for salads, adding to salsa and a nice component for Mexican cooking. The seeds are a spice- so you get a 2 in 1 deal with the plant haha.

 

[JeffNev]

Sounds like you've got all the good stuff covered! I would also add some coriander into the mix. Grows well through winter and comes back even stronger in the spring months.

 

[DeborahJane]

I have a plot in the garden with good deep rich soil, close to the kitchen door of the house and protected on three sides by trellises and I'm planning to make it my herb garden. It will get the sun in the morning and in the late afternoon as the house will shelter it from the sun at noon most of the year.

I have divided it with traditional red Welsh floor tiles, each nine inches square, in a cross pattern, giving me four beds, each roughly four feet square, so not huge. I shall plant fennel in one of the rear ones as it grows so tall, and I also want to plant sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley and a bay tree. I usually grow my basil in the greenhouse. The bay tree will be grown as a pom-pom so I can plant underneath it.

Can anyone see any difficulties with the plot being so small and what suggestions would you have for other small, compact herbs?

Sounds like the perfect spot for a herb garden Tobi, sun wise and handy to the kitchen. Would you consider adding some spinach, silver beet and lettuce as they are so handy to have on hand, put in by hand...please excuse me.I do get carried away. I have found that you are better off just putting in a few lettuces and then planting another couple a month later so its a constant supply but doesn't take up that much space. Just a thought.

 

[TobiWallis]

Sounds like you've got all the good stuff covered! I would also add some coriander into the mix. Grows well through winter and comes back even stronger in the spring months.

Thanks for the suggestion. I grew Coriander this year but it didn't do very well alas. I shall certainly try again in the new herb garden. I think it will get more sunshine there which might please it.

 

[TobiWallis]

Sounds like the perfect spot for a herb garden Tobi, sun wise and handy to the kitchen. Would you consider adding some spinach, silver beet and lettuce as they are so handy to have on hand, put in by hand...please excuse me.I do get carried away. I have found that you are better off just putting in a few lettuces and then planting another couple a month later so its a constant supply but doesn't take up that much space. Just a thought.

Thanks for the good advice DeborahJane. They are all favourites of mine and i grow them both in the kitchen garden and on my allotment. This year I grew a variety of chard called Bright Lights which has brilliantly coloured stalks and it was both prolific and delicious. Freezes well too!

 

[Mockingbird]

My raised bed is about the same size, thyme does well and stays pretty compact, if you decide to do oregano be careful because it likes to spread a bit. I just give parts away so it does not take over. You could try rosemary since the soil is rich and I would be inclined to do a small bunch of dill. It dries easily and works very well for pickles, bread and seasoning for dips and stuff like that. A little goes a long way with dill, but the smell is just so nice in the morning.

 

[Corzhens]

I personally do not see any issues with planting herbs in small plots as I have done it before and was successful. Herbs do not need much room to grow. You should try chives as well as these herbs go great on baked potatoes and in sour cream based dips. I grew chives in flower pots and it was nice just to snip off what I wanted.

I agree to that. Herbs don't require much space unless you will raise herbs for business. Our mint in the planter box grows fast such that we trim it once in a while because it tends to crowd the adjacent miracle berry. What I can suggest is for you to plant the herbs in several locations so you will have a spare plant in case the major one perishes. We have mint in a small plastic pot as reserve for the mint in our planter box.