How to Grow a Herb Garden

Write a list of your favorite herbs and those you use most frequently before going to a nursery. Consider the size of the mature plant before deciding on the number you need. Often one plant of rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram and sage is ample for a culinary herb garden, while more may be needed if your herb garden is ornamental. Lavender makes a fragrant border.

Purchase small vigorous plants and seedlings rather than large ones. The root systems on small plants suffer less when transplanted. They soon will catch up with larger plants, which do not recover as quickly.

Sort your plants into perennials and annuals. Annuals such as basil, dill and parsley require richer soil and more water. Since your herb garden most likely will contain perennials, you may want to plant your annuals in another space.

Work the soil with a shovel or garden fork, depending on the hardness of the soil. Heavy clay needs more work. Turn over the soil until it is loose. Most perennials require little fertilizer, so there is no need to compost or fertilize the soil before planting.

Choose a location for your annual herbs where you can turn over the soil without disturbing perennial herbs. Add a light dressing of compost or a handful of complete fertilizer per square yard.

Place your herbs, in their pots, on top of the soil in the positions you think will work best. Stand back and imagine them to be full-sized mature plants. This allows you to see whether you have allowed enough space and have placed them so that they all receive sun and taller plants are not blocking sunlight from their ground-hugging neighbors. Rosemary, lavender and sage, for example, will grow to 2 feet tall and more in optimal conditions, while thyme and tarragon will stay low and spread, so place the shorter plants on the sunny side.

Dig holes for your herb plants, using a hand trowel. Allow twice the diameter of the pot and a little deeper. Water the holes well so that water is visible in the bottom of the hole.

Turn the pot upside down carefully. Gently tap the edge against your hand or a firm surface to loosen the roots. Place the plant in the hole, suspending it a little above the base. Fill in the soil and pat down the surface around the plant to eliminate air pockets.