An herb garden can bring a person a lot of pleasure because there's so many
things that can be done with herbs such as herbal crafts, herbal teas and
herbal seasonings. On top of this, you get to care and tend for the plants which, if this is all you do, is enough reason to grow an herb garden. Seeing how the herbs mingle together and enjoying their fragrance are other benefits.
By planning your herb garden, you will eliminate any frustration that may arise from planting an herb in the wrong area. For example, if you plant Basil in a very shady area, it will not grow as well as if it were planted in a warm, sunny area. Also, your herb garden will bring you more satisfaction if you plan which herbs you will use.
The first thing to think about when planning your herb garden is location. Full sun is the best for herbs, but it has been my experience that most herbs
will grow in partial shade. If your herbs are planted in partial shade, they may
not grow as fast as when planted in full sun, but they will do just fine. The
place to avoid is full shade, herbs simply will not do well in full shade.
When you have decided on a location for your herb garden, it's time to figure
out which herbs you'd like to grow. To figure this out, ask yourself why you
want to grow herbs. Is it for cooking, teas, potpourri, fragrance, or a combina-tion of all these? Whatever reason you decide you're growing herbs for will help you decide which herbs to grow. If it's for cooking, which herbs do you
currently use? You could grow these, plus others that have caught your interest in the past. If it's for any of the other reasons, do some research first to find out what herbs are good for that interest. Visit the library and choose
books on that subject, or search the Internet for information. Ask your herb
growing friends. My e-book 'Getting to Know Mint' will help you learn about the
the herb Mint with Description and Varieties, Growing Mint, Mint Problems,
Caring for Mint, Using Mint: Culinary Uses (includes 17 recipes), Medicinal Uses, Garden and Household uses, Harvesting Mint and Preserving Mint; for more information, click here: http://homemakersjournal.com/mint.htm
You will also need to find out if the herbs you have chosen will grow in your
zone and soil type. Again, the library and Internet will be good sources of
information.
Now that you have chosen the herbs you want to grow, it's time to put them
into a plan. First, make a list of the herbs you will be using, leaving a space
for its' description of height, foliage and/or flower color, and spacing require-ments. To find these requirements, look these plants up in a gardening
reference book. Decide what shape of bed you'd like and what size. Keep in mind that to be easily accessed, an island bed (a bed that can be accessed from all sides) should be no wider than 5 ft, and a border bed (a bed that can only be accessed from the front) should be no wider than 2 1/2 ft.
Now take a piece of paper and a pencil and sketch in the shape of the bed.
Look at your list of herbs and place your herbs according to height, and which
plants would compliment each other. You can do this by sketching or writing in
the names of the plant. If you change your mind about something, simply erase and change. As you are placing your plants, make notes of how far apart the plants should be spaced. You may even want to go as far as using colored pencils to do some color coding or to color in the color of the plants. This sketch is your rough draft. You can use this as your planting guide.
The planning process can be just as enjoyable as planting and caring for the
herbs. It also enables you to get to know your plants before they are even
planted. Finally, as mentioned above, it will save you a great deal of
frustration, so take the time to plan your herb garden.
If you'd like more gardening tips, check out The Gardening E-book Package that includes the following e-books: The Outdoor Decor E-book, The Gardening Tips E-book, Garden Pests and Solutions and Getting to Know Mint. Click here for details: http://homemakersjournal.com/ebooklets.htm
