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Making A Potted Herb Garden That Will Flourish Indoors And Out |
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Making a potted herb garden has many advantages over regular outdoor gardening. For example, you can bring the potted herbs indoors during the colder months where you have better control over conditions such as soil contamination and light. It's easy to ensure that nothing gets into the pot to contaminate the soil if it is indoors, likewise, you can move the pot into or out of the sun to control the amount of light.
by LeeDobbins
Making a potted herb garden has many advantages over regular outdoor gardening. For example, you can bring the potted herbs indoors during the colder months where you have better control over conditions such as soil contamination and light. It's easy to ensure that nothing gets into the pot to contaminate the soil if it is indoors, likewise, you can move the pot into or out of the sun to control the amount of light.
Raising herbs indoors takes close attention, but plants like basil, dill, sage, mint and lavender are more-easily cared for than others. Unfortunately, we're not given the skills of mother nature, but make the effort and controlling nutrients and water will almost become intuitive.
Choose your seeds carefully as they can actually go bad. So, the first step is to start with seeds that are of good quality. There are many organic compounds that react to oxygen, and air contains many spores that are both able to invade and are airborne. It's easy to get them fresh and to keep them that way, as long as the dates are observed and any wet seed packets are thrown away.
When making a potted herb garden you do not have to keep them indoors. It is possible to grow your herbs inside or outside. Either way you choose, you need to know the amount of sun that each plant should have. There are herbs that like full sun, while others grow well when placed in partially shaded areas.
Soil quality is very important for maintaining a healthy environment for potted herbs. Moisture content must be balanced. For example, lavender thrives in a sunny area that has dry, alkaline soil. A way to have dry soil in pots is to add clay chips to the soil. Clay absorbs water and keeps the roots of your lavender dry. Also, mix sandy and clay soil for best results.
Root rot is the most common problem for plants in containers. This is the result of excessive moisture. While it's fine for most plants to be continually wet, most herbs prefer drier soil. When we say moist, that doesn't necessarily mean always wet. Try this: Push your thumb on the surface of the soil. Is it a little springy? That means it's moist. Is it hard? That means it's dry. Next, take a toothpick (or even better, a moisture gauge). Stick it in the soil to see its moisture content. While the toothpick is good in a pinch, the gauge will provide a more accurate and useful reading.
Culinary herbs are a flavorful reason for making a potted herb garden. In the summer you can keep them handy right by the patio door, and the pots can be brought inside during cold weather and wintered over on a sunny windowsill. That way you can have fresh herbs for cooking year-round.
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