You could go by your home improvement, nursery or greenhouse to buy your herb plants. Another way to get started with your herb garden would be to start your herbs from seeds. There is another common method of getting your own herbs, called propagation, and it is less costly than either purchasing herbs or starting them as seeds.
Propagation is simply finding a friend or neighbor who already has some plants and then taking either part of their plant through division or by taking a cutting of their herb and allowing it to grow roots for before planting it.
When using division, breaking up isn’t hard to do, you just cut the herb into smaller, separate plants. Some plants are easier than others to divide, like chives and sage. Dig all the way through the herb with your trowel and the roots, which will completely separate the plant into parts. If you’re dividing a creeping plant like English chamomile, it will be a lot easier.
For small herbs, you can use a couple of forks instead of a shovel when separating. If you water the herb the day before, the soil will be nice and moist and ready for division. Once you get home with your new plant, treat it just like you would a plant you get at the nursery.
Another thing that is different is that you are going to want to fertilize the new little herb when you put it into the ground. I’d also suggest that you use a root stimulator to help in supporting those tender roots that will need to grow to support the divided herb.
If you’re not terribly happy about messing your hands up, you can make a cutting of the existing herb instead. Just keep in mind that your cuttings won’t have any roots and cannot be put in the ground or in a pot until it does, this could take a few weeks.. Another potential issue is that not all plants can be propagated by taking a cutting from an existing herb.
Fresh, immature plants are easier to get cuttings from than the older, woodier herbs . But like I always say; make do with what you have. When making a cutting, follow these guidelines:
- Just cut off a branch of the plant that includes at least 3 leaves and then trim off the leaves
- Now here is where I differ from other folks: take your branch and soak it for at least 8 hours in a diluted mixture of both root stimulator and water.
- When you take out the stems from the root stimulator, stick it into a small pot of rich and moistened earth. Make sure you bury up the branch (which is now the stem) and all the places where you removed the leaves.
- Add some more water and keep soil moist but not flooded. Give your cutting 4 weeks to start growing its new leaves.
Some of the best herbs to start from cuttings include: rosemary, salvias, scented geranium, vervain and white willow.
Good luck with your herb gardening. Be sure to let me know how your herb garden grows.
Here is more Herb Garden Information. Here is a website with a free mini-course dedicated to Herb Gardens.
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