It’s planting season again!

Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

I’ve had an outdoor herb garden with mint, sage, and chives for several years. And boy, are they flourishing this year! Lavender and rosemary were also planted, but neither ever came up. Finding an empty spot in my garden, I decided to pop in some carrots. Time will tell whether they will grow! ​
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This year, I decided that I also wanted an indoor herb garden and more of a variety of herbs. The lockdown prevented me from getting all the seeds I wanted, but I did manage to purchase dill, chamomile, cilantro, parsley, and rosemary. The first four I planted in a long planter on my front windowsill, where they get tons of light.

Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

Part of my decision to have an indoor herb garden was influenced by the desire to have more indoor plants. I feel better when I am around plants! And I’m pushing myself to learn more about them so that I can better incorporate a variety of plants into my home. So this year, I will cultivate parsley, cilantro, chamomile, and dill indoors. My little plants are looking great so far, but my kitty seems to think the planter is a cat bed and is squishing my precious sprouts! But they seem to be taking the abuse well!

Dill. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

Cilantro. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

The rosemary was planted in a large pot with more chamomile, but the first sprouts died. More were planted--and now some vicious critter keeps digging in my pot! I am just having no luck with rosemary! Maybe I’ll plant it in a pot that stays indoors. I love rosemary. I love cooking with it. I love the smell of it, but I can’t seem to grow it to save my life! 

Herbs are amazing--not only are they useful in cooking, but they are so fragrant and beautiful! Sage leaves are one of my favorite foliage for the aroma. And the delicate little flowers are beautiful when they are in full bloom!

Sage flowers. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

Sage leaves. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2018.

The one issue is that sage and mint take over a space. It looks beautiful, but my chives might get squeezed out! That would be a shame since I love fresh chives, and those purple flowers are simply gorgeous.

Mint. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

Chives. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2020.

At some point, I may try to grow some mint indoors, but I may try a different variety—one that is more minty. And I’m still trying to source some catnip seeds for my kitties! Speaking of kitties, a little bit of research turned up some interesting tidbits of information about cat-friendly herbs you can grow. I've also been investigating how to grow herbs indoors to get more tips about what to grow and how to use the herbs--other than for eye candy--so no doubt the number of plants will increase. Anyway, stay tuned for updates, as I will be tracking the growth and progress of my new herbs and taking plenty of photos with my DSLR camera (which I am having too much fun with, by the way).

Feel free to share your experiences with your herb gardens below, and have a great day!


Related blog posts you may want to read:
Six herbs I planted indoors
Let's talk about houseplants
Capturing the beautiful details in nature