Herbs from seeds

[Tarragon2017]

Last year was my first experience at growing Herbs and Veg from seed. As previously mentioned I had some successes and failures.

I was able to grow , Thai Basil and Coriander from seed which I was very impressed for a novice like me.

My question to you is what other herbs are easy to grow from seeds as this would be very cost effective from a cooking and gardening point of view.

I use Parsley a lot, but I also love to use Tarragon and Basil. I am not opposed to using rarer herbs just out of interest such as Lovage , Sorrel and savory as well.

Also the wife has asked me to ask about chamomile, lemon balm and Borage and whether they are also easy to grow from seeds as she bought them on a whim. I will plan to scatter these herbs around may-june.

Should you always start of with small pots and slowly build up ? as I do have plastic pots of all sizes.

Thanks for your help

[Small pumpkin]

If you can grow Thai basil and coriander from seed. You can grow any of the others you've mentioned.
Get seeds. Chuck them in some warm slightly damp compost. Sit them on a window cill. See what happens.

[nickdub]

Most of the herbs you mention are fairly easy from seed. I'd usually start with a smallish pot, fill it with general purpose compost, sprinkle a few seeds on the top, give it a bit of water, put it in a closed plastic bag and put that in my airing-cupboard to germinate. For those things you use a lot of like parsley you could do a pot every few weeks.

Obviously as the weather warms up some of the seedlings could be planted out in a bed or box so that you get larger plants.

Be wary of the lemon balm as it is a bit of a thug when it gets going, though not as bad as mint.

Some of the shrubby herbs like sage and rosemary are easier to propagate from layers off existing plants.

[Guest]

It might be easier with which herbs aren't easy or cannot be grown from seed - lemon verbena, Vietnamese coriander and French tarragon are all that spring to my mind.

I don't see any real worry with building up slowly to bigger pots. I am very much a bung em in, prick em out, pot on and that'll do.

[Jungle Jane]

Parsley could be sowed direct in a bigger pot,thickly they don’t need thinning & par-cel similar but with a nice celery taste.

[Ani]

Basil is easy but it is even easier from cuttings. Grow it once or buy some in a supermarket and you have an infinite supply of basil. My basil (normal, green italian) from a cutting is over 20 cm now and my basil from seeds (decorative red, sown in approx. same time - end Feb) is still small (2 sets of true leaves).

[Tarragon2017]

Thanks for all your advice I may give it a go from seeds.

Just one small point if I was to sow outside, which month can I start this , May ?

[nickdub]

Sounds about right - if you can, put a piece of plastic weighed down on the surface of the soil for a week or so before you sow to help warm it up. Also obviously slugs and snails will cause havoc sometimes, so you have to be a bit cautious if the weather is damp.

[Dynamite]

Basil is easy but it is even easier from cuttings. Grow it once or buy some in a supermarket and you have an infinite supply of basil. My basil (normal, green italian) from a cutting is over 20 cm now and my basil from seeds (decorative red, sown in approx. same time - end Feb) is still small (2 sets of true leaves).

How did you root/germinate the cuttings pleas Ani?

Kind Regards.............Rob

[Ani]

Just put them in a glass of water and they grow roots in a week or week and half.
If you just stuck them in a pot of compost and water every day slightly more than you would normally, they will be fine too.

[farendwoman]

I've saved and sowed (sown??!) some seed from a fabulous Green Ginger Rosemary. The seed germinated very quickly so I'm delighted.
Question is ..... Will the seedlings be green ginger or some other Rosemary?

[hamamelis]

I've saved and sowed (sown??!) some seed from a fabulous Green Ginger Rosemary. The seed germinated very quickly so I'm delighted.
Question is ..... Will the seedlings be green ginger or some other Rosemary?

I doubt they'd come true as it's a variety propagated by cuttings, and it may have crossed with another plant as well, but you might get some ginger flavour from seedlings. Only one way to find out, really!

Rosemary takes very easily from cuttings, so it would be easy to get more if you wanted.

[farendwoman]

I never seem to have much luck with rosemary or lavender cuttings.
No probs with loads of other stuff - just useless with rosemary and lavender.
Hence the seed sowing.