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Ultimate Windowsill Herb Garden

A windowsill herb garden is the best way to ensure year round fresh herbs. You can chose to go for delicate plants like basil or parsley, or even go a bit more robust like thyme. So How do you make the ultimate windowsill herb garden?

  1. Make sure to protect the windowsill from any excess water that may drain from your herb pots.
  2. Ensure you have a mix of herbs that the family like to actually eat, as simple as this sounds I avoid Cilantro because it tastes like soap to me, so would not grow it in the kitchen.
  3. Choose herbs that need the right amount of daylight for your windowsill. Trying to grow sun loving basil in a gloomy sheltered window will not work well.
  4. Think outside of the kitchen, our conservatory becomes a winter haven for our perennial herbs that need to be protected from floods and frosts. That way we can extend our growing and harvesting season.
  5. Avoid too much sunlight for those herbs that prefer a bit of shade in their lives. Too much sun can force an herb to bolt and become woody prematurely.
  6. Adequate drainage is key for all windowsill indoors herbs and making sure to provide drainage holes in pretty pots is essential.
  7. Water your herbs only when the top of the soil appears to be drying out. Herbs like basil will show you when they need a drink by visibly wilting, however a passive watering system can be a life saver to avoid over or under watering your herbs.
  8. Once you have watered your herbs, avoid them dying off prematurely by removing excess water from the tray, this will avoid roots sitting in wet soil for too long.
  9. Harvest the herbs regularly to encourage bushier plants and new growth. Take new growth at the top of nodes to see shoots in a few weeks forming and new growth doubling.
  10. Transform the way you grow food and think about micro herbs. They are super easy to grow and will encourage even the newest gardener to grow their own food. Super packed with nutrients and flavor too. We grow our micro herbs in pots small enough to fit on our windowsill and have a large harvest every 2-3 weeks!
  11. Or choose to grow using a hydroponics system with an LED light. This gives you year round herbs with freshness and nutritional content readily available.

Benefits to a windowsill herb garden

The main benefit has to be the year round supply. If you want to have a continuous supply of tasty homegrown herbs then this is the way to go.  The next benefit is space saving. If you live ten floors up with no balcony then this will allow you to exercise those green fingers. You will also love how convenient it is to have fresh food ready to be cut and added to your dishes. Like it just reminds you that your pasta sauce could really be improved with some basil chopped up on top. windowsill herbs taste oh so good as a last minute thought! Or the Slow Roasted Cherry Tomatoes would go so well with some oregano ripped up and tossed in the oil.

You control what you eat. Simply put, no pesticides or extra chemicals. I’m not saying it will be organic as some of the seeds I use are not. This means that technically I can’t pretend to have fully certified organic herbs on my windowsill. However you get the idea that you will not be adding anything unexpected to your diet.

My final reason is that your windowsill will never look as inviting then when it is full of lush and verdant herbs! The view from any window is massively improved by edible plants!

How to start that mini herb garden dream

First things first – protect the windowsill against any spills. Sounds stupid but if it is wooden it will get water damaged. So you need a tray for the bottom of any herb planters. The next part depends on your budget. Ideally growing your own herbs should be cheaper than buying them. So it is up to you if you wan them to be part of your home décor ‘look’ as well.

Windowsill Herb Garden Kits

See for my money these are worth it every day of the week. These come in at around £8 for three different herbs. You get sweet basil, Chives and Parsley. So an ideal entry level herb garden. Your windowsill will look pretty cute too. The galvanised steel look is timeless.

with a windowsill of the classic herb combo of Basil, Chives and Parsley - you can't go wrong
windowsill full of herbs

Another classic, Basil, Parsley and Chive combo. When I polled our twitter army they voted in their droves for Basil as the top herb. So this makes sense to include in any windowsill display. This one is a little more chic and would look nice in any kitchen.

these make for a perfect windowsill of tasty goodness in your herbs I am a bit old fashioned so like to follow the suppliers I grew up with, like Mr Fothergill’s and Unwins.  So this one ticks those boxes. It is also a bit more sophisticated and contains the now classic mix of Basil, Chives and Parsley and raises it by also including Coriander. If you are one of those Coriander haters who is genetically predisposed to taste soap, then this is not for you! I do like the country cottage feel of the container and there is nothing to stop you growing any combination of herbs once you have bought it.

This is the ultimate chic planter and by far the right choice for a modern kitchen with a real food lover! It has an LED light to help growth as well as a water reservoir. So basically a mini hydroponic system. Very chic. Very easy to set up. This one comes with basil drop in pods. We will look again at the ease of pods verses seeds. However you can imagine that once eaten you can replace with virtually any plant you would like for year round access to fresh herbs. All on your gloomy wet and windy windowsill.

DIY Windowsill Herb Garden

These versions do not come with seeds so you can chose your own combinations. So the windowsill will look fab no matter what your taste preferences!

Whether you want to buy a simple set like this one or make your own DIY Herb Planters you really can tailor it to your own tastes.

We love to cook with herbs fresh or dried. We also love to use herbs in our crafts. So please do subscribe and learn more about what you can do with your own windowsill herb garden!

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