Indoor container herb garden questions

9 years ago

I'm growing Oregano, Thyme, Sweet Basil, and Cilantro in containers in my house, or at least I will be very soon.

I'm planting the herbs in EarthGro potting soil that has from the label: "This product is regionally formulated from organic materials (primarily derived from one or more of the following: Hypnum peat, forest peat, forest products, or compost), sand and perlite."

My first question is, is it acceptable to start the seeds directly in the soil of the pot, or should I use the little peat pellets and the dome?

My second question is, should I fertilize and when should I fertilize? Through my research, I've read that you should not use fertilizer, you should use fertilizer designed for flowers as that will help develop the leaves, use liquid kelp, or fish emulsion, some say to use fish tank water etc..One site says to use a 10-5-10 liquid fertilizer at half strength. Some say to fertilize every 2 weeks ranging up to every 6 weeks, some say only during the winter. - It's all so conflicting. I've seen a few sites refer to Neptune's Harvest Organic Fish and Seaweed Fertilizer as well.

This year we will not have a compost pile, but next year we will. This year, we do have access to dried manure from my girlfriends parent's farm. (if any of this info helps)

What I'm interested in is what you've personally done and what has worked for you. I live in Wisconsin by the way.

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Comments (4)

johns.coastal.patio
9 years ago
It is possible to start seeds in EarthGro, and I just did (peppers and eggplants). I misted the top of the soil with a weak chamomile tea solution, which is rumored to help against damping off. To my eye the EarthGrow is very water retaining, and so worry more about over watering than under.

I don't know when to fertilize herbs, but I wouldn't think you would need to worry about that early. Perhaps others can help here.
balloonflower
9 years ago
Basil and Cilantro should start nicely from seed for you. You can try directly in your potting mix, or I've started in pots with 1/2" of seed starting mix on the top of the potting mix too. Oregano can be more difficult to start from seed, and if you're looking to get a harvest from the plant this year, I would recommend purchasing a starter plant instead of seeding. Thyme grows a little faster than oregano, but again, you'll get a harvest much faster with a start over seed. I am not familiar with that type of soil, but you'll want to make sure it drains well for the thyme and oregano. I mix a succulent or bonsai soil into my potting soil for those, plus rosemary, lavender, and bay.

As far as fertilizer, with fresh potting soil, you shouldn't need to fertilize right away. I wouldn't fertilize cilantro at all-it's rather short lived, and I let mine seed into coriander. The basil you might choose to fertilize after a couple months if it's still going. Oregano & Thyme after about 3 months. I use a liquid fish-based fert on my herb pots-I think it's a 4-3-3, and I mix it on the weak side. I go monthly during the growing summer on those that have been potted for a while, then every 2-3 months during the winter when they're more dormant. When I have worms again for vermicompost, then I top dress the compost, or make tea and alternate with fertilizer.

manure will have to be properly composted before use.
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YMMV on the following Liz, but I use a dry 6-10-10 fertilizer (only about 2 bucks at Wal*Reich for a box that'll last me a decade), and apply a handful for every 4 square feet every 3 growing months. And every 6 months, I apply a light dusting of magnesium sulfate (epsom salts, just make sure they're the pure thing). The plants respond well, all else being constant. Congrats on all the newness! Just a word to no one in particular from my experience: stay away from anything that says "potting mix" for herbs... They will HATE it. Way too much loosley-packed raw organic matter. Always go for a landscaping-grade or home-processed compost, manure, or blend thereof... Or failing that, just plain topsoil. Throw in about half a cup to a cup of sand for every gallon of compost or manure, depending on the particular plant's requirements (IE more for rosemary, less for parsley). Just my $0.02 on the subject.
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Hi! Boy, not starting small are you! :D First of all, I'd spray the plants for bugs before you bring them in, it might slow their takeover. Secondly, most chillis, with the exception of a few tropical ones, are annuals, you might be able to extend the season some, but they'll probably decline. Parsley, is a biennial, I'd just plant more in the spring. You might get some to start early, I dunno, I have no luck with that sort of thing. Basil is not happy at under 80Âº, so I'd wait for that, you can try, but it may get really buggy from being unhappy. The mints should be okay, giving them as much sun as you can, mine die back in the winter, but I leave them outside. The thyme and the oregano have a little chance. Lights don't really do much for anything but seedlings, unless you buy the $300 HID lights. Maybe someone who's had better luck growing plants indoors can give some help.
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cold_weather_is_evil
9 years ago
I am a firmly devoted user of peat pellets but they don't seem to work as well as other media with teeny tiny seeds. I don't know why.
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
9 years ago
....in containers in my house....

So far no one has addressed the 'indoor' part of your project. This, imo, is the most pertinent and problematic factor. Indoor herb growing is not easy and you make no mention of supplementary lighting. Without it you would do a lot better growing your herbs outside.

Indoor container herb garden questions

Comments (4)

johns.coastal.patio

balloonflower

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floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

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