I like the pots. My rosemary from last year looks about the same. However it was the same the year before and then went great guns in the summer.Ive had probs this year with herbs at the allotment but with some great advice from the forum , I think ive nailed it. i didnt harden them off . Oh well all in the learning.

I grow a lot of thymes and in the creeping varieties there are more than one can keep track of. If it has a distinguishing color or aroma, that will help you track down what group it fits into. This is year two for the plant? Most of my thymes flower in mid to late May here; but some flower in June, some in July. Don't give up on flowers this year just yet. The most common thyme seeds offered are Thymus vulgarus (common garden thyme also known as English thyme) but this looks like a lower-growing plant than that. A lot of seed companies only identify the thyme seeds as "creeping" or "English," etc, not the full named variety. Part of the reason for the ambiguity is that thyme isn't always true to seed and from one package you will get several sister-varieties of the plant. Relax, call it creeping thyme, and if it has a distinguishing characteristic (i.e. smells like lemons, has purple flowers, tastes like caraway seeds, etc) then you can have another name to distinguish it.

Thyme is a wood perennial. It will continue to grow each year spreading by putting down roots where the longer shoots reach new ground. I tend to thin mine pretty hard in the fall to get rid of the woodiest chunks so that new, tender growth occurs in the spring. Sort of like a controlled fire in the woods. I let mine flower, but some people cut them off. You can eat the flowers, but I don't get much taste out of mine. Benign neglect is the secret to many perennial herbs. Tend them in fall and again in the spring and let them do what they want the rest of the year.

Thank you so much everyone! Thank you. It must be the wetness. I had wanted to add, the soil the lemon thyme came in is very light and very fluffy but all organic substance. No sand/perlite etc at all. The soil is nothing but moisture retentive and is taking eons to dry out. Thats probably why the thyme plant is dying. April was wet where I am and probably the rain killed the plant in such a soil. Whereas the German thyme was at a very hot dry time. Why, oh why would a nursery put thyme in such a soil??? I did order more lemon thyme but this time around as soon as the plants arrive I will plant them into a super fast draining soil. @gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)8: I also have a garden that gets a lot of shade from my beloved trees. Wherever there is some sun, never full sun, I grow roses and some sun loving perennials and then some summer vegetables. Though my soil is well draining it is rich in organic matter and very fertile. I dont think herbs such as thyme, oregano, lavender will do well at all in the ground for me. Thats why I am trying to grow in pots in a hot 'sunny' area, getting probably 4-5 hours of sun. I am surprised, so surprised, how good the flavor of the thyme is even with so little sun. What I am anxious about and want to get right is the soil. I took a reasonably good, ie well draining, potting mix and mixed it with at least half, probably two thirds, coarse sand. (one volume potting mix to two volumes sand.) Water just zips through. I hope this is adequate? What confuses me is watching some YT videos. People are growing thyme next to some other herbs in the ground and soil does not look particularly gravel-y or sandy, maybe even dark and rich. And pots look like regular potting mix. How lean is lean? Is adding sand the right way to go? Your rooting a few sprigs is the best idea and I just started some. @Labradors, funny you mentioned lemon basil! I went on a herb spree this season. I am growing three types of lemon basil and also lime basil. The regular so called lemon basil, Mrs. Burns lemon basil and Sweet Dani lemon basil. I gently rub my two palms through the leaves of each type and then smell them. Geeez it really does smell of lemon and each a little different. I still dont know which I like best. The straight lemon basil does seem to want to flower pretty quickly. And I s---- the lime basil does smell like lime and clearly distinct from lemon. There are yet a few other types I am growing as well. If I plant thyme plants now will they root well through fall and overwinter for me (in pots)? Thank you so much again.