Coping With Giving up Gardening by Growing Herbs Indoors
While the weather this week has been unseasonably warm in many parts of the country, we know it won’t last long. And if you were one of the many people who really got into gardening during the pandemic (or were an avid gardener for years), you may be facing winter breaks when it comes to your favorite stress-reducing hobby.
Those who live in areas with harsh winters have always known that this time is approaching, but that does not make it easier for them to fill the garden-shaped hole every day. Fortunately, there is one little thing that can help you deal with this part of the year: planting an indoor herb garden. (You may already have one of these, but you can always expand on it.) Here’s what you need to know.
How to start an indoor herb garden
Let’s start with a few tips from Lifehacker Senior Health Editor Beth Skoreki , who suggests starting with real herbal plants, not seeds:
My best advice for budding gardeners is: Don’t try to grow herbs from seed. They take eternity. You can buy herbal pots at any garden store or grocery store, eat a few leaves when you get home, and declare yourself a successful gardener a few minutes later, because look! You have a herb garden!
After that, your task is to keep the small herbaceous plants alive. As Rachel Fairbank wrote for Lifehacker back in May , a lot of it comes down to making sure the plant is getting the sunlight, water and soil it needs:
To keep your plant alive, you need to give it enough sunlight and water, as well as the right soil and nutrients. How much of each will depend on a particular plant, and too much or too little will lead to another death. The key to doing this is learning what your particular plant needs and figuring out how to provide it correctly and how to recognize the warning signs that something is wrong if you are doing it wrong. While it sounds simple, it takes a little practice to get it right (sorry, leavening).
These tips may come in handy even if you are currently an inexperienced gardener, but if you have never grown plants indoors. At the very least, you will be able to continue growing plants and watching them grow, even if the outside is awful. Plus, you’ll have your own selection of fresh herbs to complement your winter meals.