Starting your herb garden

From Hamlet's Ophelia to Jamie Oliver's kitchen, herbs have been used for savour and health. Get started on growing your own on any outside space

'There's rosemary for remembrance,' says Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet as she hands her brother a sprig. The same herb graced the pearl coronet of Anne of Cleves when she married Henry XIII. And the ancient Athenians wore wreaths of violets to ward off drunkenness. In Britain, there is even a post of Royal Herb Strewer. In this country herbs have been cultivated for more than two thousand of years and with today's emphasis on natural foods, remedies and beauty products, they're more popular than ever.

Herbs are fairly easy to grow, will sprout in containers on a patio, in window boxes, even in hanging baskets and they are a pretty, fragrant addition to your outside space. Stand herb-filled pots outside the kitchen door or on a windowsill for easy access. They'll smell gorgeous on a summer's day and you'll have a fresh supply of succulent herbs to hand. Here are some top tips to get you going with your herb garden

How to get started
Herbs can be grown from seeds, plants or cuttings. Any method will produce plants but buying ready-grown herbs will give you a head start, make an instant impact and be useable from day one. But make sure you buy from a reputable garden centre and not from a supermarket. They're sold for instant use and won't last long. Rosemary, thyme, sage, tarragon and bay grow well from plants.

Cultivating seeds gives an extra sense of satisfaction as you watch them peeping through the compost, and it's a much more economical method. You'll get plenty of stock from one packet of seeds but growing this way is more labour intensive as you'll have to remember to keep the soil moisture at the right level. During the early spring months seeds should be sown indoors in seed trays or small pots. A greenhouse or windowsill will do. When the seedlings are large enough to handle, they can be thinned and transferred to larger containers. When there's no threat of frost in the early summer (you hope!), seedlings can be moved or seeds sown outside. The packet will give instructions on when and how often to sow. Rocket, coriander, parsley and chives grow particularly well from seed.

You can take your own cuttings from other plants to start your own. They should be taken in the spring before stems become too woody. Snip off a piece about 3 or 4 inches long from the side shoots of a healthy plant. If possible, cut on a joint and remove all but three or four leaves. Planted in good quality compost in a warm, sunny spot, the cutting should grow well.

Best for container gardening
Containers come in a multitude of sizes, materials, shapes and colours. Anything from a terracotta urn or window box to an old chimney pot or sink will do, as long as it has good drainage. Try your local reclamation yard for ideas or forage through a few skips (but always ask before you take anything).

Drill holes in the base if a container doesn't have them already. Fill the bottom with cracked pots or polystyrene pieces. This will help drainage and the pot will be easier to move if it's not filled to the brim with compost. Most herbs will grow well in window boxes as well as containers; sage and rosemary are particularly suited but lavender, chives, parsley, thyme, marjoram and French tarragon will flourish too. A traditional strawberry pot with pockets in the side looks stunning with a selection of herbs bursting through the holes. Parsley, chives, thyme, coriander, basil and creeping rosemary will all grow in baskets.

Some herbs are best-suited to a hot, sunny spot on the windowsill or in the garden. But it's a myth that they all are. Thyme, sage, mint, chives and oregano (among others) love a sunny spot; the warmth brings their natural oils to the surface of the leaves and enhances flavour. But parsley, chervil, salad rocket and coriander prefer partial shade. This produces softer leaves with a more subtle taste.

Best for a border or bed
Larger herbs like lovage, angelica (both can grow to 6ft) and fennel are best suited to borders and beds. They grow too tall and need too much root space for containers. When planning your border or bed, think about what you?d like to grow and why; do you want height, colour, smell, practicality or all of above? And check the soil type before starting. Testing kits cost about £1 and give a pretty accurate result.

Plant the tallest herbs at the back and smaller ones towards the front. The labels on pots or seed packets should tell you how big they?ll grow. Plant your herb garden in a relatively sunny spot, preferably next to a table and chairs so you can take in the wonderful aroma while sipping a glass of wine on a warm evening.

Best for a roof terrace
Herbs grow best in an environment similar to their native habitat. So the Mediterranean herbs such as thyme, oregano or rosemary will do well on a windswept roof garden, Whereas the more delicate herbs like basil will struggle. Stick to low-growing, reasonably hardy herbs.

Growing tips
Opinion varies on whether herbs should be fed or not. Many agree that the best flavoured leaves are left alone. But planting in good quality multi-purpose compost, the built-in food will keep your herbs happy for about six weeks. Then an occasional feed could enhance your plants during the growing season, April to June. A less robust herb like basil can benefit from extra nourishment. Experiment and see. Feeding is easy: put slow-release fertiliser granules in the soil or mix a liquid feed in the watering can every so often. Containers dry out more quickly than borders, so be sure to water regularly.

Different herbs will generally grow happily together, whether in containers, boxes, borders or baskets. The general rule is to group herbs from the same family eg. the Mediterranean herbs, rosemary, thyme, marjoram and sage. Some herbs, however, can be very invasive and are best kept on their own. Confine mint to its own pot or sink a large container into your herb garden to stop the roots spreading. Lemon balm and borage tend to spread too, so keep a keen eye out to stop them taking over.

To keep your plants healthy and growing in a pleasant shape, pick the leaves from healthy plants on a regular basis. This also encourages new growth. The best time is the early morning.

You can dry or freeze herbs when they?ve been harvested and keep them for use during the winter months, but they must be done so quickly to preserve the rich flavours.

Drying herbs
Dry herbs in a warm place away from direct sunlight - the airing cupboard, porch or garden shed. Five or six days should do it. But the easiest and fastest way is to lay them on kitchen paper and cook in the microwave on a low setting for three minutes. When dry, the leaves can be taken off, flaked and stored in air-tight containers. They should last for twelve to eighteen months. Most herbs will dry but thyme and lemon verbena are particularly good as they really keep their flavour.

Freezing herbs
To freeze them, wrap small quantities in parcels of cling-film, freezer-bags or ice-cube trays topped up with water. They tend to look rather sad when de-frosting but are absolutely fine for cooking. Frozen herbs will last between two and three months. Basil, chervil, chives, dill, marjoram, parsley, sorrel and tarragon are all suitable for freezing.