By Rami Moorosi
Anyone with a kitchen garden will tell you that growing your own herbs is a very rewarding experience, especially when you can harvest them to your heart’s content when preparing your favourite recipes. This month our gardening experts give us some tips that promise a kitchen garden filled with much loved herbs to tickle your taste buds.
The first step in your venture is to decide on the style of your garden. Generally speaking, you have the more traditional style which is more formal based on circular, square or rectangular patterns with interlocking areas and a central focal point or feature. This could be a sundial, birdbath, water feature, a standard tree or even a statue, to mention a few. Other styles could include a simple
border bed or a potted herb garden. For a delightful potted garden that will inspire the home chef, why not use different size pots, artistically grouped right outside the kitchen.
Location, location
The next step would be finding an ideal site. Most herbs originate in the Mediterranean region, hence they thrive in sunny areas. Experts from Mark Edward Landscapes say that you should prepare the soil by digging over your beds and removing any weeds and stones as well as using compost to enrich the soil.
Planting and sowing seeds
Nothing beats the feeling of harvesting a crop that you have grown from seeds. Most seeds need to be sown in trays with seedling mixture. With your seedling remember to leave enough space between plants to avoid overcrowding when they reach maturity. Annual seeds and seedlings can be sown every four to six weeks during growing season for a continuous supply.
Maintenance
When possible avoid growing the plants near contaminating agents such as animals or chemical sprays. Do not overfeed your herbs as this will result in a loss of flavour. Pinch the tips to encourage new growth. Also remember to remove flowers to stop them from forming seeds as this will heighten the flavour of herbs such as basil and rocket.
No matter where and how you choose to grow your herb garden, exceptional results are always guaranteed. Whether it is for therapeutic or culinary reasons, it is bound to be a satisfactory experience.
