While we all expect the freshest quality of our herbs from our kitchen suppliers, it is all too often not the case and can be rather disappointing when a limp bunch of flat leaf parsley or coriander is delivered. The solution; grow your own. Trending these days are kitchen gardens, but in reality a massive labour intensive show piece might not suit some of our culinary outlets.
I am fortunate at the moment to be working at a golf club where the female members have set up a small herb garden. I have since added a few essentials like strawberries, long red chillies, edible flowers, shallots, rosella and a bay tree.
Right, I am very lucky but to those who don’t have much space or knowledge herbs can do very well in pots. I suggest starting with a left over Styrofoam box or two. All you need to do is poke a few drainage holes in the bottom and fill with potting mix. Spend a few $$$$ on your herb punnets and water regularly. We use our lettuce washing water to splash on our garden to save tap water.
Hard herbs like thyme and rosemary will crop for a number of years while parsley and coriander will flower and go to seed. You can also use the herb flowers or keep the seed for the next crop.
If you have a little more experience and want to step it up a notch, pallet gardening is an option. Using recycled palates is an inexpensive way to form a garden. You can stack them up, use them as a vertical planter or disassemble the timber and made a planter box. Be aware that some palate timber has been treated with chemicals and might not be suitable. If you pop some castors on the bottom of your planter box you can move your mini garden around. In some small areas you might need to roll your garden out of the way for deliveries etc.
Remember – there is no substitute for fresh herbs.
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