You can grow herbs indoors this winter and add that just-picked taste to your meals, even when snow is drifting up against the kitchen window. You don't even need special lights-herbs fare just fine in a bright window. Here are the best herbs for growing on windowsills and the techniques you need to keep them happy and healthy until you can plant outside again.

 

Many herbs-including oregano, thyme, rosemary, and sage-are best propagated for indoor growing by taking a cutting from an existing outdoor plant. To do it, snip off a 4-inch section, measured back from the tip. Strip off the lower leaves and stick the stem into moist, soilless mix, such as perlite and/or vermiculite. To ensure good humidity, cover with glass or clear plastic, and keep the growing medium-moist.

 

Some herbs, like basil and parsley, can be grown from seed.  When I grow herbs from seed indoors, I sow a few seeds directly in the pot and cover it with plastic wrap until the seeds begin to sprout.  After a couple of weeks I then thin out the shorter plants.

 

A few herbs can easily be cut back, dug up, and moved inside during the winter months.  To do this cut the plant back in the fall so it can easily be supported by a smaller root system.  Pot it in a pot that is the appropriate size, a pot that is too small will cause it to quickly dry out and also crowd any new root growth.  To prevent pests from coming inside with your herbs, try to remove as much garden soil as possible before repotting.

 

Most herbs like to be well watered but don't like wet feet. That's why good drainage is important. Water when the top of the container feels dry, or learn to judge the moisture in the soil by the weight of the pot. Add sand or vermiculite to the potting soil to ensure good drainage.
 

 

• Basil: Start basil from seeds and place the pots in a south-facing window-it likes lots of sun and warmth.
• Bay: A perennial that grows well in containers all year long. Place the pot in an east, or west, facing window, but be sure it does not get crowded-bay needs air circulation to remain healthy.
• Chervil: Start chervil seeds in late summer. It grows well in low light but needs 65 to 70 degrees F temperatures to thrive.
• Chives: Dig up a clump from your garden at the end of the growing season and pot it up. Leave the pot outside until the leaves die back. In early winter, move the pot to your coolest indoor spot (such as a basement) for a few days, then finally to your brightest window.
• Oregano: Your best bet is to start with a tip cutting from an outdoor plant. Place the pot in a south-facing window.
• Parsley: You can start this herb from seeds or dig up a clump from your garden at the end of the season. Parsley likes full sun, but will grow slowly in an east, or west, facing window.
• Rosemary: Start with a cutting of rosemary, and keep it in moist soilless mix until it roots. It grows best in a south-facing window.
• Sage: Take a tip cutting from an outdoor plant to start an indoor sage. It tolerates dry, indoor air well, but it needs the strong sun it will get in a south-facing window.
• Tarragon: A dormant period in late fall or early winter is essential for tarragon to grow indoors. Pot up a mature plant from your outdoor garden and leave it outside until the leaves die back. Bring it to your coolest indoor spot for a few days, then place it in a south-facing window for as much sun as possible. Feed well with an organic liquid fertilizer.
• Thyme: You can start thyme indoors either by rooting a soft tip cutting or by digging up and potting an outdoor plant. Thyme likes full sun but will grow in an east, or west, facing window.