Herb Garden Containers

An herb garden is a wonderful thing. Herb gardening in containers is relatively easy and most varieties can be grown successfully, either on a windowsill, a patio or a balcony.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT CONTAINERS:

Just about anything will work, but keep in mind, most varieties prefer fast draining soil and, therefore, pots that breath!

A back porch, containerized herb garden

Although it’s often hard to resist those cute little glazed “herb pots” found in many gift shops and garden centers, serious herb gardeners usually prefer terra-cotta because of its natural wicking capability…

Standard red clay
pots make great
herb containers!

That doesn’t mean you’re limited to standard clay pots, though!

Guy Wolff has a great selection of clay pottery
perfect for containerized herbs

More great "herb pots" by Guy Wolff

Campo di' Fiori pottery
is perfect for herb plantings

Strawbery Pots by Campo di' Fiori

The so-called “strawberry pot” is great for growing a variety of herbs in one place—provided they all require the same conditions--When you need some flavor for your food ... it's all right there

.

One more important thing to remember is that container size does matter. The pot must fit the plant - or plants - that will be growing in it. If the container is too small your herbs may quickly become rootbound and dry out just too quickly. On the other hand, if the container is too large, your plants may, at best, spend all of their energy on root production and not grow the way they should—Or, at worst, simply rot from staying wet too long!

                                                                                                                                                                                                

With this information as a guide, the choices are endless...

Campo di' Fiori

"Dragon Scales" by Campo di' Fiori

Choose a standard clay pot, or show a bit more panache with  designer pots such as those from Guy Wolff or Campo di' Fiori...

ALL OF THESE POTS (AS WELL AS EVERYTHING ELSE YOU WILL NEED FOR SUCCESSFUL HERB GARDENING) ARE AVAILABLE NOW AT
INTO THE GARDEN
              
WITH LOCATIONS IN DALLAS AND 
FORT WORTH...

SEE YA THERE!

ARUGULA: A SPICY HERB THAT'S EASY TO GROW RIGHT NOW!

GROWING HERBS IN CONTAINERS:

Hot summer sun causes greens to turn bitter and go to seed quickly--That's why we start them now! Of course, after the weather is consistently over 85 degrees F, we can move our containers to an area that gets cool afternoon shade in order to extend the life of those cool weather crops...

ARUGULA GROWS GREAT IN CONTAINERS

Arugula loves the cool weather and SHOULD be planted in DFW, starting today—especially in containers. All you need are daytime temperatures above 40F. Even frost won’t hold it back. It grows best in a sunny location though it will tolerate some shade particularly when summer temperatures begin to rise…

Delicious arugula leaves of a plant grown in a container...

Growing Arugula - Arugula doesn't love hot weather and, in fact,  gets quite bitter if grown when it's steaming hot outside.
     Young arugula leaves are some of the most tender and delicious—These are the best to add to your salad before the heat of summer turns them bitter. If grown in containers, the useful life of this herb can be extended--if the container is moved to a spot where it receives only morning sun (Do this just prior to oppressively hot temperatures hitting the DFW area)…

Harvesting Arugula - The younger the leaves, the more tender and sweet they will be, so don't wait too long to start picking them. Allow the plants to continue growing tender young leaves. You can collect just the leaves by cutting or tearing them off towards their base.

Arugula Flowers

 Many gourmets think the flowers are the best part of the arugula - they aren't as spicy as the leaves and are a little sweet. The flowers appear after the leaves have grown to full size and are too bitter to eat. If you don't harvest your arugula (the whole plant), eventually you should see flowers. Pick them off and eat them, or add them to a salad or an open-faced sandwich for a beautiful treat. Some gardeners grow arugula for the flowers alone!