DIY

The 10 Best Herbs to Grow in Your Garden

And how to cook with them!

Updated

7 years ago

November 29, 2024

plightfoot

One of the best things about growing your own herb garden is having your pick (literally) of ingredients to cook and season with. After all, homegrown always tastes best, so we’ve pulled together 10 of the best herbs to grow in your garden.

Whether you have a full-grown vegetable patch in your backyard or a smaller indoor garden, most herbs are easy to grow both indoors and outdoors with just a little bit of love and attention.

If you’re opting to grow them indoors, be careful not to overwater, and make sure that your plants have enough space to grow. In your backyard, you’ll want to be mindful of pests and weeds that can encroach on the health of your herbs.

Having herbs on hand is not only a great way to get yourself out and about in the garden, but did you know herbs can have incredible mood-boosting effects? They’re also a fantastic kid-friendly gardening idea due to their compact size and easy growth.

Here are the best herbs to grow at home…

Basil

Basil plants LOVE the sun and will thrive in summer – perfect for a full-sun balcony or rooftop garden.

Water at the base of the plant as needed (when the soil appears dry) and harvest the leaves before any flowers appear; this way the plant can focus on producing new, tasty leaves rather than blooming.

Pick as you need, but always leaving a third of the plant behind so it can keep growing.

How to Eat It

Add fresh leaves to smashed avocado and sliced tomato on toast.
Chop and stir it into your spaghetti sauce.
Blend it in a food processor with garlic, oil, and pinenuts for your own homemade pesto.
Thread a cherry tomato, basil leaf and slice of bocconcini on a toothpick for a simple, but delicious canape.

Mint

Most mint plants grow best with morning sun, afternoon shade and well-drained soiled. There are many variants of these herbs however, so be sure to check the instructions for your specific type.

Pots are best for controlling it’s growth, as it tends to spread quite far and fast in a garden (although with shallow roots it’s equally as easy to remove).

Once it’s growing strong and well, harvest frequently and before flowering (or pick buds off as soon as they’re spotted).

How to Eat It

Or should we say sip it? Mint adds a refreshing twist to a whole host of drinks from Pimms, to mojitos and of course, a mint julep.
When making salads with fruit – think pineapple, orange, and watermelon – add a sprig of mint to really make the flavor sing.
Wrap it up in Vietnamese rolls (or any Asian-inspired meal, to counteract chili).
Mix with dark chocolate for a delectable dessert.

Dill

Dill has long roots and the tendency to blow over in the wind, so plant in a deep container/pot and closely together for support. It likes sun but will tolerate afternoon shade. Cut often as unharvested dill will go to seed.

How to Eat It

Dill goes really well in creamy dips and sauces; try it in potato salad dressing or mixed with greek yogurt.
Pair it with lemon on your favorite fish.
Mixed in with zucchini and halloumi fritters – YUM.
Add it to anything hosting cream cheese and smoked salmon.

Chives

Chives are another sun-loving herb, with a preference for moist and well-draining soil. If left unharvested they’ll grow pink flowers that spread seed, so trim regularly.

How to Eat It

With potatoes – add chopped chives to your mash or sprinkled atop a baked potato with sour cream.
With eggs – in quiches, scrambled or as a garnish for eggs benedict.
In guacamole – mash some avocado with lime juice, spring onion and a touch of chili (or tomato for the spice sensitive).

Cilantro

This herb likes to grow in a tropical climate – warm, humid, but not extreme heat. Keep the soil moist by watering frequently. Harvest the leaves while the plant is low or let the stalk grow for seeds.

How to Eat It

Add to Indian curries such as harissa or tikka masala.
Use it to make meat marinades, especially for chicken and beef.
It works a treat with Thai cuisines such as fish cakes and Thai beef salad.

Rosemary

Rosemary requires six to eight hours of sunlight a day and prefers a slightly drier soil to other herbs, so let it dry out between waterings.

Take your cuttings just above the leaf joint, tie in bundles and hang upside down to dry out. Pruning rosemary regularly will help to make a bushier plant, just don’t take more than one-third of the plant.

How to Eat It

Add sprigs of rosemary to your olive oil or butter for extra flavor
Coat your veggies (especially potato chips) with salt and rosemary before roasting.
Use it to stir your favorite gin cocktail.

Thyme

Seeds can be tricky to grow, so for a headstart use cuttings or buy the plant and repot it. It grows best in full sun and slightly alkaline soil with good drainage.

Trim as you need in spring and summer, but lay off a little in winter when it’s slower to grow. Hang upside down the same as rosemary and remove the leaves from the woody stems before using.

How to Eat It

Use with lemon and butter to cook fish and other seafood
Add to lentil and pea soups just before taking it off the heat
Garnish a beef stew or pork belly roast with freshly chopped leaves

Sage

Sage is a strong herb that will grow almost anywhere, but it performs the best when it receives a lot of sunlight.

Wait until the soil is dry before watering and only take cuttings when needed – even if it reaches a flowering stage, the leaves will still maintain a strong flavor.

How to Eat It

Hello, sage butter sauce! Try it with gnocchi or ravioli topped with parmesan cheese (drool).
Pumpkin soup, pumpkin pie, roast pumpkin – if you’re cooking pumpkin, add it.
Sage goes beautifully with walnuts and can be combined for tasty tea cakes and cookies.

Parsley

Parsley needs moderate to full sun and moist soil, though it’s a pretty adaptable herb.

Parsley is biennial, which means it produces leaves the first year and goes into seed the second, so when it comes to harvesting it’s a little bit different.

During spring the first year, harvest the leaves that are furthest away from the stalk, and during autumn the year after, you can harvest the parsley root (which is actually the most flavorsome part of the plant).

How to Eat It