I have cilantro, Italian parsley, dill, basil, thyme, tarragon, rosemary, sage, and mint, and I have four hanging pots to plant them in. What is the best combination?
Hardiness Zone: 7a
By grifft from Levittown, NY
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You don't say how many you have of each. Some can come in dwarf or creeping varieties as well as the standard. I am assuming you have one each of standard sized plants. If you got dwarf or creeping types where available, that's great for hanging baskets!
Put the dill in a pot on the ground; it's too tall to hang. Maybe combine it with the basil. The dill will have gone to seed and died long before the basil, and then the basil can go to town the rest of the season. Standard basil can get quite large.
Combine the sage with the cilantro. Cilantro is another herb that doesn't last out the season. For a steady supply, you'd need to plant seeds regularly. Let's put the parsley in here, too. It will last till next year.
Give the mint its own pot; it is an aggressive spreader. It also likes more water than some of the others.
Rosemary doesn't like too much water, so combine it with the thyme and tarragon, which also tolerate somewhat drier conditions.
Except as noted these herbs are perennial. But don't count on them surviving outside through the winter in pots. Bring them in if you want to keep them going. You might even get the basil (usually an annual) to over winter if you keep it happy.
Read the labels that come with the plants. Be sure to separate plants that like to be dry, and those that need to be kept moist.That way you will you can create the proper container or area for each type of plant, with out over water one and under watering the other. jjs
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Susan from Memphis, TN
A: Susan,
Depending on how big your container is, here are some herb combinations that will all grow well together as companions in pots:
1) Sage, rosemary, lavender, thyme and germander.
2) Cilantro, oregano, lemon balm and basils.
3) Oregano, thyme, lemon verbena, lemon balm, parsley, cilantro.
4) Thyme, mint, basil, oregano.
5) Growing basil in the same container (or plot) as tomatoes will improve their flavor.
A few herbs, like dill and fennel, need quite a bit more room and grow better in beds. Most herbs, however, adapt very well to pots and containers. You might also consider scented geraniums, tricolor sages and trailing herbs like penny royal, prostrate rosemary or cat-mint for hanging baskets.
Ellen
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Go to http://www.burpee.com and look up herb collections. They sell kits with several kinds of herbs in them together, see which ones grow well for your area and you could make your decision on what you find there.
You wouldn't have to buy a kit, just look to see if they sell what you want to grow in a kit together. (04/06/2006)
By Katie
I've mixed and matched all kinds of herbs in containers. They all did well. (04/21/2006)
By Kat
Thank you so much! I'm loving my herb "togetherness." (06/17/2008)
By Bonnie
