Plucking fresh herbs from indoor plants appeals to most cooks. Maintaining some herb plants indoors is frustrating and futile. Many herbs are outdoor plants and don’t survive well inside.
Here are a few species you should not try to grow indoors.
Dill
Dill plants grow to three feet tall, with some varieties reaching five feet. The large tap roots require a one-foot pot, which is usually much too large for small kitchens or window sills. It also needs 6 – 8 hours of direct sunlight daily and 1 – 2 inches of water every week. Grow it outside–if you can. Harvest it in the fall and freeze it to use during winter.
Basil
Basil needs bright sunny conditions to grow large flavorful leaves. Watering is a delicate balance. Basil wilts in dry soil and dies in soggy soil. It grows best when temperatures remain consistently around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Basil is a high-maintenance plant with a high failure rate.
Garlic
Garlic is a slow-growing plant that prefers fall planting, overwintering, and regrowing in spring. Most home environments do not provide this type of seasonal option unless you have a cold room. You can grow garlic on window sills and use the garlic greens for cooking but the bulb will not mature.
Fennel
Fennel grows up to 6 feet high and over 2 feet wide. It requires large pots, full sunlight, and well-drained soil. It turns leggy without plenty of sun and develops root rot with too much watering. Fresh fennel is often available in grocery produce sections or as seeds in the spice aisle. These are better options than growing it indoors.
Chamomile
Having access to fresh chamomile flowers to brew tea is an attractive idea. Without plenty of sunlight, chamomile plants are spindly, stunted, and produce few flowers. Chamomile spreads out and does not grow well in small windowsill herb gardens or pots. It will grow but flower production is limited or nonexistent. (Chamomile is often grown as a cover crop because of its spreading ability.)
Parsley
Parsley does not adapt well to indoor gardening. It requires plenty of sun and grows towards windows to get the light–producing spindly stems with small tasteless leaves. Long stems fall over, turn yellow, and die.
Rosemary
Rosemary is a high-maintenance herb. Without regular pruning, it grows tall and wide–not ideal for small indoor gardens. It needs well-drained soil and plenty of sunlight. Over-watering causes root rot.
