The 6 culinary herbs you can easily grow at home

A large vegetable garden might be inconvenient due to lack of space or time, but a culinary herb garden might require less space, less time and little to none gardening skills.

You can either buy starts that are already growing to plant or you can grow herbs from seeds. However, growing from seed might be cheaper, as you can get a quantity of seeds that will allow you to grow enough herbs to feed everyone on your block for the same price of a single plant.

Tree Hugger shared a list containing the easiest herbs to grow from seed, which are ideal with novice gardeners.

1. Basil

Sweet basil is the common variety associated with Italian food, and there are number of different cultivars and hybrids to choose from, each having a slightly different taste and appearance. The other type of basil is Thai basil, which might have a licorice or anise flavor and is found in Asian cuisine; it also comes in number of different cultivars.

Basil is one of the herbs that germinate more quickly. It can be grown in pots, which can be brought inside during the fall and winter. If you end up with too much basil, you can freeze it, as it will preserve its summery flavour.

You can use it in salads, soups, pizza, sandwiches and pesto.

2. Dill

This herb is also known for being quick to germinate and grow from seed. Growing it can serve to attract wildlife and beneficial insects. Its feathery leaves add texture and contrast to the garden. They can be preserved by drying. If you let the dill to flower and set seed, its seeds can be harvested and used as a spice.

It can be used to flavour pickles. It also goes well in salads, soups, potato dishes, bread, vegetable dips and sauces.

3. Cilantro

This is the kind of herb that you either love or hate – many people, for instance, swear it tastes like soap. Growing it from seed is easy. It provides two spices in one – the leaves are what we mean when we say cilantro, while the seeds are what we call coriander. If you want to harvest the seeds, you need to let the flowers mature. The downside to growing it is that it dislikes transplanting, so it’s ideal to be sown directly in the bed or container where it will grow.

Both the fresh leaves and the flowers can be added to dishes all summer long.

4. Arugula

This is the kind of plant that grows like weed, as it will readily reseed itself and grow from early spring to late fall. As it grows larger, it can develop a spicy or bitter taste, similar to pepper.

It can be used in summer dishes, in soups or in any recipe that requires cooked spinach or greens.

5. Chives

This herb grows a bit slower. However, it is a perennial, which means it can be grown from seed once and then grown and divided each year for more herbs. It can be preserved by drying or freezing. The edible flowers they produce can be left to mature and harvested for seeds.

Chives can be chopped into fresh or cooked dishes.

6. Parsley

Parsley is one of the slower herbs to germinate. It is a standard, almost stereotypical garnish in restaurants. The two main types of parsley are curly parsley and flat leaf parsley – also known as Italian parsley. The leaves of both can be cut again and again throughout the summer, and then left to overwinter (if the climate makes it possible) to flower the next year or pulled from the ground to harvest the large root as a vegetable called parsnip.

It is a versatile and flavourful ingredient that can be used in most dishes.