To bite into your food and have your taste buds tingling with flavor, that is the power of fresh herbs. Sure, dried herbs may be convenient in some respects but the essential oils of fresh herbs that make flavor pop are gone. For your taste buds sake, create an herb garden in your kitchen. Even if you have a notorious black thumb in the garden, herbs are easy to grow indoors and all you need to get started are a few kitchen herb garden pots, soil, fertilizer or plant food and a bit of water, sunlight and attention.

Choosing Your Herbs

When planning to create your herb garden in the kitchen, you should be aware that there are two basic types of herbs – perennial and annual. Annual herbs like dill, cilantro, chervil, basil, marjoram, chamomile and savory have one growing season and then die, although growing indoors is likely to extend that time table just a bit.

Perennials used to create your herb garden in the kitchen might include rosemary, sage, thyme, mint, lavender, chives and tarragon. These types of herbs produce new growth each year and the more you cut or pinch off to use for cooking, the healthier and bigger these herbs sometimes get. Both annuals and perennials are excellent for your kitchen herb garden and a great addition to any recipes.

Planting Your Herbs

Given that annuals and perennials have different growth patterns, it might be wise to create the herb garden in the kitchen using different pots for each kind. That way, when an annual herb eventually dies off or must be replaced, you would not be disturbing the health and growth of a perennial that can grow for years.

For beginners, it is a smart move to create your herb garden in the kitchen using plants or seedlings rather than starting them from seed. Some people find it a bit tricky to start from seed and become discouraged however, once they become seedlings or young plants, they are incredibly easy to maintain. You can mix and match several herbs in one large pot or use smaller individual pots and plant the herbs singly. It is totally up to your preference, although you should remember to try and pair annuals with other annuals and perennials with perennials.

The type of pots doesn't really matter as long as there is a drainage hole at the bottom to promote good soil drainage. Location of the pots does matter and you should have a windowsill or some other area to create your herb garden in the kitchen where the herbs can get plenty of sunlight. If you can provide the sunlight and some tender loving care, you will soon be cooking with fresh herbs and making your taste buds sing.