I bring in a few containers of herbs and they live in my laundry room with eastern light. Rosemary stays in her own pot, be sure she gets plenty of water since indoor air is dry. Parsley and basil can share a large pot, but basil gets leggy. If you snip parsley outer stalks, she will not bolt to seed as quickly. Thyme stays in her own pot since she can be unruly and tangly. I just use the plastic containers that have their own saucers; there are so many nice ones from which to choose.

Basil gets leggy? Does this mean you can't grow basil in the winter or does it just need its own pot?

Thanks for the help,

Sheryl

My basil gets leggy because the light in my laundry room is not that great. I live in an old Victorian, and natural light is at a premium in these old ladies. I brought my pot of basil in from outdoors last October before a frost. It was in its own pot, but it still got leggy because of the light. I try to keep it less leggy by snipping it, but without good light, it doesn't grow as readily. Sure, basil will grow in the winter. They just get pot bound quickly because of the root system. Still, it will provide for you all winter. Happy to help.

I tried to do the same thing this past winter, since I have a deep kitchen windowsill which faces southwest, and here are my results:

Parsley - potted up a patch of it in the fall, and it grew beautifully all winter, and it still looks great. It's the dwarf, extra curled type.

Basil - started some seeds in the fall, since the ones in the garden were already bolting, but had a horrible time with fungus gnats, and gave up on it by February. The basil and parsley seem to have similar water needs.

Rosemary - brought in my potted rosemary in the fall. I had read somewhere to be careful not to overwater during the winter, and erred too far in the other direction. I believe it died of thirst sometime in February.

Thyme - I didn't bring in, since it is supposed to be perennial in my zone, but it did not make it. This year, I will plant some outside, and keep a pot inside to be sure I have some next year.

The other one that I wish I had brought in over the winter is the oregano. Yes, it is perennial in my zone, but I didn't take into account that it would die back, and I would be without fresh oregano for six months! I'm starting some more from seed to grow indoors this time.

Wishing you much success,
Bonnie

Hi Bonnie,
Lots of good information, thank you. One of my thyme plants came back this year. It is well established and shares an 18 inch pot with a sage plant and a tuft of chinese chives. The sage leaves never fall, even in the winter. I go out there in the snow and clip sage, just not too much. I will cut a few sage branches back soon to encourage bushiness.
Your oregano will come back, but to keep fresh on hand throughout the winter, bring in a bunch, rough chop it and store in a plastic container in the freezer. Beats having none at all. I do that with Italian parsley just in case my potted one fails. You can grow oregano easily by clipping a branch from a current plant outdoors and covering it with a bit of soil in a pot.

Aulani, I think I got a bit cocky with the oregano. It was my first year to grow it, and it was still fairly green after several hard freezes, so I didn't think to bring part of it in. When the snow cover finally melted, I discovered all of the foliage had died back. It's starting to green up now, but it will be a while before it will be tall enough to harvest any. I went ahead and started some more seed, and already have tiny sprouts, so this coming winter I'll be smarter about it.

The sage is borderline hardy here, I am having to start some from seed this year, since the ones I had last year didn't make it. I don't use that one as much as some of the other herbs, so I don't know if I want to take up valuable windowspace for that one. I may just have to restart it each year. As long as it makes it to Thanksgiving, I'll be happy.

Bonnie

Bonnie, I'm so glad to hear that your oregano is coming back. Experience is indeed a good teacher. I thought mine had died too the first year I had it and I almost pulled it all up. Glad I didn't. Now I just cut it back in the fall, put some in the freezer, and share some with friends. When clipped, it makes a nice border plant.

Here's a great use for sage. Marinate chicken breasts with olive oil, crushed garlic, cracked black pepper, and several sage leaves for a couple of hours. When you saute, be sure to include the garlic and sage leaves. Sage lends a wonderful flavor and not overpowering at all.