I know nothing of your climate, but I can tell you that I grow all of the those herbs except for the Thai basil here in the subtropics with no trouble at all. Just remember that these are tropical plants - so think HEAT, SUN, WATER. Plenty of. Plus excellent drainage to release excess water.

They will grow in pots, but make sure they're big pots, because they'll all get very big. The lemongrass is a clumping plant - and it's difficult to divide when the clump gets very tight. Really, it can get HUGE!

Galangal and ginger are somewhat better behaved, but can spread a fair way. The leaves of galangal might get a bit sunburnt if the sun where you live is very fierce - I give mine a bit of shade in the afternoons of our summer.

Kafir lime - I've found it to be fairly slow growing, even though it's in the ground. I guess you could just keep it small by forever harvesting from it! I've not heard of any dwarf varieties.

As for the Thai basil, just keep taking cuttings from it, and that way you will have new plants coming on all the time. The leaves will freeze OK. Also, cut off the flowers as they appear, as with any basil - but it's a thankless task because they just keep happening as fast as you cut them off!

Homey_bird, you can purchase the lemon grass at an Asian vegetable market and get it to root in either a sterile potting mix or water. We've done both and it is really quite easy.

Thai basil can be started from seed repeatedly thru the growing season. Pinch off those flower buds before they have a chance to bloom as Daisy says. You can use the flowers in your cooking but you can't let them bloom. Between pinching and reseeding, you'll have basil nearly all year outdoors. And, you can bring a container in during the Winter months and keep it going in a sunny window.

Steve

There is a California company, Four Winds Growers, on the net, which ships
dwarf citrus including Kaffir Lime. Or you may find it locally, see if they have
a Bay area location. I bought one, it was a bit pricey, but a very strong plant and did very well in a container. I even got a few fruits from it.

Here is a link that might be useful: Four Winds

Hi HB,

I grow all of these, except the galangal, and I am working on that this year. I have a couple of clumps in some damp sand in a container about 5" deep, and I have some sprouts showing. I am using this method, since I have read on several sites that people have great success with ginger in sand, so I fugure I'll try galagal and turmeric, since they are harder to find here.

A friend in the SF area has had trouble growing a number of things, including kaffir lime plants. He told me this after I told him how easy they are to grow - I have two almost 6 years old, and have found that basically all you have to do is keep watering them! He thinks the trouble he has had with all of the herbs he has tried to grow has been from the moisture in the area - something to look into, and maybe find somebody from your area on this or another forum that can offer advise on this.

Thai basil is incredibly easy to grow, and I have two plants inside that I started last October from cuttings, when the ones outside were getting ready to be pulled - they are also easy to start from seed, and, as long as you keep snipping the flowers, will keep growing forever...almost.

I start my lemongrass every spring from some that I buy at the store, simply putting them in a glass of water, and changing it every couple of days. In about 3 weeks they are ready to plant - about a week into May here, and they are ready to harvest in Oct. I harvest them, clean them down to the usable stalks, then freeze them in 2,3,and 4 stalks bunches in Foodsaver vac-pacs. They last for over a year this way, and with 6 plants I always have more than I need until next harvest. I also freeze some of the greens, for use in drinks and soup stocks.

This year I also got seeds for Thai coriander - I'll see how that turns out...

Dave