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No garden? No Problem! You can grow your own indoor herb garden without a pinch of soil. Even if you live in an apartment with nothing more than a tiny back porch or balcony, there is still room to grow some fragrant herbs. All you need is water, sunlight, and a place for your plants to spread their roots.
Add a burst of flavor to your meals with Basil and Oregano or use medicinal herbs like Peppermint and Lemon Balm to treat everyday ailments. These herbs are super easy to grow and provide generous results! Let’s start by learning what herbs you can grow and how you can use them in your day to day life.
Sweet Herbs
1. Peppermint
With fresh Peppermint leaves, you’ll find that it’s quite simple to make essential Peppermint Oil. This oil can be used to relieve headaches, reduce stomachaches, alleviate digestive issues, boost energy, and release tight muscles. Every family should have a peppermint plant in their home.
2. Mint
Mojito season is just around the corner! There is nothing like freshly picked mint to make the perfect cocktail to entertain your friends or take the edge off after a long day. Adding some mint into water is an easy way to switch your kids off of sugar drinks and get them to hydrate!
3. Stevia
Just as you would with crystalized Stevia that comes in a packet, you can add whole Stevia leaves to sweeten your tea or pitcher of ice water. Alternatively, you can dry the Stevia leaves and grind them with a mortar and pestle, which you can then simmer in water to make Stevia Syrup.
Savory Herbs
4. Oregano
Pasta sauces, Greek Vinaigrette, Lemon Oregano Dipping Sauce, Garlic and Oregano Chicken Marinade–the list goes on and on. Oregano is the king of the herbs when it comes to sauces and marinades; you can put that stuff on everything.
5. Rosemary
In my house, we use our Rosemary plant to make Rosemary Oil. We add this oil to dough for pizza and bread to give them an artisan flavor, to pasta for a balanced Italian flavor, and even to our bath water to give us extra soft skin.
6. Basil
It’s all about the Pesto, baby. Once your Basil plant has an abundance of leaves, pull them off and puree them up with a little bit of olive oil, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan, and some salt and pepper to taste. You have just made organic Pesto from scratch. Congrats!
7. Thyme
Thyme is a key ingredient in Italian cooking. If your family loves lasagnas, soups, stews, or any pasta dish in general, you are certainly going to get tons of use out of a Thyme plant growing on your windowsill.
8. Tarragon
Tarragon goes well with any protein: fish, chicken, lamb, rabbit, etc. Often used in French cooking, expect a subtle licorice flavor that will turn any normal cooking night at your house into a gourmet dining experience.
9. Sage
The ancient art of burning sage to purify your house of bad energy and cleanse it of evil spirits sure is reason enough to grow it. Or if you’re an Omelette fan who likes to add a pinch of sage to brighten up your breakfast, I suppose that’s a good use, too.
Bonus Herb
10. Lemon Balm
Lemon Balm is more so used as a medicinal herb, rather than a yummy one. It can be used as an anti-histamine when rubbed on bug bites or irritated skin, crushed up and mixed into lip balm to sooth cold sores, chewed on for clean breath, and much more.
How to Grow Your Herbs in Water
Step 1: Grab a Jar, Drinking Glass, or Small Jug
This is going to be your container for your water herbs. You want your container to be about the same height as a light bulb so that your herbs don’t get swallowed up. Fill your container half way with water.
Step 2: Collect some Herb Clippings
Whether you buy herbs from the store or snip some off of an existing plant, make sure that you have a stem that is long enough to stand half-exposed in the jar. If you are snipping these herbs from a live plant, allow the trimmed herbs to sit out for a day in a cool area.
Step 3: Plant ‘em
Place your trimmings into their containers and set them in a window that receives a couple hours of sunlight every day. Within a week or so, you’ll see your herbs starting to grow longer and stronger roots while the leaves become fuller.
Step 4: Eat or Grow
Pluck your herbs right out of their water container to chop and enjoy or replant them in a pot of soil where they will bloom even further.
Tips:
- Pluck leaves from the top of the plant so the bottom and side leaves have a chance to grow.
- Use a spray bottle to keep the leaves moist so that they don’t develop holes.
- Spray Citrus Oil to keep away ants and Eucalyptus Oil to ward off flies and bees.
- 16oz Mason Jars are the perfect height and width to grow your herbs in water.
- Change the herb water periodically or if it starts to look a little murky.
So there ya have it–organic herbs you can grow in water no matter where you live. Don’t let living in the concrete jungle stop you from gardening, and if you happen to live out on the homestead, you just learned how to produce an endless supply of fresh herbs.
This is what sustainable living is all about.
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