21 Kitchen Herb Garden Ideas (Counter, Wall and Window)

A shallow metal or wooden tray holding three small pots turns a corner of the counter into a mini garden. Put it at the end of the counter closest to the window, and slide the whole tray onto the sill on cloudy weeks. The tray catches drips, so you can water right where it sits. Basil, chives and parsley are a good first trio because you'll reach for them most.

Basil sulks when its soil swings from wet to bone dry. A self-watering planter with a reservoir in the base keeps the mix evenly moist, which helps on busy weeks. Fill the reservoir, let the mix wick it up, and let the reservoir run dry for a day or two now and then so roots get air.

That grocery store basil pot is really dozens of seedlings crammed together, which is why it collapses within weeks. Tip it out, gently pull the root ball into 3 or 4 clumps and pot each one on its own. Water well and keep them out of hot sun for a few days while they settle.

Herbs lean toward the window and grow lopsided. Set four small pots on a wooden turntable near the glass and give it a quarter spin every couple of days. Every side gets its turn in the light, and you can spin the herb you need to the front while you cook.

A footed cake stand lifts small pots above the clutter and catches more light from the window. It suits two or three 3 to 4 inch pots of compact herbs such as thyme, chives or a small oregano. Set each pot on its own tiny saucer so water doesn't run off the edge, and check them often, since small pots dry out fast.

Keep the white root ends from a bunch of green onions and stand them in an inch of water on a bright sill. New green tops push up within days. Change the water every couple of days so it stays fresh. After a few rounds of snipping, plant them in a pot of mix for sturdier regrowth.

Two narrow floating shelves mounted right next to the window frame hold a row of small pots each. The shelf nearest the glass gets the most light, so give it to basil or thyme. Chives and parsley can take the shelf a little farther out. Keep the shelves shallow, about 5 to 6 inches deep, so they don't crowd a small kitchen.

A painted pegboard next to a window holds small shelves, hooks and baskets you can move around. Pots of mint, parsley and chives sit on the shelves, and scissors and twine hang on hooks. As the seasons change and the light shifts, you can move shelves closer to the window without new holes in the wall.

Herbs planted straight into jars with no drainage often rot. Use the jars as covers instead: drop a few pebbles in the bottom, then set a small plastic nursery pot with holes inside. You get the look of a jar wall with roots that can drain. Lift the pot out to water it in the sink, then pop it back.

The space under your upper cabinets is a ready-made grow shelf. A slim LED grow strip stuck underneath turns the counter below into a lit herb row. Warm white strips look like normal kitchen lighting. Run them on a timer for about 14 hours a day, and keep leaves roughly 6 to 12 inches from the light.

Hang one or two small planters from a ceiling hook in front of the window and you add growing space without touching the counter. Trailing herbs like creeping thyme and oregano spill over the sides nicely. Use pots with a drainage hole and an inner saucer, and take them down to the sink to water.

A narrow picture ledge mounted just below the window line holds a long row of 3 inch pots. It suits compact herbs like chives, small parsley plants and thyme cuttings. Because the pots are so small, they dry out quickly, so treat this as a snipping garden and repot anything that outgrows it.

A shelf that rests on a spring tension rod across the window frame doubles your sill space without drilling. Clear acrylic lets light pass through to the pots below. Put light, small pots of chives, parsley or mint up top, and keep heavier pots on the sill itself.

The window over the sink is a classic spot, and watering is easy there. Set the pots on a long, narrow tray so you can lift them all at once to wipe the sill. Keep the tray at the far side from the faucet, because splashes of dish soap and hot water can damage leaves.

If your kitchen has a box-shaped garden window, you already own the best herb spot in the house. Light comes in from three sides, so even rosemary and thyme can do well. Glass boxes also get hot in summer sun and cold on winter nights, so feel the air there and move tender basil back on cold evenings.

A sturdy café curtain rod across the lower half of a window can hold small pots on S-hooks or in hanging baskets. It uses light right at the glass and clears the sill for other pots. Choose a rod rated for the weight, and stick to two or three small pots of light herbs like chives, parsley and thyme.

A long, narrow trough on a deep sill holds several herbs in one container, like a window box turned inward. Group herbs that like the same watering. Rosemary, thyme and oregano can share a gritty mix, while parsley and chives can share a moister one. Keep mint out of shared boxes, since its runners take over.

If you only have one small window, start with three herbs you use every week. Chives and parsley handle modest light, and one basil plant gives you fresh leaves while the sun lasts. Three 6 inch pots fit most sills. Add more only once these are thriving, since crowded sills shade each other.

Spearmint and lemon balm grow well in pots and smell lovely when you brush them. Keep them on a bright counter near the kettle, a few feet from its steam. Both like steady moisture and grow fast, so pinch them often. Give each its own pot, since both spread.

The Kratky method grows herbs in a jar of hydroponic nutrient solution with no pump. A net cup holds the plant at the top, the roots reach down into the liquid, and an air gap forms as the level drops. Basil does well this way. Wrap or paint the jar so light can't reach the water, which stops algae.