Containers and substrate for plants

Containers for herb gardens on the balcony or terrace are very diverse in form and type of materials: plastic of various types, concrete, artificial materials. However, natural materials - stone, wood, ceramics or clay - are more preferable. When choosing a container, pay attention to the shape and color, since the vessel must match the style of its future environment and harmoniously fit into it. It is more preferable to choose simple vessels, since plants should be allocated and dominate.

All open-air containers for plants must have enough holes in the bottom to ensure adequate water outflow. It is also recommended to put a drainage layer out of crushed stone, broken bricks or sea pebbles on the bottom of the tank to ensure water balance. Remaining for wintering in an unprotected room plants should grow in pots and tubs of frost-resistant material. If your grassy garden has a permanent location and remains for a long time in one place on the soil, it is possible to take out the bottom from the containers with plants, contact with the ground will prevent excessive overmoistening in the tanks.

For the planting of plants, the ready-made flower soil offered in stores is used,

Suspended metal baskets of various configurations look very impressive and allow creating unusual compositions from grasses and ampelian flowering plants.

Very vases for herbs in the form of amphora are very decorative. Planting the plant, consider its adult size. Compact undersized herbs - thyme, parsley, marjoram - can be planted in the pockets of the vase. To do this, a mixture of compost and earth fill the vase to the level of the pocket, plant the plant and fill the vase to the top. It is not worth to plant a vase in a well-known large bush, because when it grows in a couple of years, it will not be possible to extract it from there. It is better to plant a beautiful plant with small roots on top, which, being decorative( curly-leaf parsley, onion, decorative mint), simultaneously assumes the role of the center of the composition. Such a vase will decorate your outdoor terrace, courtyard or grounds in front of the house

or a self-prepared substrate consisting of 50 % garden lands, 30-40 % compost and 10-20 % sand. If the proportion of compost is 50 %, then the salt content should not exceed 3 g / l. For this, it is required to conduct soil analysis so that it is not too "greasy", greens and spicy plants react negatively to this.

Planting and care

The main task in planting crops for a mini-garden is the correct calculation of the number and size of plants based on the volume and size of the available containers. If the planted plant seems too small for a large tub, plant along with the edge compact low-growth crops, such as marjoram, chives or thyme. You can create any composition, given the compatibility of plants. As a pot culture one can grow all single and perennial varieties of greens and spicy aromatic plants, but remember that plant roots have a small place for growth and the amount of water and nutrients is limited. Therefore, adult plants need fertilizing once every 2-3 weeks. Preference is given to liquid top dressing in the form of compost water to herbal infusions or organic fertilizers, such as bone or blood meal.

Watering plants should be in accordance with weather conditions as necessary and closely monitor the degree of moisture in the soil, as it is easy to fill the plants in a limited space of containers. You can install in your garden automatic drip irrigation system, which will allow you to stay away for a long time without harming your garden.

Herbs in the room on the window

If you plan to plant grass all year round, the garden should be better arranged on the windowsills of the eastern and western windows, and in the winter period - on the southern ones. You can increase the width of the window sill and add extra shelves to the top edge of the window.

If the mint does not die with the first frosts, transplant a couple of plants in a pot of sufficient diameter( at least 25-30 cm), put it on a light window, and for the whole winter you will drink fragrant tea with mint leaves.

Grasses are very adorned with window sills, but in boxes it is better to grow compact plants such as marjoram, parsley, mint. In addition, some varieties of mint are very beautiful, for example, apple mint looks like an ornamental plant. The bushy plants of the sage type greatly enliven the planting, but they quickly deplete in a small box space, and every two years they will have to be transplanted. Plants can be grown by directly planting a box in the soil, placing pots in a box and laying voids with moss or expanded clay, placing the pot in a pot or hanging basket. Among the plants recommended for growing in pots, the onion, garlic greens and root parsley prevail.