Living a more natural and holistic life has many facets, including what you eat and where you get your food. To be as holistic as possible, consider growing herbs from home. Not only can you use herbs to cook, but you can also use some of them for healing and natural medicine. You will save money and ensure you have the most organic herbs possible.

1. Have a Plan Beforehand

The first step to growing your own herbs is the prep stage. You want to take some time figuring out where you will place your garden, what you intend to grow, the ways you are going to use them, and how much room you are going to need. This is when the research comes in handy. You could just go buy some seeds and fertilizer, and start planting without having planned exactly what you intend to do beforehand. But having a plan will ensure that it all runs much more smoothly.

2. Decide Between Seeds or Start Plants

There are two main ways to grow herbs; you can start them from seeds, or you can purchase plants that have been started for you. Naturally, if you are a beginner at growing, the plants are going to be much easier for you. This is recommended for most people who are starting their very first herb garden, as you ease into caring for herbs, without having to start them from seeds.

3. Become Familiar with Each Herb

Before you start planting your herbs, understand what each herb needs you to do as far as care and growing it healthy. Every herb will have different guidelines, such as how much water it needs, when to give it direct sunlight, and whether it needs to be in a container or in the ground.

For example:

Mint grows very fast, and works best in a container with only mint in it. Mint grows well in sunlight, but it can also use a bit of shade and still grow well.

Rosemary grows better in cool climates that have sun, and needs to be brought indoors during the winter.

4. Caring for Your Herbs

While many herbs can be grown indoors in planters, they still need to be close to a window. Some plants may need to be moved outdoors for at least a few hours, as most herbs should get 3-4 hours of direct sunlight each day. Again, this will depend on your herbs.

Remember that care includes sunlight and temperature control, watering, and using the right soil.

5. Harvest When Ready

Something to keep in mind when harvesting your herbs is that the more often you do it (when they are ready), the healthier the herb plant will continue to grow. Again, look at each variety’s instructions to understand harvesting guidelines.

Go ahead and pick out some great recipes for the herbs that you grow. You want to make sure that you're using the plants you put so much hard work into. Whether it's a pesto from fresh basil leaves or a salsa using fresh cilantro, you're sure to find recipes that you can't wait to try!