Being able to grow the herbs that you can use to create spice mixes is the best way to control the flavor of your dishes. Creating custom spices is the preferred choice for so many cooks, especially when you know what flavors and rubs your family likes that most. Herbs are a huge part of traditional spice mixes, and they can be combined to create customized mixes too.
Add these herbs to your herb garden and you’ll be on your way to creating some of the best mixed spice combinations.
Fennel
Fennel is not an herb that you find in a lot of home gardens, but it is used in a lot of different spice mixes because it has a sweet, slightly licorice flavor. A lot of Italian based seasonings use it, but it is also used in Indian and Asian based spice mixes. Fennel needs very loose soil to grow successfully in and as the bulb expands, you should hill the soil around the bulb. The flavor packed seeds are what you will be using for the spice, so once your stalks have fully grown and the flowers begin dying back, use a paper bag to shake off all the seeds.
Oregano
Oregano is a popular meat dish herb, and is used in a lot of Latin American and Mediterranean spice mixes. The way the herb is grown greatly changes the amount of flavor the leaves have. Keep this plant in full sun and well watered, but avoid letting water sit in the soil. Oregano likes poor soil, so don’t add the seeds to organic rich soil. Pinch leaves off or cut the stems of the entire plant and hang to dry.
Basil
A main ingredient in Italian seasoning, basil is a classic herb that can be used in so many spice mix combinations. Add this herb to the garden when the danger of frost has passed and make sure that it is able to get at least 6 hours of sun. Basil does prefer good soil, so a container is ideal and continuous water is needed as well. Harvest the leaves continuously throughout the growing season and dry them as you go.
Rosemary
Rosemary is a spice mix ingredient for combinations that are used to cook poultry. The plant is best added to the garden as a transplant, and can handle being added to poor soil, rock gardens, in a container or as a second planting in a garden. Grow in full sun, allowing for the soil to dry out between waterings for the best flavor results. Harvest stems to dry and then remove leaves to add to spice mixes, as is.
Thyme
Depending on the flavor profile you want for your spice mix, a traditional thyme or lemon thyme is the best option. The herb can be grown outdoors as a perennial herb, or in a container indoors in a sunny spot. It is able to thrive in poor to nutrient rich soil, but needs to be added as a transplant in order to be able to survive in a garden with less than ideal soil. Before the herb begins to flower, snip stems and bundle them up in a dark corner of your cabinets to dry. Strip the tiny leaves from the stems and only add the leaves to your spice mix.
Pam Buttikofer is a co-founder of Imperfect Women. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband of 37 years and enjoys spending time with her husband, sons and her lovable pups.
Robin (Masshole Mommy) says
July 27, 2014 at 1:53 pmI am seriously terrible at growing anything myself, but my parents grow their own herbs and I have to say they taste so much better when they are home grown.
Pam@IW says
July 27, 2014 at 7:21 pmI think the flavor is so much better when they are home grown and fresh too!
Dawn says
July 27, 2014 at 1:59 pmGreat article. Herb gardens are great. Almost all of them thrive if you treat them right,and they make great additions to any recipe.
Debbie L. says
July 27, 2014 at 2:05 pmI grown my own spices – it is amazing how much better fresh spices taste! Spices are easy to grow and it is amazing the amount of spices you will receive from one plant.
Terry says
July 27, 2014 at 2:06 pmI love growing my own herbs. Mine did GREAT this year. I put my basil in a pot and it is HUGE this year.
Pam@IW says
July 27, 2014 at 7:22 pmGlad to hear that you had great success with your basil. You will get lots of use from that through the winter months.
Tami says
July 27, 2014 at 2:44 pmWe have a herb garden and we grow all of these except Fennel. We also grow mint as well.
Pam@IW says
July 27, 2014 at 7:23 pmI love mint too.
Mitch says
July 27, 2014 at 2:51 pmOh how I swish this were possible in my apartment! I would make homemade pesto! And grow Oregano just like in Greece! And maybe my cooking wouldn’t be so bad!
Mitch
Amanda Ripsam says
July 27, 2014 at 2:51 pmI enjoy cooking with herbs. I live in a two bedroom apartment so I’m working on building my pantry and I think having a small herb garden on my deck
Pam@IW says
July 27, 2014 at 7:23 pmYou can grown herbs just about anywhere. Good luck!
Debbie Denny says
July 27, 2014 at 3:23 pmI love growing my own spices and herbs. So nice to have fresh.
Christie says
July 27, 2014 at 3:29 pmI would love to make my own spices! Oregano would be fantastic for my sauces
aimee fauci says
July 27, 2014 at 4:00 pmBefore we moved to a very high deer population.. we used to love growing herbs! When we would make spaghetti or any other dish we just had to go outside and grab some fresh ones to place in our meals.. The smells are wonderful.
Danielle @ We Have It All says
July 27, 2014 at 4:15 pmI’ve always wanted to grow my own herbs. We really go through spices like crazy so it would come in handy.
Rosey says
July 27, 2014 at 4:37 pmThanks for the tips. I’d like to take a shot at growing some spices.
Jaime says
July 27, 2014 at 6:18 pmI love growing my own herbs! I have basil and oregano, and this year I’m growing parsley. It’s such a cost saver, and I love that I am not overpaying for the herbs!
mary says
July 27, 2014 at 6:22 pmIve been meaning to read up on fennel. I’ve heard it’s good for you, so I’d love to make my own. Thanks for the info
Mommy2Jam says
July 27, 2014 at 7:02 pmThis is such a good idea. I love it! I want to grow my own spices.
Tough Cookie Mommy says
July 27, 2014 at 7:10 pmWe use a lot of spices when we cook here so it would be really convenient to grow our own. I can imagine all of the wonderful ones that I would love to grow.
Melissa says
July 27, 2014 at 7:26 pmSuch a great idea! I spend a lot on spices, I’d love to grow my own.
Chrystal @ YUM eating says
July 27, 2014 at 7:29 pmWe are pretty much growing all of these. I have been saving old spice jars so we can use them after drying and chopping herbs. It’s so exciting.
Amanda Love - Growing Up Madison says
July 27, 2014 at 7:32 pmI’ve never grown any herbs before although I grew up in a household that planted their own. My dad used to plant them and my mom still does.
Jenny says
July 27, 2014 at 8:53 pmi’d like to grow my own garlic xD love me some garlic. i put it on almost EVERYTHING!!
Liz Mays says
July 27, 2014 at 9:58 pmI’m growing basil, and my gosh you’re not kidding about continuous water! Mine is as thirsty as can be!!!!
Maria Oller says
July 28, 2014 at 3:50 amI have a couple but I need a,l the ones you just mentioned except basil and oregano.
Beth@FrugalFroggie says
July 28, 2014 at 4:43 amI have not grown my own herb garden. But I think it would be fun and more affordable than buying the herbs.
Kay Adeola says
July 28, 2014 at 5:01 amGreat post,We grow a lot of herbs in our garden never really used them for much unless they were fresh.
Lori D. says
July 28, 2014 at 5:52 amI have a “brown thumb” but I like the idea of this. I’m going to give it a try at growing my own herbs so I can make spice mixes. Thanks!
Trista says
July 28, 2014 at 6:46 amI LOVE herbs! They make such a BIG difference in cooking! I would love to grow my own!
Jeanine @ sixtimemommy.com says
July 28, 2014 at 7:33 amI need to do this! I have always wanted too, so I must!
Kristen from The Road to Domestication says
July 28, 2014 at 7:41 amThis post made my day, Pam, thank you! I just got my herb garden going yesterday! But so far on your list I just have the Basil and Rosemary. I’ll be adding more as often as I can!
Jennifer Wiliams says
July 28, 2014 at 8:20 amI have containers on their way (ordered a couple weeks ago) so I can get my herb garden going again. I can not wait until they get here. I usually freeze mine I need to try drying them.
Farrah says
July 28, 2014 at 9:10 amWe do a lot of homeopathic remedies in our home, so your post is very helpful. I will be pinning it. Thank you!
Amanda H. says
July 28, 2014 at 9:38 amThat is such a good idea. I’ve been wanting to start an herb garden. Maybe next year!
JennieIW says
July 28, 2014 at 9:38 amGreat article! I love growing herbs. I’ve had mixed success, myself, except with rosemary, which seems to really take off and go wild without much work on my part. I will have to try some of these others, though!
Lela Summer says
July 28, 2014 at 10:16 amGreat post! I LOVE the taste of fresh herbs, but I usually buy fresh ones from shops. Since now I have a decent balcony, have to seriously think about building my little balcony garden for herbs. Can’t wait to try it!
Kristen @ kristenione says
July 28, 2014 at 11:54 amI’ve always wondered about this. I grow my own herbs but have never tried drying them. Thanks for sharing!
Amber B says
July 28, 2014 at 12:03 pmWe do a garden every year and for some reason I have never thought to grow my own herbs. I will have to plant some next year. I will also try some new ones thanks to this!
Shannon Gosney says
July 28, 2014 at 2:54 pmI’m growing some herbs in our kitchen. 3 herbs actually – Basil, Thyme and Oregano. 🙂
N Phoenix says
July 28, 2014 at 3:36 pmWhat I love about all these spices is that as a new yorker you can grow these on your window. I’m slowly going to start my garden by next summer for sure.
Mellisa says
July 28, 2014 at 4:09 pmI have always wanted to grow my own herb garden. I think the taste would be so much better than store bought.
Annie Mai says
July 28, 2014 at 4:27 pmI have a black thumb, ughhh. Otherwise, I’d so grow my own herbs 😛
Sarah Bailey says
July 28, 2014 at 4:43 pmFantastic post – I’ve grown a few herbs in the past but always used them fresh, not thought of using them in spice mixes. x
Amy Desrosiers says
July 28, 2014 at 5:06 pmI have more fennel than I can probably use!! I am running low on basil though.
Carmen Perez says
July 28, 2014 at 5:08 pmI wish I had a green thumb, but I don’t. Otherwise I would love to grow herbs in my garden!
Pam says
July 28, 2014 at 5:59 pmI grow a lot of these herbs, but I mainly use them fresh and don’t make my own spice mixes. I really need to start.
Theresa says
July 28, 2014 at 6:05 pmNothing beats fresh herbs, but I have such a black thumb, I have never had much success growing my own. I do like to buy the potted herbs from the Farmers Market though. Food always tastes so much better when I use fresh herbs!
Lady Lilith says
July 28, 2014 at 6:11 pmYum. Looks really good. We grow dill every so often. It taste much better then the store bought stuff.
Lisa says
July 28, 2014 at 6:41 pmHerbs are so easy to grow too! I especially love growing basil!
Veronica says
July 28, 2014 at 7:18 pmI have been thinking about putting in a herb and veggie garden. I will soon for sure
Brett says
July 28, 2014 at 7:36 pmMy friend loves to garden. I don’t think she has any herbs yet though, I’ll have to share this with her.
Amber NElson says
July 28, 2014 at 7:52 pmWe have been able to do our own spices, but not mixes like this. Super cool!
fancygrlnancy (Nancy Partin) says
July 28, 2014 at 9:06 pmI would love to grow herbs for my own spices. This is a great post to get me started. Thanks!
Christina Gonzalez says
July 28, 2014 at 11:38 pmGreat info
Danielle says
July 29, 2014 at 1:47 amWhat a great post this was so informative. I would love to be able to mix my own spices.
Krystal says
July 29, 2014 at 3:51 amI’d love to have fresh basil and cilantro at all times. Would save me trips to the grocery store for sure!
Angela S says
July 29, 2014 at 6:52 amI have a ton of herbs growing right now. I need to make my own spice mix!
Karen W says
July 29, 2014 at 8:02 amI have never grown my own herbs, but I would love to try. Sounds like things taste better that way.
Debbie Welchert says
July 29, 2014 at 12:02 pmI have tried all of the herbs above except for the fennel. I love that you gave us tips on how to grow them. I would love to have a herb garden again someday.
Holly S. says
July 29, 2014 at 12:56 pmI always try to grow herbs, but end up never using them before they go bad. Thanks for this!
Dawn says
July 29, 2014 at 7:46 pmWe use Oregano and Basil a lot around the house. We have started growing a small variety of veggies, and have been interested in growing a few spices!
Amanda McMahon says
July 29, 2014 at 10:01 pmI liket his idea. When we head back to the US, I plan to have quite a few of these in my backyard!
Sharon says
July 30, 2014 at 5:44 pmI love cooking and I have always wanted to grow my own herbs to have a t my fingertips! Thanks for the informative post, you’ve helped me decide to finally give it a try!
RICHARD HICKS says
July 31, 2014 at 12:52 pmI like this post as it gives me inspiration to try and grown my own.
April Farley says
August 3, 2014 at 11:54 amWonderful article! I just love my garden. This year I tried my hand with Rosemary. I tell ya she was a little fickle to start out. Now she is growing well! It took a couple of tries though. Making the Rosemary behind the other herbs in growth. I figure I can bring it indoors at the fist sign of frost . I am amazed at how many different varieties of Thyme there are! There is one called “Creeping Thyme” that has a beautiful purple flowe. I want to plant it early next spring all along our fence and pathway. I wonder what it taste like…
Francine Anchondo says
August 4, 2014 at 7:33 pmI have always wanted to start my own herb garden .
Melissa S says
August 5, 2014 at 4:19 amI grow and dry a lot of my own herbs. I don’t know why I never thought of making my own s=herb mixes, I am going to have to do that this year.