How to grow thyme at home or Provencal spice on your windowsill
Do you love adding fragrant thyme sprigs to tea, but there is no room for it in the garden? Do not despair, because it grows well in a pot, and there is nothing complicated in how to grow thyme at home. It will take up little space, and it is not capricious in leaving. You buy seeds, prepare the soil, free up space on the bright window - and start your garden-room work.
How to grow thyme at home
Take a small pot up to 15 cm high. Lay a drainage layer at least 2 cm thick on the bottom. Thyme does not like to have roots in wet conditions. Prepare a loose substrate - fine soil for cacti... Fill a pot with it and spray generously.
Add some perlite and vermiculite to increase the breathability of the soil.
Spread the thyme seeds over the ground and cover them with soil. Bury it hard - a layer up to 1 cm thick is enough, otherwise the seeds will sit for a long time. Spray again and cover with foil for the first time. In such impromptu greenhouse conditions, the sprouts will appear faster, and then the shelter can be removed.
Thyme seeds have good germination, but it will not hurt to soak them in a growth stimulator before sowing. Also, during the germination period, do not place crops in direct sunlight. They can kill your seedlings, so shade it better.
Potted thyme care
You will see friendly shoots in 1.5 weeks. When they grow up, dive the seedlings into separate pots, choosing the strongest bushes first. Now it is not only possible, but also necessary to put the grass on the well-lit southern window. This culture is characterized by increased light-requiring. Then the bushes will be lush and even bloom, but with a lack of light, they will begin to stretch and flowering is unlikely to occur.
Growing thyme at home is not a hassle. In leaving, room thyme is not picky:
- Water the spice sparingly, keeping in mind the excellent drought tolerance of the plant.
- Loosen the soil gently to allow the roots to breathe.
- From spring to late summer, feed once a month with a mineral complex.
- In the second year, plant overgrown bushes so that they are not crowded.
You can harvest spicy twigs all year round, but they contain most of the nutrients before flowering.