You’ve probably heard the phrase “bloom where you are planted,” and optimistic bon mots notwithstanding, nowhere is this phrase more apt or truer than basic culinary herbs. Those delicious bits of greenery, stalks, stems, and leaves lend flavor to foods and beverages. Herbs are also easy to grow with little preparation, can be sweet or savory, and can thrive almost anywhere. You can grow them in the garden, in outdoor or indoor pots, and in this case, in well-prepared containers made from old T–shirts.
To grow healthy herbs, all you need is good soil (usually potting soil), enough water to keep plants healthy, and a steady source of sunlight. That’s it –- no fertilizer, no transplanting, and hardly any maintenance. In your kitchen, especially if space is at a premium, you can still have an herb garden with fresh parsley, chives, thyme, and more on hand to add fresh flavor to your recipes with a simple snip or two.
Creative placement
To create a vertical herb garden using old T-shirts, start with a worn shirt or two, one inside the other, and tack them onto a stiff backing fabric, such as shade cloth. A piece of an old tarp may also work. You’re looking to stiffen up the material to add some weight in front. Whatever you decide, take other old T-shirts, and cut them into pocket-sized squares of about 4 x 4 or 5 x 5. Stitch these onto the front of your base T-shirts and backing. Now you have a row or two of pockets perfect for herbs. Place a handful of good-quality potting soil in each pocket, and add your herbs. Grow your herbs from seeds or cuttings, or simply buy a potted herb from a local nursery or grocery store.
Hang or tack this garden on a wall or in a window in your kitchen. If that’s not possible or practical, just hang it on a pantry or entryway door. If the back of the door usually faces a wall, simply close the door to expose your vertical herb garden to the ambient light in your kitchen and let the herbs soak up the sun throughout the day. At night, when you’re busy in the kitchen, just close the door, allowing the plants to rest. If you’re tight on space, consider hanging your herbs on the inside of a cupboard, opening it during daylight hours, and closing it with the herbs inside at night.
A word about watering
A hanging herb garden made from old T-shirts and other materials will need watering, of course. There are several ways to address this. If possible, bring your vertical garden outside and water from the top down. Hang it outside until it’s no longer dripping. Squeeze excess moisture from the pockets, especially the ones on the bottom row, and rehang your garden on its door or wall.
If you can’t go outside, take the same steps but indoors over your kitchen sink or laundry tub. Water thoroughly, allowing the excess to run into the sink. Once the excess stops flowing, squeeze the pockets so they don’t drip onto your kitchen floor or inside your cupboard. You can also leave the garden to drain into the sink until the soil is no longer dripping. Remember, too, that herbs only need to be watered every one to two weeks to remain healthy. So it’s easy to make watering your vertical garden part of your regular kitchen cleaning or maintenance process.
