Herbs By The Garage Enjoying The Last Warm Days Of Fall
With frost looming any day, it’s always a last-minute mad dash to bring my herbs indoors to safety. I always reason – the longer the herb plants can enjoy the brighter light conditions, the better.
Yet, the first night the weather report calls for frost, all my precious herbs of the tender perennial variety need to be safely indoors. It’s a ritual I repeat every year to save my herbs.
Why Bring Herbs Indoors?
If you live in a cold zone, bringing tender herbs indoors is the only way to keep them alive over the winter.
Perennial herbs originating in the Mediterranean, African, or southern Asian regions will not survive in the colder climates.
By over-wintering these tender herbs indoors, you can enjoy these fresh herbs through the winter. And since you do not need to re-purchase these herb plants in the spring, you will be saving money.
Hardier herb plants grown in pots and brought indoors extend the availability of fresh herbs into the winter. You will have your indoor culinary herbs available for use when you need them, and you won’t be paying winter supermarket prices.
Parsley is a good example. Although I grow parsley in my garden, I also pop a couple of parsley herb plants into pots in the spring. Then, I bring those potted parsley herbs indoors to enjoy fresh parsley throughout the winter.
How To Bring Herbs Indoors
The standard process of bringing herbs indoors is the reverse process to taking herbs outdoors in the spring. Bring your herbs in for a little bit each day, longer each day, to acclimatize them to the lower light and humidity conditions indoors.
A few years ago, I read about a much less labour intensive method for acclimatizing herbs to decreased light levels. A couple of weeks before moving your herbs indoors, move them to a shaded area, to get them accustomed to less light.
I haven’t tested this simplified method against the standard process for acclimatizing herbs to the indoors. I suspect that herbs brought indoors via gradually bringing them in have a higher survival rate, but the less labour intensive method suits my schedule and works well enough for me to keep using it.
8 Tidbits of Advice for Overwintering Herbs Indoors
1. If you have a lot of herbs that you will be bringing indoors, as the weather cools move the potted herbs together close to where you can bring them in quickly.
This will be a big time and stress saver if you get caught by an unexpected cold spell.
I move my potted herb plants and any other plants I plan to overwinter next to the garage. That way, if there is an unexpected frost warning, I can quickly move them to the garage to protect them.
Then the next day, it only takes a few minutes to move the herb plants back out if the weather is nice. Or to move them permanently into the house.
2. Inspect and clean your herb plants before moving them indoors.
Most years I diligently clean my herb plants before bringing them indoors. But, I have had years that I have moved my herb plants indoors and because of being busy, I did not clean them.
Without fail, I have found that the years that I take the time to clean my herb plants before bringing them indoors, I have less bug problems throughout the winter.
3. Whether your herb plants have been acclimatized to the indoors or not, when the weather threatens bring your herbs indoors!
If you bring them in, your herbs have a better chance of surviving than if you leave them out in the cold. And don’t be tempted to put your herb plants back out in the morning while there is still frost on the ground.
I used to leave for work early in the morning, and there was often frost on the ground even though the forecast called for a warm and sunny day. And by the time I got home in the evening, the temperature dropped again.
If this is your scenario, then don’t stress about trying to get your herb plants out for a bit more warmth and sun. Once they’re in, they’re in, and will likely be just fine.
4. If you did not have a chance to clean your herbs before you brought them indoors, do it after the fact.
Even if you’ve been busy for a while, first chance you get make sure you clean those herb plants.
5. Check your herb plants regularly for bug problems.
If you see any bug problems, deal with them as soon as possible. In an indoor confined area, with no natural pest control, the insect population can grow rapidly.
6. If you need to stagger bringing your herbs indoors due to time or space constraints, start with your most valuable and most perishable herb plants first.
These would be the perennial herbs that grow only in zones 9 – 10 —many of which are also more expensive to purchase in the first place.
Then bring indoors the remaining perishable herbs. Lastly, bring indoors more hardy herbs.
7. Chives and garlic chives will benefit from being out in the cold weather for a while before being brought indoors.
Leave chives and garlic chives outdoors until the foliage dies back. Once you bring your chive herb plant into your home, new shoots will sprout fairly quickly.
I’ve noticed that even if I bring chive plants indoors with their leaves intact, the foliage dies back shortly thereafter anyway. And that the new growth on a chive plant that has spent some time outdoors in the cold is stronger. Same goes for garlic chives.
8. There is likely to be some herb plant loss each year.
The light and humidity requirements for many of these herb plants are higher than the plants will receive indoors.
To help minimize herb plant loss,
- place your herbs in the sunniest windows, but not touching the window
- if you have the space, you can purchase or set up a light system with grow lights to help your plants get more light.
- water regularly – how often will depend on your herb plant and how dry the air is in your home. Herb plants do not like wet feet though, and the roots can rot if overwatered.
- check for insect infestations regularly, and deal with them promptly
- when your herbs get spurts of weak spindly growth, trim this new growth by about half. For culinary herbs, these herb cuttings are tender and are great used in salads or added to your cooking.
So, bring a few potted herb plants indoors, and enjoy their fragrance and flavours well into the winter.
To your herb gardening success,
Barb
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