Herbs are easy to grow and if you’re looking to keep your crop small, mason jars make the perfect planter and can be used indoor or outdoor (with proper drainage).
I know I’ve mentioned it before, but my husband is more of the cook in our family than I am. I get by, but he actually finds joy in it and loves to experiment. He’s been mentioning more recently that he’d like to grow fresh herbs, but with us in house hunting and selling mode, we decided not to plant anything new in our yard. I started thinking of a more portable option and figured Father’s Day was a perfect time to get it made. (Spoiler alert – he loved it, and I was actually able to keep it hidden from him until Father’s Day!)
We had a fun Father’s Day weekend, which I’ll cover more a little later this week in My Friday Five, but we spent all day Saturday on the Baccoon Ride (think Biking, Bacon and Beer!) with our old neighbors (and friends).
My in laws came to watch Carter while we were on the ride, so Todd got to golf with his dad on Sunday. Three generations of great guys right here!
On Sunday morning, Carter woke up early and I could barely get out of bed after the long ride on Saturday, but I did so that we could set out the Father’s Day cards and mason jar herb garden we had as a surprise for Todd.
Supplies you’ll need to create your own Mason Jar Herb Garden:
- Mason Jars with Caddy – I found a set on Amazon, but you can easily create your own set using the following items:
- Wide Mouth Mason Jars
- Small Galvanized Planter (optional)
- Chalkboard tags/Chalkboard marker (optional)
- Small Potted Herbs – I used basil, cilantro, thyme and chives
- Small Rocks
- Potting Soil
I started by adding a small layer of rocks to the bottom of my jars to help with drainage. Then filled the mason jar about 1/3 full of potting soil. This may vary based on the size of your potted herbs and how much soil they already have.
I then added my herbs, one per jar, and filled in with soil roughly to the edge of where the lid lip is on the jar. I gently watered each with just enough to make the soil moist but not overly wet.
To finish, I wrote the name of each herb on a wooden chalkboard tag with a chalkboard marker (optional).
Caring for your herbs:
These are perfect for a very sunny indoor spot in your kitchen. Unfortunately we don’t have a spot like this (next house goals!), so I had to opt for a sunny spot on our patio right off the kitchen. It’s a covered patio so it will stay out of the rain but get plenty of sun. Many common herbs need at least 3-6 hours of sunlight per day.
If you plan to have it in a spot where they may get a lot of rain, you’ll want to drill a few holes with a diamond drill in the bottom of your glass jars for even better drainage.
Enjoy your fresh herbs by clipping off as needed. I’m looking forward to some homemade salsa with the cilantro. Yum!
Note: If you want to start your herbs from seeds, fill jars two-thirds of the way full with potting soil. Add a sprinkling of seeds, and then cover the rest of the way with potting soil. They will take a couple weeks to start to show sprouts and at least few more weeks before you can likely use any of your herbs.
