Growing Thyme – Have a Healthy Herb in Your Home

Thyme has long been known as a perennial kitchen plant that’s usually shown off as an ornamental plant. Most homes have thymes grown in the garden, in a rustic pot on the kitchen countertop or windowsill, or out in the balcony in a box. Aside from beautification purposes, thyme offers many advantages, including adding flavor to several foods and treating certain medical conditions. These things make it easy to understand why growing thyme is a favored project among knowledgeable gardeners. If you’re new at gardening, you can count on this article to give you some help on how to have this healthy herb in your very own garden.

Before you proceed on finding out what you need to do in order to grow thyme in your garden, learn first about why you really should consider growing thyme in your home. In the olden days, thyme carried a reputation as a life-giving herb; the plant was used as a form of alternative medicine to cure a number of ailments, such as headaches, whooping cough, tonsillitis, gout, and even asthma. In recent times, thyme is known as a kitchen must-have, a culinary herb, more than anything else. However, it is still believed to have soothing effects for relieving common and light migraines and stress.

The plant’s many culinary purposes range from mere preparation flavoring to secret ingredient in scrumptious dishes. Thyme is often included in meat, particularly beef, recipes, but it also works well when used with vegetables or mixed in herb butters. Such is the versatility that thyme provides, so you can count on a variety of meals that you can serve using this unique herb. Moreover, thyme belongs to the Labiatae, a mint family, and possesses thymol, a special substance that carries a distinct taste that wonderfully compliments other flavors and has antiseptic and cleansing qualities. This defining substance is where the herb got its name.

You don’t have to worry about choosing the right kind of the herb when you’re growing thyme. To date, there is an estimated count of 300 to 400 species of thyme, most of which are native of Mediterranean countries and all of which have culinary value. Common species of the herb include the Southern European Garden Thyme, Garden Thyme, Lemon Thyme, and Wild Thyme.

Now that you’re sure you want to have thyme thriving in your garden, the first thing you need to do is to propagate thyme. New plants should be planted in the soil with a distance of six to ten inches apart from each other. Thyme seeds do not have to be entirely covered; a light press or push into moist soil will do. Some thyme species can be propagated through cuttings, which should be planted in sandy, porous soil. Whatever the species, however, thyme needs to be placed in a sunny area. During the early stages, thyme needs watering on a regular basis; older thymes can tolerate periods of drought. It is best to harvest thyme in the early summer, right before flowering takes place.