Fresh culinary herbs can take a recipe from good to great. They add extra flavor, color, and nutritional value. They can also add an aesthetic wow factor when used to garnish a dish. Growing your own herbs can be a rewarding DIY project that also helps save on grocery bills. Ever start a recipe and realize you forgot fresh basil or parsley? An herb growing kit, like the Planters’ Choice Organic Herb Growing Kit, makes it easy to have your own supply of fresh herbs whenever you need them. This kit includes everything you need to get started growing organic basil, cilantro, chives, and parsley at an affordable price, but how long does it take to see results? Read on for experience.
Setup Process: Simple, easy-to-follow instructions
This wasn’t our first time growing herbs in our home garden, but it was our first time growing kitchen herbs from seeds. We were pleased to find that the instruction booklet outlined the planting process in easy-to-follow steps for each seed variety. The chives and cilantro seeds were ready to plant right out of the box. All we had to do was hydrate two soil pellets and transfer them to the individual pots. This was a little messy as the instructions advise squeezing excess moisture out of the soil to prevent mold growth but done over a sink or outdoors, it’s not so bad. To promote germination, the basil and parsley seeds required an overnight soak in warm water. Once we had all the seeds planted, we positioned the pots by a northeast-facing window in our sunroom and watered them approximately every other day or when the soil seemed dry. Because the pots are biodegradable, they retain moisture and become flexible after watering. We found storing the pots on a tray helped keep things stable and catch any soil runoff during watering.
Included Tools and Accessories: Everything you need
The seed kit includes everything you need to get started planting. It comes with biodegradable pots, soil pellets, organic basil, chives, cilantro, and parsley seeds, and pre-labeled bamboo seed markers. Garden know-how and special tools aren’t needed to set up the kit, so it’s a great project for beginner gardeners and children. Additional items we used include a measuring cup and large pot for re-hydrating the soil pellets. We also found a basic gardening trowel, not included in this kit, was useful for transferring the soil to the pots. If you don’t have one, it’s just as easy to use a kitchen utensil or your hands.
Results: Seedlings appeared within a week
As promised, this kit delivered excellent growth success rates. All four herb varieties sprouted within the first two weeks of planting the seeds. Basil sprouted by day six; chives and cilantro made an appearance on day nine; parsley took its time and appeared on day twelve. Since this review was written several weeks after planting the seeds, our herbs were still growing into mature plants. We plan to continue to follow the instructions and thin the seedlings once they reach 3 to 4 inches in height. When the seedlings are more established, we’ll transplant the biodegradable pots into larger ceramic pots in our sunroom. Since our herbs are not yet ready for harvesting—that takes 60 to 90 days—we can’t comment on the flavor, but the sprouts look healthy and quite promising.
Price: Affordable and offers plenty of value
The Planters’ Choice Organic Herb Growing Kit is priced at $25. Similar seed starter kits are priced between $20 and $25. The Planters’ Choice garden kit offers plenty of value for the price. You receive everything you need to start a four-variety herb garden in one box and the included seeds are 100-percent organic and non-GMO. If you prefer organic produce, you can’t beat growing your own to save on grocery bills. Organic fresh herbs can run anywhere from $3 to $6 for a small package, whereas having an at-home herb garden provides a continuous supply. Purchasing established herb plants from a garden center can also be more costly and organic varieties may be hard to find.
Competition: A variety of kits to meet your gardening needs
Mr. Sprout Organic Herb Seed Starter Kit: Priced at $20, Mr. Sprout’s kit is a few dollars cheaper than the Planter’s Choice and very similar in design. This kit includes five varieties of herbs, including basil, cilantro, chives, parsley, and mint, along with soil pellets, herb markers, and biodegradable pots. The seeds are also organic and non-GMO. It’s a little more basic in design and lacks some of the rustic aesthetic the bamboo markers in the Planters’ Choice kit provides, but you do get the addition of mint. Window Garden Rustic Charm Herb Trio Kit: If you’re tight on garden space or in a small apartment, this is the perfect herb starter kit. It’s more expensive at $36, but comes with three attractive, miniature ceramic pots (designed to fit on a window sill), slate markers, and the soil and seeds needed to grow basil, chives, and sage. The manufacturer describes the seeds as non-GMO, but not organic. FATPLANTS Herb Garden Planter: If you’re planning to grow your herbs indoors versus transplanting to an outdoor garden, you’re going to want to check out this kit. It’s a more expensive option at roughly $50, but it includes rustic cedar wood planters with a matching drip tray that double as home decor. Although the planter holds only three pots, the kit includes a selection of seeds to grow, including basil, parsley, oregano, cilantro, chives, and thyme. This herb growing kit is a good choice for both newbies and more experienced gardeners interested in starting a basic herb garden. It’s also an excellent garden project for children, as the instructions are easy to follow and everything you need comes right in the box.
