Herb Garden

coppersend

Hi Everyone

I am in the process of building a wooden planter for our nursery School garden.
The children are 3 and 4 yr olds.
I want to plant it up with herbs.
The planter is about 4 feet by 2 feet.

can you suggest the best herbs please.

I am looking for smell, and feel  the the age grouping
Health and safety is paramount  so no thorns, no herbs that is poisonous
ect ect
Mint is going into a different pot so is Rosemary and lavender.
Lots of small herbs together they will be under shade.

mel 

Womble54

That’s a great idea to get young kids into growing.

A mix of perennial woody herbs (thyme, rosemary, oregano, sage, lavender, mint) will give great smells, and should come back year after year without too much work.

Annuals like basil (green & purple), coriander, chives (lovely when they flower) dill, tarragon, parsley (can be a bit tempremental) can be planted from seed.

You could also try some quick growing things like cress, radish, peashoots or salad mix like mesculum. So the kids can see quick results from things they plant.

Maybe add in some easy to grow flowers like nasturtiums, marigolds and poached egg flowers for a bit of colour.

Good luck. I’m sure the kids will love it.

Nanny Beach

hello, again!!sage,marjoram,lemon verbena and balm,coriander,tyme, but you put shade they will all want full sun,  I have got plenty of fennel, shall I save you some seeds?  There is also a lemon basil, just bought some seeds and cant blooming find them!

raisingirl

Most herbs need lots of sun, as Nanny Beach says. Sweet cicely, chives, coriander, parsley, lemon balm and some marjoram - the golden leaf one, I think - will grow in shade or partial shade. 
Sweet cicely is perennial; tall, with soft feathery leaves and big fat seed heads. It tastes of mild liquorice and the whole plant is edible.
Chives are perennial; have round purple flowers that the bees love. The flowers and leaves are edible.
Coriander is an annual; medium sized, with small white flowers that 'set' small round seeds. The leaves and seeds are edible - a bit spicy.
Parsley is best grown as an annual though it will keep going for a couple of years; it has a very deep root so it depends how deep your planter is whether you can grow that - it's medium height, fairly easy to grow from seed but slow to germinate so not ideal for impatient children.
Marjoram is perennial; a lovely bee plant, the leaves have a strong savoury flavour and smell.
Lemon balm is perennial; can be a bit invasive - very like mint, which it resembles. Soft leaves, with a lemony scent and slightly soapy lemon flavour.

coppersend

Nanny Beach said:

hello, again!!sage,marjoram,lemon verbena and balm,coriander,tyme, but you put shade they will all want full sun,  I have got plenty of fennel, shall I save you some seeds?  There is also a lemon basil, just bought some seeds and cant blooming find them!

Hi Nanny 

yes please seeds will be great.

Is it too late to get plants to put in the planter now

coppersend

raisingirl said:

Most herbs need lots of sun, as Nanny Beach says. Sweet cicely, chives, coriander, parsley, lemon balm and some marjoram - the golden leaf one, I think - will grow in shade or partial shade. 
Sweet cicely is perennial; tall, with soft feathery leaves and big fat seed heads. It tastes of mild liquorice and the whole plant is edible.
Chives are perennial; have round purple flowers that the bees love. The flowers and leaves are edible.
Coriander is an annual; medium sized, with small white flowers that 'set' small round seeds. The leaves and seeds are edible - a bit spicy.
Parsley is best grown as an annual though it will keep going for a couple of years; it has a very deep root so it depends how deep your planter is whether you can grow that - it's medium height, fairly easy to grow from seed but slow to germinate so not ideal for impatient children.
Marjoram is perennial; a lovely bee plant, the leaves have a strong savoury flavour and smell.
Lemon balm is perennial; can be a bit invasive - very like mint, which it resembles. Soft leaves, with a lemony scent and slightly soapy lemon flavour.

raisingirl said:

Most herbs need lots of sun, as Nanny Beach says. Sweet cicely, chives, coriander, parsley, lemon balm and some marjoram - the golden leaf one, I think - will grow in shade or partial shade. 
Sweet cicely is perennial; tall, with soft feathery leaves and big fat seed heads. It tastes of mild liquorice and the whole plant is edible.
Chives are perennial; have round purple flowers that the bees love. The flowers and leaves are edible.
Coriander is an annual; medium sized, with small white flowers that 'set' small round seeds. The leaves and seeds are edible - a bit spicy.
Parsley is best grown as an annual though it will keep going for a couple of years; it has a very deep root so it depends how deep your planter is whether you can grow that - it's medium height, fairly easy to grow from seed but slow to germinate so not ideal for impatient children.
Marjoram is perennial; a lovely bee plant, the leaves have a strong savoury flavour and smell.
Lemon balm is perennial; can be a bit invasive - very like mint, which it resembles. Soft leaves, with a lemony scent and slightly soapy lemon flavour.

Thanks raisingirl
Sadly where they want the herb garden is in a sheltered area 
because of the age of the children 3 and 4 yr old's health and safety
comes into play.  (A lot tougher these days than in mine)

The children have to be protected from the sun  (When we have any haaa)
As Teachers and carers are not allowed to give the children sun protection creams