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Supermarket Thyme

B3B3 Posts: 25,247
in Plants
Is it possible to toughen it up enough to plant outside?
In London. Keen but lazy.
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  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 2,946
    Yes - my 2  ( bought some weeks ago ) are currently braving the wind and rain quite happily.
  • B3B3 Posts: 25,247
    edited May 2021
    Should I do the hokey cokey  or just leave it outside @philippasmith2
    The stems are quite soft and green
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 2,946
    I trimmed back the soft growth and then just kept them in the cold frame for a week or so and then stuck them outside  They are doing well but my weather ( SW UK ) may be a bit different from yours ?
  • B3B3 Posts: 25,247
    I'll leave it in the kitchen windowsill and use the stems on the off chance we get some summer then. I wasn't sure whether to trim it or not.
    Thanks @philippasmith2
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • Helen P3Helen P3 Posts: 986
    edited May 2021
    Thyme is tough.  It grows on the hills of the Mediterranean where winters are really cold; yet it thrives.  It just doesn't like rich soil or a soggy bottom.  The cold doesn't quite scare it.
    I grew mine from seed, several centuries ago(!), so I didn't have to acclimatize it to a different environment.  However, though the weather is unpleasantly cold, it's not freezing, so the new growth should be fine; but you can remove it if you choose.  If you don't have a cold frame, just leave it out during the day and take it in at night for 4-5 days.  I think it will then survive our spectacular summer...
  • Zoe P2Zoe P2 Posts: 722
    Helen P3 said:
    Thyme is tough.  It grows on the hills of the Mediterranean where winters are really cold; yet it thrives.  It just doesn't like rich soil or a soggy bottom.  The cold doesn't quite scare it.

    Absolutely right.  Many years ago, I bought 4 different types of thyme.  I put them all out in the garden straight away. (It was spring.  They came from a GC, not a supermarket.) 

    I have taken cuttings from them every year or so;  I still have them. 

    One of them has world domination in mind!



    I have a dream that my.. children.. one day.. will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character

      Martin Luther King

  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 2,946
    The reason I trimmed the SM thymes was that the new growth was soft and somewhat deformed ( and I had an immediate use for it ).
    The SM herb pots are stacked on racks in store and so don't get sufficient light :)
  • Helen P3Helen P3 Posts: 986
    philippasmith2 said:
    .... ( and I had an immediate use for it ).
    The SM herb pots are stacked on racks in store and so don't get sufficient light :)


    Philippa  :)
  • Sam 37Sam 37 Posts: 1,117
    Helen P3 said:
    Thyme is tough.  It grows on the hills of the Mediterranean where winters are really cold; yet it thrives.  It just doesn't like rich soil or a soggy bottom.  The cold doesn't quite scare it.


    How do you know?  Do you go to the Med in winter? ;)
  • Helen P3Helen P3 Posts: 986
    I googled it! 🤣
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