How often to water your indoor herbs

If you’ve ever tried to grow your indoor herb garden and had it fail, then you know that proper watering is crucial to success. But how much should you water, and how often should you water it? 

There is a science to water, but it only takes a little experimentation to learn how to get the most out of the water that you use.

How often should I water my herbs?

Regular watering is necessary to keep your crop healthy and productive — but it varies a lot from plant to plant. 

For indoor parsley, you can get away with watering about every 5-7 days. On the other hand, some types of mint must be watered nearly daily. 

Most herbs can be watered 2-3 times a week, or anytime the soil is dry to the touch. 

Am I overwatering my herbs? Top signs of overwatering 

If you are new to gardening, it can be hard to tell if you need to water your plants more or less. It can be especially confusing if you have purchased a new plant and it is not growing as fast as you expected.

Drooping leaves

Drooping is a classic sign that you are overwatering your herbs. Luckily, if you adjust your watering your plant can recover quickly. But don’t be fooled — drooping leaves can also be a sign that you are UNDER watering. 

Yellowing leaves

It’s common for overwatered plants to have yellowing, soft leaves. If the leaves turn yellow but are crunchy, overwatering is likely not the cause.

The herb isn’t growing

If it seems like your herbs haven’t been growing much lately, or if the leaves aren’t regenerating, it can be a sign of overwatering.

The herb doesn’t perk up when you water it

Most of us instinctively want to ADD water when our herbs are looking sad. But if your plant doesn’t perk up when you water it, it’s a sign that you may be overwatering. 

Causes of overwatering

Overwatering usually stems from too much love. You want to make sure that your plant is taken care of and well-fed, so you water and water. Unfortunately, oftentimes more water is not better.

Overwatering can also be caused by poor drainage. Even though you may only be watering twice or three times a week, if the soil retains all of that moisture instead of draining it, your herbs can begin to rot.

Bottom-watering indoor herbs

Bottom watering indoor plants is considered one of the best ways to help them survive in the long term. It allows them to retain more nutrients in the topsoil, and helps reduce bugs and gnats in your home.

One of the biggest benefits of bottom-watering is that you have to do it much less often than if you water your plant from the top. To bottom-water, your herbs, submerge the lower portion of the container into a dish of water for about 15 minutes. 

If you bottom-water your indoor herbs, you will typically need to water half as often. That means if you normally water twice a week, you will only need to water once a week from the bottom. This is a great trick to keep your herbs and other plants healthy if you plan on being away for vacation. Luckily it’s hard to overwater a plant through bottom watering because the soil simply won’t absorb enough water.