Fertilizing Rosemary and Thyme

Rosemary and thyme are two of the most commonly used herbs in cooking.  The demand for fresh rosemary and thyme in my cooking is larger than these two small pots can supply.  With careful cultivation, I hope to encourage them to grow larger.

Fertilizer is the easiest way to encourage large spurts of growth in your balcony plants.  While different plants have different fertilizer needs, an all purpose fertilizer with a mixture of 10-10-10 will work well for most herbs and flowers.  I have purchased Miracle Gro Shake and Feed all purpose fertilizer.

While some fertilizers are water soluble, this is a pellet variety.  For my small plants, I intend to use only two  teaspoons of pellets per pot.  The fertilizer will slowly release each time the plants are watered for up to 3 months.  When using fertilizer it is important not to over water the plants.  If you over water without the overflow tray, your fertilizer will run out before the roots can absorb it.  If you over water and allow the roots to absorb the fertilizer loaded water from the overflow tray the plants may receive too much fertilizer.  Too much fertilizer can be just as harmful to the plants as not enough fertilizer.  We will check back on these plants in a few months to mark their progress.