An Ikea Idea

I love the idea of having fresh herbs around to add into our meals.  However, living in Southwestern Ontario kind of puts the kibosh on that for about, oh, 7-8 months of the year.  And buying them on a regular basis in the grocery store would require a second mortgage.  It is often recommended that you put pots of herbs in sunny window locations and grow them there.  Corny as it sounds, I like to look out my windows, not peek through my plants.  I'm a little weird like that.

And I have, on more than one occasion, been known to knock the pots off and onto the counter.

Then I spied the Asker series at Ikea one day and the wall herb garden was born. At least in my house.

The Asker rails on the wall are about $10 apiece, a set of 5 hooks about $5, and each white pot $7.  This entire set up was about $70 (taxes!), plus some potting soil and the plants.

Each of the pots has a pretty significant drainage hole in the bottom.  I criss-crossed packing tape over the hole, from the inside, to prevent water from draining down the walls.

Always use a level to put up the rails.  Being even a little bit off at the beginning can result in your wall statement becoming an eye sore.

Make sure to start with a good quality potting/vegetable soil.  Fertilizing every few months probably wouldn't hurt.  Watering on a weekly basis is also recommended.  See flat leaf parsley exhibit, top right.

Don't fill the containers right to the top with soil and plants.  When you water them, it will tend to run right back out.  These garlic chives are pretty good, if I do say so myself.

This rosemary is actually bordering on too full.  We've had a waterfall here more than once.

I have had success bringing some of my herbs indoors after the summer to extend their life indoors.  Most plants will need to be kept trimmed, if you aren't regularly using them, to encourage growth.  While they will need a sunny location, it doesn't necessarily have to be a south-facing window.  If you live in a southern climate, I might actually suggest a non-south window to avoid 'frying' the plants.

And that's about it.  Given that there's a drill involved, it was very easy to convince Goose to help me with this gardening project.  I'd bet it would be the same at your house, too.

**Note:  Ikea has never heard of me.  If they had a frequent shopper program, they probably still wouldn't have heard of me.  I haven't been paid for this and I didn't get any stuff either :) 1. 2.

An Ikea Idea

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