If you’ve always filed “plant an herb garden” under “things I’ve wanted to do, but have never gotten around to,” now’s the time to move it to your in-progress projects list.
That’s because it’s actually a pretty simple endeavor that can be tackled in an afternoon—including actually building the planter in which your mini herb garden will live. Yes, a store-bought planter would also do the trick, but those don’t come with that triumphant feeling of conquering a DIY project (trust).
To give you the step-by-step, we asked longtime gardener Bailey Van Tassel to walk through exactly how make your own indoor herb garden. Step one? Choosing where you’re going to place your garden—like a windowsill—then measuring to find out how much planting space you have to work with.
“Herbs like full sun, so I am lucky that my window faces west, ” Van Tassel says. “I get a ton of afternoon sun, which is great. A south-facing window is wonderful as well. And if you don’t have either of those, you can go ahead and put your herbs outdoors for a few hours each day or move them around the house.”
Once you’ve picked a spot and size for your planter, it’s time to gather the materials. If you want to go the full DIY route, you’ll need pre-cut wood (when you buy it, ask them to cut it for you), wood glue, treated nails, and a hammer. Then, collect your herbs of choice, potting soil, and a few other essentials, including a bottle of Bona Antibacterial Surface Cleaner to clean up the inevitable mess (you’re working with dirt, after all).
“It’s really important to keep these counters nice and clean because I am in here with the kids all day, so I like to use a cleaner that’s not too harsh, that doesn’t have crazy chemicals, but gets the job done,” Van Tassel says.
Bona’s cleaner fits that bill because it’s hydrogen peroxide-based, comes in three fresh scents, and—when you let it sit on the surface for 10 minutes—kills 99.9 percent of household germs.* So you’ll end your afternoon of DIYing with a new indoor herb garden and a cleaner-than-before kitchen.
Ready to make your own indoor herb garden? Watch the video above for all of Tassel’s tips.
*Kills 99.9% of Influenza A H1N1 Virus, Rhinovirus, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica, Staphylococcus aureus, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus [MRSA], Trichophyton mentagrophytes, on hard non-porous surfaces in 10 minutes
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