Planting Fresh Rosemary? Add This To Your Soil For The Best Results

Rosemary is a handy herb to grow. The fragrant, needle-like leaves go well in stews and are a great addition to steak rubs. Plus, boiling rosemary is a great way to eliminate kitchen odors. With so many uses, you'll want to grow a lot, and to do that, you'll want a strong, healthy rosemary plant. Rosemary is native to the Mediterranean region, a part of the world with dry, rocky soil. It's best to emulate its native conditions by adding some grit, like gravel or sand, to the soil.

The roots of the rosemary plant don't like to sit in damp soil, so doing this helps water drain faster. While some people suggest adding rocks to the bottom of the pot, this is not recommended, as the dirt will sift down between the rocks and become more compacted, making it harder for water to get through and causing root rot. Once you get the soil right, take a look at our top tips for growing an herb garden to give your rosemary some brothers and sisters in your yard.

Any commercial soil mix with gravel, sand, perlite, or bark in it will be great for your rosemary plant. Generally, a soil designed for a cactus will work due to its inclusion of sand or perlite that allows it to drain faster and creates air pockets to help the roots stay dry. A regular potting soil or one designed for vegetables will retain too much water.

You can make a great soil for your Mediterranean herb by mixing one part potting soil with two parts horticultural sand and one part perlite or pumice. You don't need to add a lot of fertilizer, as the herb is not a heavy feeder. An occasional light fertilizing will be enough. You may want to add lime (not the fruit!) if you test its pH and it comes back acidic, as rosemary prefers a more alkaline soil.

Using horticultural sand instead of the regular stuff that covers the beach is better, as it won't clump. Clumping will retain more water, once again rotting those rosemary roots. When you get your plant healthy and thriving, you'll be able to snip off a twig to make elegant rosemary water anytime you like.