Thyme is a powerful herb with the smell of summertime. It’s pleasant and complex – peppery, sweet, woody minty floral tones make this perfect for any food or drink you want to add some life into!
About Thyme
Thyme is a woody, perennial herb in the mint family. It’s indigenous to Europe and Africa with its preference for dry rocky soils of Mediterranean regions.
Thyme is one of the most useful herbs around. It has small, pointy leaves that create beautiful accents when planted in large quantities all over your garden or patio! The fragrance from thyme’s aromatic flowers will fill any home with a delightful aroma – even before they’re ready to bloom.
From May through July, thyme plants are alive with the pungent aroma of fresh thyme flowers. The tiny but potent blooms act as a magnet for bees and butterflies alike!
Thyme has been used for centuries as food, medicine and fragrance. It’s antibacterial properties make it an important ingredient in many cultures’ recipes that are designed to treat illnesses or help heal wounds!
Varieties of Thyme
Thyme is a popular culinary herb, but it’s not just for cooking. There are more than 300 species of thyme grown mainly because they’re used as ground coverings and ornamental plants too!
Here are some of the most popular varieties of thyme:
Lemon thyme – is a strong-scented herb with delicious, citrus scented leaves.
Woolly thyme – is a sprawling ground cover with soft and furry hairs all over the leaves. Though it’s fairly fragrance-free, this plant will bear pale pink flowers from June through July for your enjoyment!
Creeping thyme – is a mat-forming low grower with colorful flowers that are great as garden edging and can also be used to fill in between stepping stones. The plant’s leaves have masses of showy rose-to lilac colored petals from June until September, making it perfect for borders or pots on display!
Wild thyme – You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful flower than the wild thyme. With its minty fragrance and deep pink blossoms, it provides an amazing display from June through July that completely overtakes any green leaves on this dwarf shrub or creeper!
Thyme Growing Conditions:
Thyme is a hardy herb, and it only needs two things to grow: lots of sun exposure or good drainage.
Hardiness
Thyme is a hardy plant that can grow in USDA zones 5 through 9.
Light Requirements
A spot of full sun will do your thyme plant good.
Soil
Thyme is a native of the Mediterranean and will grow best in conditions that mimic its homeland – loose, sandy or rocky soils with excellent drainage.
Watering
Thyme is a drought-tolerant herb that needs bone dry soil in order to survive. Give it some water every other week or once per month, depending on how much rainfall you get!
Fertilizer
Thyme thrives in nutrient-deprived soil, so no fertilizer is needed throughout the growing season. However adding compost at planting time will help provide an extra boost for thyme plants and keep them healthy through their lifespan!
Pruning
Thyme may become woody and loosely branched after several seasons. To keep thyme plants healthy, cut them back in spring to encourage new growth every three years or so!
Companion Plants
Thyme is a great friend to many other garden cultivars. It’s small and colorful flowers attract hoverflies, which will help keep aphids at bay!
You can improve the flavor of your next meal with a quick sprig from this little plant. Thyme is beneficial for tomatoes, potatoes and eggplants among other things! Plus it’ll make you feel better knowing that thyme planted near strawberries will help them grow faster too!
How to Grow Thyme
From Seed:
Growing thyme plants from seed can be a challenge because of their spotty and slow growth. However, the endeavor is absolutely doable! You could sow your seeds directly in an outdoor garden two weeks after frost or give them an early start by planting indoors around winter time (late fall).
- Plant your seeds in moistened potting mix and cover with a very thin layer of soil.
- Thyme seeds will germinate faster and with better results if they are kept under bright light in a warm location. For optimum growth, place them at 60°F – 70 degrees Fahrenheit (15 Celsius).
- Make sure the soil is barely moist.
- You will see thyme seed sprouting in about 2-3 weeks.
- To provide plenty of room for their roots, thin seedlings to 4 to 6 inches apart when they have true leaves.
- When seedlings are 2 to 3 inches tall, they can be hardened off and transplanted into the garden. These little plants will need protection from frosts in order for them grow strong roots before being planted out at their final location later on!
From Cuttings:
You can take cuttings from a healthy and established thyme plant, which will be more reliable than trying to grow them in soil.
- To add a fresh, herbal touch to your cooking utensils take 3-inch lengths from the lower half of thyme branches and remove all leaves.
- In order to successfully propagate a plant, it’s important that the cutting be treated with sterile potting soil and dipped in natural rooting hormone.
- Keep the soil moist but not too wet – thyme cuttings will rot if the ground becomes soggy.
- The thyme seedlings should be hardened off and transplanted to the garden in about 8 weeks.
From Division:
One way to multiply your thyme collection is through root division.
- Divide the plants in spring.
- Make sure you select plants that are at least three years old, and are healthy.
- Start digging about 5-inches out from where it’s planted. Dig up clusters of these herbs with a shovel and be sure to dig deep enough so that you can capture all their roots!
- Gently separate individual plants from the clump by grasping each main stem and pulling them apart. Thyme should split up easily but if it doesn’t, use your shovel to sever their root balls so you can transplant them with ease!
- When planting a garden, give each new plant at least 1 foot of space to grow.
- Water each soil carefully to reduce transplant shock, but be careful not too wet the top layer.
From Starter Plant:
Thyme is a wonderful plant for anyone who wants to add some life and flavor into their dishes! It can grow in temperatures between 39°F and 82°F, but does the best at around 61 degrees. Once you’re sure frost no longer poses any risks or your garden has warmed up enough after winter’s coldest time of year, plant the seedlings.
- You can add some compost or leaf mold to improve drainage.
- Dig a hole just big enough to fit your starter plant in.
- As you remove it from the pot, be careful not to damage the thyme plant as you nestle it into the hole. Maintain planting depth.
- Now you’re ready to plant! Make sure the soil around your seed is loose and just give it a gentle tap with both hands.
- Water the thyme plants thoroughly to help them become established. This is the best way of getting your new grow-room up and running!
How to Harvest Thyme
Thyme is a wonderful herb to add flavor to your cooking, but it can be tricky if not grown with care. Allow the plants time to develop before harvesting for best results!
As thyme plants grow and flourish, they produce aromatic oils that make for the most fragrant leaves. When it comes time to harvest these prized herbs- watch out! The best ones are just before flowers blossom when their scents will hit you like a ton of bricks.
The best way to cut your herbs is right when they are in full bloom, but if you can’t do that just use an sharp knife. Cut the individual stalks at 5-6 inches from their tippy tops so as not too damage or tip them over onto themselves while also making sure there’s plenty leftover for rejuvenation after harvesting it all!
Thyme leaves will retain a lot of their flavor throughout the entire season, even after plants have flowered. Allow them to finish blooming before taking another helping so that bees and other pollinators can enjoy all your Thyme flowers’ nectar while they’re here!
How to Store Thyme
The fresh thyme sprigs can last in the fridge for weeks.
To keep thyme fresh, roll up the sprigs in a damp paper towel and place it inside your refrigerator or seal together with other herbs. You can also make an easy solution by adding water into jar before placing them for storage!
Freezing thyme is a great way to preserve it while maintaining full flavor. Just put your whole branches in an air-tight bag and freeze! Once the leaves are brittle enough, strip them off by running fingers down their length.
You can also place thyme leaves in ice cubes and add water in it. Once the cubes are frozen completely, add them to a freezer bag and you can enjoy them later.
Thyme is a great herb for enhancing the flavor of your food. You can preserve it by converting it into thyme vinegar, honey or oil to last longer!
And of course, Thyme can be dried in small bunches to hang up. When thoroughly dehydrated remove leaves from stems and store for later use!
Thyme Seed Saving
When thyme plants are finished flowering, they produce dry “fruits” that each contain one or two seeds.
To collect thyme seeds, snip off the branch as soon as it starts setting. Hang them upside down so that they dry for 2-3 weeks before storing in a bag or jar. Make sure you add loose paper inside to absorb moisture if possible, because these things can get moldy pretty quick!
When flowers are fully dry, shake them in a paper bag to release the seeds. Use a mesh strainer to separate the seeds from the chaff.
The thyme seeds can stay viable for 2 to 3 years if you seal them away in an airtight container, and put it somewhere cool.
Common Pests and Diseases:
Thyme is a lucky plant because it rarely gets bothered by insects or disease.
Thyme is somewhat susceptible to root rot when plants are overwatered and / or planted in a site with poor drainage.
This can be remedied by amending clay-heavy soils with compost, which will boost the amount of nutrients available for thyme plants’ roots while also improving water retention capacity within them – all without any detrimental effect on flavor!