I love the scent, texture, look, and, of course, flavor of rosemary. Lavender is simply glorious. But both are notoriously difficult to sprout from seed. If this is your first time starting herbs from seed, it can be frustrating. However, there are many herbs that are more willing to germinate and grow, and are also great in the kitchen.

While most herbs are not overly difficult to start from seed, they can be more challenging, or perhaps less forgiving, than most vegetable crops. You’ll need to pay close attention to drainage (most herbs hate soggy soil), take care to follow seed depth recommendations closely, and keep the soil surface moist without letting it get too wet. Always plant more herbs than you need. Having too many seedlings is far better than not enough.

Why start herbs from seed?

While I love a good trip to the garden center to grab some new plants, my wallet does not. Even annual herb plants can easily be priced at more than $6-7 each. A mixed herb planter can often run more than twenty dollars. Planting and growing herbs from seed, however, is quite thrifty. A packet of 200 cilantro seeds is only $4. When I plant them in reused containers (from other plants I bought at the greenhouse), the process is even more budget-conscious. 

Easy and beginner-friendly herbs to start from seed

Grab a seed packet, some high-quality potting mix or seed starting mix, and a few pots with good drainage, and give these easy herbs a try. You’ll soon be looking for more recipes to use them with.

Chives

Start this herb once, and you’ll likely never have to do it again. Chives are perennials even in very cold climates (they’re hardy in USDA zones 3-9), and will spread if given the chance. I started my chive patch six years ago from seed, and it is still going strong. 

Chive seedlings look thin and wispy, but they’ll soon perk up in the garden. The early summer purple blooms are loved by pollinators, and if you shear off the growth a few inches from the ground after it flowers, you’ll get another flush of tasty chive leaves in a few weeks.

Mint

You may have heard that mint likes to take over, and it’s true. This plant, once established, will begin spreading out via rhizomes, popping up all over the place. But if grown in a pot, that problem is solved. 

Mint can be started easily from cuttings, so once you’ve grown mint from seed, you can choose which way to propagate it in the future. 

The seeds require light to germinate, so press them into the soil but refrain from planting them too deeply. A light dusting of vermiculite will help maintain soil moisture at the surface. Start mint seeds about 8-10 weeks before you’ll be ready to plant them out. If they get too big, you can always pinch off a few tips to make the plant bushier and begin your mint harvest early.

Lemon Balm

Crush a lemon balm leaf in your fingers, and you’ll smell the citrusy scent. This herb is popular for garnishes, teas, and herbal remedies, and is quite easy to grow. Like mint, it will spread in the garden if left unsupervised.

Start lemon balm seeds indoors 6-8 weeks before your last frost date. Like mint, it is such an easy-growing herb that if you missed that window, you can still plant it and get a nice harvest, even when planted in summer. The seeds need light to germinate, so sow them on the surface and mist to keep them moist. 

Basil

Basil needs no introduction in the kitchen. It is a rapidly growing plant, and I find that, similar to spinach or lettuce, the smaller leaves are the best. Many varieties of basil are available, and all grow easily from seed. 

Plant basil seeds about ⅛ to ¼ inch deep. Basil will make a medium-sized plant with a slightly woody stem by fall, but if it flowers, its culinary quality declines sharply. Instead, plant a new pot of basil every two weeks. When the old basil begins to get bitter, toss it in the compost. 

Thyme

Thyme starts readily from seed, but can be a bit slow-growing at first. Instead of trying to plant individual thyme seeds, I scatter them across a small tray or pot, lightly press them firmly into contact with the soil, then barely cover them with more soil and mist. Once they’ve germinated, I take the lazy approach and let them grow together for a while instead of pricking out and potting up the fragile individual plants. 

On transplanting day, I simply pull up the entire mat of little grown-together thyme plants, gently separate it into one- or two-inch cubes, and plant those. It works great and is much less time-consuming.

German chamomile

Tea time, anyone? Chamomile is an ingredient in many herbal teas, and it is super-easy to grow at home. German chamomile is an annual (unlike Roman chamomile) and can be started indoors in late winter, then transplanted outside. Its loads of small, daisy-looking flowers are cheerful enough, even if you didn’t want a relaxing cup of tea. Surface sow the seeds and keep them misted, or use vermiculite to maintain soil moisture.

Garden sage (Salvia officinalis)

Garden sage is one of the trio I call “chicken herbs” because it goes well with poultry; the other two are rosemary and thyme. To make a gorgeous mixed herb planter, plant one rosemary, one thyme, and one sage plant in a 12” pot. They all like the same full sunshine and drier conditions, so they work well together.

Garden sage, also known as common sage, is a perennial hardy in USDA zones 4-8, but may get woody, and I find the leaves get a bitter tang with age. If yours is looking a little ratty, start new sage every spring about 6-8 weeks before frost. They make attractive plants, and you’ll have tender, large young sage leaves for your recipes.

Cilantro

Cilantro, also sometimes listed as coriander (for the seeds), is a leafy herb that grows quickly. It doesn’t like being transplanted, so plan to sow cilantro directly in its bed or pot, or transplant it when quite young, before its taproot gets large. 

Harvest cilantro leaves as soon as they are deep green, or use the young flowers. Leave some flowers to go to seed for your own coriander. Plant new cilantro every month to have a fresh supply, since summer’s heat can cause it to bolt.

Two herbs difficult to start from seed

A few herbs are more difficult to grow from seed, or grow so slowly that starting them from seed can be frustrating for the beginner looking to use them in the near future. You’ll need patience and the right setup to reliably have success with these two.

Rosemary

Rosemary might be one of my favorite herbs of all time, but it is frustrating to grow from seed. Germination rates can be as low as 10-30% even under ideal conditions, which most of us struggle to meet. After they do pop up, seedlings take their sweet time growing to a usable size, which can be frustrating for new herb growers.

If you’d like to grow rosemary from seed, plant about five times as many seeds as you’d like plants. Rosemary seeds don’t remain viable for long, so ideally, plant the entire packet of seeds. If you get lucky, you can thin them or give them away. Buy a new packet every year to save trouble.

Lavender

Lavender is a gorgeous plant, both for its silvery-green foliage and purple blooms, as well as for its use in the kitchen. It’s a perennial, but some varieties struggle in USDA zones 5 and cooler. Many named varieties are vegetatively propagated by nurseries, but you can start English lavender from seed. 

Cold stratification may help with lavender seed germination. Place lavender seeds in moist sand or peat in the refrigerator for 3-4 weeks before planting. Start lavender indoors 10-12 weeks before you wish to set it outside. They germinate very slowly, so maintain light soil moisture, and don’t give up hope. Plant more than you need.  English lavender flowers in its second and subsequent growing seasons, but is worth the wait.