Don't Throw Out Extra Glass Jars, Save Them To Make An Herb Garden Right In Your Kitchen

Instead of throwing away old glass containers, you can use them to bring a cohesive aesthetic to your indoor gardening attempts. Mason jars aren't just for canning, and resting them for some of your favorite products is a crafty way to upcycle and start an indoor herb garden. Not only can fresh herbs be used to add flavor to food, but you can dry some for later use. Simply store those dried herbs in a jar to keep within easy reach.

Before you get your garden under way, clean each jar and remove any labels or stickers affixed to the outside of the glass. Later, you can add a label with the name of your chosen herb. While you could plant seeds, you won't need to with options like basil, thyme, and rosemary. Those can grow from cuttings. If you're just starting out, you can test your gardening capabilities with hardier herbs like mint and thyme. The jars can be filled with potting soil and placed in an appropriately lit area.

You'll want to set your potted herbs in a sunny place inside your home and be sure each plant gets enough water so that the soil doesn't dry out. Placing a layer of stones in the bottom of the glass jars may help with drainage. Should your gardening attempts prove to be unsuccessful, you can clean the containers and reuse them to organize office supplies or store ingredients like noodles, spices, edible flowers, or lentils.

Folks who want an elaborate display could try mounting their jars on walls. Advanced-level gardeners have done this with wooden boards by affixing a series of clamps and screws. These clamps serve as holders for a neatly arranged series of herbs in their glass containers. However, a pretty lineup of jars placed in a windowsill can be a fine starting point. Whether you keep the jars of your indoor garden plain and nameless or create small tags for each plant, your efforts will pay off once you have herbs to throw into your next batch of skillet cornbread.