Here is a guide to a few of the herbs that grow well in classroom gardens.
Basil
Basil likes a lot of light. While your garden light will be good for this plant, you may want to situate it near to a window, so long as there are no drafts. Basil grows big, green leaves that are good for pesto and in dressings. We start our basil in peat pellets and transplant when the first set of true leaves appear. Watch your basil for flower buds and pinch them off as they appear, this will encourage leaves to grow.
You can start harvesting basil in about 30 days. Pick the growing leaves and the two leaves below them to use for cooking. More stems and leaves will grow. When cooking with basil, don’t cut the leaves with a knife, tear them. Cutting the leaves will release the flavour before you add the basil to your food. When cooking with basil, you want to add it near the end of the cooking time.
Parsley
We start our parsley in peat pellets. When the plants really get growing they can get to be about 30 cm high. Parsley plants like moist but not waterlogged soil. When it grows to about 15 cm you can start harvesting the leaves. Cut the outside stems close to the soil. This will encourage new growth at the centre of the plant. You can dry sprigs of parsley to use later. You can also freeze parsley. Chop the parsley, put a tsp in each of the spaces in an ice cube tray, cover with water and freeze. Transfer the cubes to an airtight freezer bag for storing.
Teaching From the Garden 