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Advice for raising Lemon Balm, Chocolate Mint and Orange Thyme indoors? (sopuli.xyz)

submitted 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) by piezoelectron@sopuli.xyz to c/greenspace@beehaw.org

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For context, I have no idea on how to take care of plants, but I'd like these three baby plants I bought to thrive.

I'd also love to snip them every now and then when I'm cooking, making a salad or a tea etc.

Right now each plant is quite young and in small plastic pots. The chocolate mint is already about 8-12 inches tall. The lemon balm and orange thyme are both less than 5 inches tall.

My questions where I'd love your advice are:

How often should I water these plants?
They're all newly bought and in disposable plastic containers. When I repot them, will it be dangerous to mix their current soil and the generic store bought soil I'm planning to get?
How fast do these plants grow? Should I be optimistic and already buy semi-large pots, even though they're quite tiny right now?
Any other general tips to care for these plants?

Appreciate your advice, whether it's plant-specific or applies to all the three plants. Thanks in advance!

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[–] piezoelectron@sopuli.xyz 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

You're a godsend!! Just one question -- any tips on nitrogen-dense fertilizers? In the past I've used coffee grounds as a generic fertilizer, but not sure if they're dense on N, P or K.

I'm about to head and buy some pots + soil, feeling very reassured, thanks!!

[–] stoneparchment@possumpat.io 1 points 2 years ago

Coffee grounds have a high N content relative to P and K, but they're pretty acidic. Be careful using too much!

Honestly, most all fertilizers publish their "npk ratio", either online or on the package. Usually general purpose fertilizers are high in nitrogen (like miraclegrow, for example), but it's easy to get in the habit of checking the npk ratio before buying.

Again, I would recommend you not fertilize your newly potted plants if you use a potting mix from a store, usually they have enough fertilizer for at least a while and you don't want to use too much or you'll burn your plants.

If you pot right now, they're probably good until like Feburary/March. After that, you can fertilize over a few weeks in the Spring and top off a bit in the summer. Then, no fertilizer in fall and winter until the following spring.

That might not be like... the objectively best way to do it? It's just one way. Mint and lemon balm are pretty self sufficient tbh, so... don't over think it ;)