Thyme: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
How to sow thyme outdoors?
To sow thyme outdoors, wait in spring until the ground has warmed and frost no longer threatens young seedlings. Choose a small sunny patch that is easy to monitor, with fine, very well-drained soil. If the ground stays heavy, cold or damp, sowing in pots will be easier to manage than sowing directly into the bed.
Weed thoroughly and break up the surface so the tiny seeds make good contact with the soil. Moisten it before sowing. Scatter the seeds very thinly on the surface and press gently, without burying them beneath a thick layer. Water with a fine spray to avoid washing them away. Mark the area and keep it slightly moist during germination, avoiding puddles or a hard crust.
Growth is slow at first, so do not let neighbouring weeds smother the small shoots. Remove weeds carefully and thin gradually once you can recognise the true thyme seedlings. Eventually allow about 20 to 30 cm, adjusted to the species’ habit. Reduce watering after roots establish without suddenly drying out young plants. Wait until they form small, vigorous clumps before considering any leaf picking.
How to care for this plant
-
Weed
If weeds compete with your young plant, hand-pull them without disturbing its roots. If you use mulch, choose a thin mineral layer to keep low shoots off wet soil and leave the crown clear. Avoid thick, damp organic mulch against the base; this is not a feeding step.
How do you harvest thyme?
Harvest your thyme once it is well rooted and has formed a sufficiently developed clump. A young plant grown from seed needs time before it can support repeated picking. For cooking, cut just a few sprigs as needed; the young growth of spring and summer is particularly useful for its fragrance.
Use clean scissors and cut leafy stems, leaving green growth below each cut. Spread your picking around the clump rather than repeatedly stripping the same side. Avoid cutting into bare old wood and remove no more than about a third of the growth at once. Take even less from a small plant, during drought or in cold weather, when regrowth is limited.
To dry a reserve, choose healthy sprigs, preferably before flowering, while leaving some stems to flower for insects. Harvest when the foliage is dry. Make small, loose bunches and hang them somewhere dry, ventilated and out of direct sunlight. Once the leaves are completely dry, strip them off and store them in an airtight container away from light and moisture. Check for remaining dampness before sealing the container so you do not lose your harvest.
Thyme
- Type : Aromatic plants
- Subtype : Leafy vegetables
- Botanical Family : Lamiaceae (labiate)
Characteristics
- Lifecycle : Perennial
- Exposure : Full Sun
- Frost Hardiness : Frost Resistant
- Cultivation Difficulty : Easy
- Mature height : 30 cm
Sowing & Planting
- Greenhouse Growing : Not Required
- Sowing Depth : 0.5 cm
- Plant Spacing : 25 cm
- Row Spacing : 25 cm
Maintenance
- Maintenance : Low
- Water Requirements : Low
Other characteristics
- Soil Type : Sandy
- Soil pH Preference : Neutral
- Pest Sensitivity : Moderate
- Disease Sensitivity : Low
- Weed Sensitivity : Low
- Pollination : Insect-pollinated
- Propagation : Sowing