Dill
Type: Perennial but it is treated as an annual
Description: Pointy like leaves
When to plant: Early spring, after the last sign of frost has passed
Level of difficulty: 1
How to plant: Dill is an easy plant to grow and I great addition to the kitchen!
Tips/Facts/Uses:
Description: Pointy like leaves
When to plant: Early spring, after the last sign of frost has passed
Level of difficulty: 1
How to plant: Dill is an easy plant to grow and I great addition to the kitchen!
- Get a pot that is ONLY between 1 or 3 feet tall. Dill grows a long tap root so it needs a big pot in order to grow to it’s fullest. A pot bigger than three feet though will force the dill to focus more on growing roots than leaves.
- Put gravel, sand, or perlite on the bottom to help with draining, about two inches.
- Fill the rest with nutrient rich soil that has a P.H level of between 6 to 7.5.
- If you are growing the seeds in a longways container along your window sill plant the seeds 9 inches apart. If you don’t, plant them about 4 inches apart then you can thin the plants to 9 inches.
- Plant your seeds, and dust them lightly with potting soil, make sure soil is moist.
- Put your container on a window sill where the dill can get 6 hours of sunlight. If it can’t, use grow lights for 12 hours a day. Put flourescent lights 8 inches above the plants, if you’re using a more intense light like a sodium light then it should be placed a couple of feet higher than your dill. Make sure to keep the dill between 60-75F.
- Check on your seeds every two days and keep soil moist by misting it with water (like a spray bottle, dollar stores sell them and so does Wal-Mart).
- You may fertilize it every 6 weeks with a half strength liquid fertilizer if you wish. Again, water it till it’s moist and do not water again till it’s dry.
- Indoor dill grows tall, at 10 inches it will begin to droop so you may need a stake. You can buy one or just use a piece of bamboo, it works nicely.
- Leaves will be ready to harvest about 6 to 8 weeks after planting.
- If you planted a lot of dill you can harvest by the stalk but if you didn’t you simply can pinch the leaves off or cut off the leaves by scissors.
- Eventually the dill will bolt and when you see the flowers beginning to bloom that means the leaves will cease to grow. Cut off the leaves from the bottom stem.
- About 2-3 weeks after the dill blooms, its seed buds will begin to ripen.
- Cut the plant down to a couple of inches when the first leaves are ready and the dill will grow back in 8 weeks. OR you can just leave it alone and in the fall let the dill go to seed, and it shoud sprout all over again.
Tips/Facts/Uses:
- If you need the seeds, cut off the stalks before the seeds begin to ripen and turn a tan color. Hang the stalks upside down and tie a plastic bag around in with tiny poked holes near the seed head. Eventually the seeds will ripen and fall into the bag.
- Use to make yummy pickles! Dill also goes well with fish!
- When you make your favorite dill pickle recipes, place a dill flower at the bottom of the jar. It’s cute and it adds flavor!
- Make Dill Tea to soothe an upset tummy.