How to Grow Rosemary

Find sprigs of rosemary. Rosemary is easier to grow from cuttings than it is to grow from seeds. You can buy rosemary stalks at a nursery or ask someone you know who grows rosemary. Once you find the rosemary plant, cut a few branches about 10 cm long to propagate. The best time to cut branches is late spring, but you can also do this in early fall if you live in a warm climate. Rosemary plants grown from branches will have the same quality as the parent bush. ^[1]

• If you are interested in growing plants that are not available locally, you can order them online or ask a nursery to help you find them. There are many varieties of rosemary, each with slightly different properties. Some grow in tall and dense bushes, some tend to creep, some have purple or blue flowers, others have white flowers.
• You can also buy seedlings or small plants from a nursery if you don’t want to propagate from cuttings.

Remove leaves at the bottom 2.5 cm of the stem. Before planting rosemary, cut off the leaves at the bottom of the stem (about 2.5 cm). This part will be buried in the ground. ^[2]

• These leaves should be removed as they can cause the branches to rot.

Plant rosemary branches. After removing the leaves, you will plug the branch into a small pot containing a soil mixture of 2/3 coarse sand and 1/3 mud moss. Place the pot in a sunny spot, but not in direct sunlight. Water regularly and leave in a warm place until the branches take root. This takes about 3 weeks. ^[3]

• To facilitate the growth of the branches, you can place the whole pot in a plastic bag with a few holes punched in the top. This method can regulate the temperature, keep the plant warm and humid. ^[4]
• You can also dip the cut ends of rosemary stems in rooting powder to give the plant a head start.

Plant seedlings. Once the roots have formed, you can plant the plant in a pot or in an outdoor garden. Rosemary is adaptable to most soil conditions and has strong vitality. They can grow well in snow, limestone, high temperature, coastal areas and in all types of soil. However, rosemary will grow best in warm to hot and fairly dry climates. Choose a place that is relatively dry and gets full sun. ^[5]

• Decide whether to plant a potted plant or a shrub in the garden. You can also grow rosemary into a pleasingly scented hedge. In cold climates, it’s probably best to grow rosemary in a pot so you can move the plant as needed.
• Even if you’re planning to plant rosemary in the ground in your garden, it’s a good idea to plant the stems in a pot at first to help them take root and harden before you plant them outdoors. Choose an area with good drainage, as rosemary can suffer from root rot if grown in waterlogged soil. The more alkaline the soil, the more fragrant the rosemary will be. Add lime if the soil is too acidic. ^[6]