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• Hardy, compact, evergreen, perennial shrub (height, up to 30cm)
• Tiny flowers, highly attractive to bees and butterflies
• Easy to grow

Sowing Instructions

Sow: for best results, sow your thyme seeds under glass, in March or April, for planting out once the frosts have passed and the seedlings are large enough to handle.  Organic thyme seeds are tiny, so cover them with a very light layer of compost, and keep them warm and moist.  Harden off when seedlings are around 10cm in height and plant out in a position with full sun and light, well drained soil which is not too fertile (plants will lose their compact habit if the soil is too rich in nutrients).  Thyme is also suitable for container growing, just mix some grit or sharp sand into the compost to aid drainage.  

Aftercare: Water only when very dry and mulch with organic matter in the late autumn, to ensure roots are protected from severe frosts over the winter.

Harvest: sparingly in the first year, when the plant is young and still growing.  Thereafter, thyme can be harvested at any time of the year.  Use fresh, open freeze on a baking sheet, or dry by hanging a few branches in a warm dark place.

Usage:

Unlike many other herbs, thyme doesn’t lose its flavour when cooked over long periods.  For that reason, it is highly suitable for use in stews and casseroles.  It is delicious used, fresh or dried, in herb butters, and for flavouring oils and vinegars.  Its fragrant flowers and leaves can also be scattered sparingly over summer salads and mixed into homemade pot-pourri.  Thyme, of course, has many medicinal uses as well.

herb seeds - thyme seeds - culinary herb seeds uk