The best way to keep a little bit of your garden going over winter is with herbs, many of which can be dug up and transplanted from outdoors or started new to transplant outside in the spring. The most important thing you’ll need to start is good sunlight during the short days of winter. If, like me, you have almost no good south facing windows, a grow light can supplement the natural light from a less sunny spot.
Beyond ample light, you’ll need to know which plants can or should be transplanted. There are three types:
Hardy Perennial Herbs left outdoors that will come back after winter in our zone (USDA Zone 5)
Oregano, lavender, sage, thyme
Vulnerable Perennial Herbs that have to be brought indoors over winter but can be replanted outside in spring.
Rosemary, lemon grass
Annual Herbs that only last one season.
Basil, cilantro, parsley, dill
Unless you really want a specific herb over winter, you may prefer to leave the hardy plants in the ground for next spring. Certainly digging up the annual herbs at the end of their life cycle doesn’t make much sense, so if you want a basil plant over winter, I would recommend starting a new one, from seed or young plant, indoors. Once you’ve decided which herbs you want indoors, there are a few additional factors you’ll need to consider.
Timing: For plants like rosemary, that are green all year long, you will want to wait until the average overnight temperatures are consistently hitting the mid to low 30s.
Digging: Dig the plant up including as many of the roots as possible. Shake any excess soil off the root and repot into a container with fresh potting mix.
Location: Wherever you have the most sunlight.
Written by Matt Friauf, Nourish Farm and Facilities Coordinator