Herb growers 'can benefit from a greenhouse'

18:04:20 21st April 2008

Those gardening enthusiasts who are keen to nurture some of the more delicate culinary herbs could certainly benefit from a greenhouse, one national publication has stated.

Writing in the Independent, commentator Anna Pavord explains that herbs such as basil can struggle in the UK climate due to the lack of warmth available.

She reminds readers that, while intimately associated with Mediterranean cuisine in the minds of many, basil is in fact of eastern origins in India and Thailand.

"I've tried growing basil in three different ways: in the open ground, in the cold frame and on the kitchen windowsill. The last has been the best for me, but that's because I don't have a greenhouse or a polytunnel," she explains.

Meanwhile, basil also features in the gardening diary of amateur horticulturalist Alice Miles, who claims that an electronic record can be the most efficient way of tracking what plants have been sown at what point.