How to Grow Oregano Indoors: 9 Tips to Try
Are you wondering how to grow oregano indoors this year? You don’t have to grow this aromatic herb outdoors for bountiful harvests. In this article, plant expert Matt Dursum shows you the top tips for getting oregano to flourish indoors.
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Oregano (Origanum vulgare) is an ancient herb native to the rocky hillsides of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Cooks and healers have cherished its pungent aromatics and nutritional benefits for millennia. The Greek philosopher Hippocrates wrote about its healing properties in the 5th century BCE as respiratory tinctures.
It’s hard to find a kitchen or garden without it today. It has endless uses, from Greek and Italian classics to medicinal tinctures and teas. For us foodie gardeners, growing oregano is pretty much a necessity.
If you want access to fresh oregano in your kitchen or if you’re limited in space, try growing it indoors. By following the tips below, you’ll enjoy a bounty of flavorful foliage indoors.
Step 1: Select Where You’ll Grow It
The first step to grow oregano indoors is selecting the right space for it. As a Mediterranean herb, it prefers direct light or partial shade, well-drained soil, and warm temperatures. If you can recreate this environment in your home, you can grow it!
Find a warm space that stays between 65 and 75°F (18-24°C) during the growing season. Kitchens and rooms with plenty of bright, indirect light work well. It needs 6 to 8 hours of bright light to thrive.
Keep it away from drafty areas of your house or near spaces with too much heat. It tolerates dry air better than most houseplants. After it matures, try moving your plant around in its container to find your favorite growing space.
Step 2: Choose the Variety You Want to Grow
There are 45 species in the genus Origanum, including another popular culinary herb marjoram (Origanum majorana). The classic Greek and Italian varieties come from Origanum vulgare. Although it’s called Mexican oregano, Lippia graveolens is an entirely different plant.
Each variety is easy to grow, but there are some key differences. Some varieties are larger than others and will take up more space. Some varieties, such as ‘Kent Beauty’, are mostly grown for their ornamental flowers.
Choose the varieties you want based on their flavor profile and aromatics. If you have the space, try growing several varieties. There’s nothing better than having a variety of fresh herbs to choose from. Below are a few common varieties and their profiles.
Italian Oregano
Italian oregano is a hybrid between Greek varieties and marjoram. It’s grown for its sweet taste and the medicinal qualities of its essential oil. Try this variety for Italian sauces and tapas.
Greek Oregano
Greek oregano is the classic variety famously used in Greek dishes and to complement feta cheese. Its fuzzy dark green leaves pack a ton of flavor and aroma. Its small white flowers make delicious garnishes.
Hot and Spicy
Like its namesake, Origanum vulgare ‘Hot and Spicy’ is a hotter and spicier version of the classic Greek variety. It packs a punch, so use it in hardier dishes and even Mexican classics.
Ornamentals
Ornamental varieties of oregano such as ‘Aureum’, ‘Kent Beauty’, and ‘Kirigami’ produce big, beautiful flowers and foliage. They’re also edible but have a milder taste than culinary varieties.
Step 3: Start Seeds Indoors or Buy Nursery-Grown
If you’re like me, growing plants from seed is way more fun. Oregano grows easily by seed. In outdoor gardens, sowing directly in your garden two to four weeks after the last frost is usually the way to go. For growing indoors, you can buy nursery-grown oregano or start your seeds indoors.
Starting seeds indoors gives you more control over their growing media. It’s also way more fun than buying a starter. Below are the steps to starting your oregano seeds indoors.
Purchase Your Seeds
Buy your seeds from a reputable seed company. Choose seeds that are less than a year old and preferably organic. Try buying several varieties to add variety to your indoor herb collection.
Prepare Your Soil
Indoor oregano grows best in well-drained sandy or loamy potting blends. Standard organic potting mixes work well. The main thing to look for is good drainage and ingredients like horticultural sand or perlite.
Oregano isn’t too picky when it comes to pH or nutrition content in its soil. A neutral soil with a little organic material is sufficient.
Prepare Your Trays
Select growing trays and fill them with potting mix. Because oregano seeds are dust-like, you can simply add a pinch of seeds to the surface and tamp them down lightly. If you do cover the seeds, do so with a very thin layer of soil. Oregano needs light to germinate. Don’t bury your seeds, or they may not germinate.
Keep Your Soil Moist
With a spray bottle, keep your seed trays moist. Don’t let the soil dry out between waterings. Avoid over-watering and making the soil soggy.
Watch for Seedlings
As long as the soil is moist and the temperature is around 70°F (21°C), your seeds should germinate in 10 to 21 days. Move them near a bright window or grow lights immediately.
Transfer to Larger Containers
Once your seedlings mature and start growing leaves, they should be ready for transplanting. Wait until they have over three leaves. Give them a slight tug to see if their roots are established.
Carefully plant the oregano seedlings in your favorite containers to grow indoors. They should be larger than three or four inches. Fill the containers with soil and carefully place the baby plants in small holes. Cover the root ball with soil and add a little water.
Step 4: Perfect Your Watering Game
Oregano needs less water than your tropical houseplants but more than desert plants such as cacti or succulents. In its native habitat, water comes in short downpours of rain before drying out in the sun.
Give your plants a good watering until the soil is soaked. Soak the soil to the roots. Your seedlings will need watering more frequently. Once they’re mature, stick to about an inch a week.
Let the soil completely dry up before giving your plants another deep soaking. Use your finger to check for moisture. When your plants mature, they can handle long periods without water.
Step 5: Prune and Harvest Frequently
This herb grows fast and ferociously once it’s established. It will need plenty of pruning to keep it from taking up too much space and outgrowing its container. However, this shouldn’t be a problem if you love cooking!
Use clean pruners or your clean hands. Don’t be afraid to trim a lot of foliage back. It can handle trimmings almost to its crown. Your plant will sprout new growth right away.
Pruning also helps concentrate its flavors and aromas. The difference will be significant if you compare the leaves from frequently pruned plants with long, leggy growth. If you harvest too much, simply dry it and store it in glass jars.
Step 6: Don’t Fertilize
This Mediterranean herb thrives in poor, rocky soil, similar to the hills of Italy and Greece. In wine-growing regions, such as Provence, France, it shares the vine space with rosemary and thyme.
These dry regions have very poor soil with little organic material. That’s why fertilizing these small herbs isn’t necessary.
After your plants mature in their containers for over a year, add a little organic compost to the soil in spring. This will replenish the depleted nutrients and give your plant a little boost.
Step 7: Divide Your Plants
Oregano plants respond well division every couple of years. It allows the plants’ woody growth to regenerate and keeps them from overcrowding their containers.
Use a small spade and carefully dig into a small patch down to the roots. Remove the clump and plant it in a new container with new soil. Refill the hole with potting soil.
You should have new growth appear on both plants. This not only helps your plants but propagates your favorite varieties for your home, outdoor garden, or to give away.
Step 8: Try Growing with Companions
As mentioned above, wild oregano frequently shares the soil with other popular herbs. If you’ve used Herbes de Provence, you’re already familiar with these best friends.
Try growing companion herbs such as marjoram, sage, thyme, and rosemary. Even lavender will work if you can keep it healthy indoors.
This will give you the ultimate quiver of kitchen herbs to choose from. Most of these species thrive indoors in similar growing conditions.
Step 9: Watch for Disease
Oregano’s strong oils keep most pests at bay. The biggest issue you’ll have to watch for as an indoor gardener is root rot.
A small variety of soil-dwelling molds, fungi, and oomycetes occasionally infect soggy roots. When they do, they can ruin your plants.
If you notice stunted growth or droopy leaves that look like they’re dying, check the soil. You’ll have to replace your diseased plants if they’ve succumbed to this disease. The best way to avoid root rot is not over-watering your plants.
Key Takeaways
Oregano is a wonderful herb that will thrive indoors. Use its delicious and aromatic foliage in soups, salads, sauces, or with cheeses such as feta. Harvest as much as you can and dry the leftovers. Your oregano should last for several years.
