Want More Herbs for Free?

Herbs are pretty incredible little plants. They're so easy to grow, they give you tons of delicious leaves, and many of them come back year after year. Not to mention some of our favorite herbs can be propagated with very little effort.

Propagating plants is one of the most magical things you can do in the garden, and many herbs genuinely prefer to be started this way rather than by seed. 

All you have to do is cut from a mature plant and then sit back while the plant does its magic and grows new roots. After a couple weeks, ta-da! Free plants!

Let's first look at the best herbs to propagate, the two different propagation methods, and the supplies you'll need. Then, I'll walk you step by step through turning one plant you love into a hundred more.

The Best Herbs to Propagate

Perennial herbs in the Lamiaceae family (aka the mint plant family) propagate really well from cuttings. Rosemary, oregano, sage, thyme, lavender, and mint all produce roots fairly quickly when placed in water or sand.

There's one more herb in this family that propagates really well, though it's an annual herb (technically a tender perennial), and that's basil. There's even one type of basil (African blue basil) that can only be grown from rooted cuttings.

The 2 Different Methods to Propagate Herbs

The best method to use when propagating your herbs depends on the type of stems you're using and your personal preferences.

Herbs in the mint plant family are often called "woody" herbs. Unlike "soft" herbs like dill and cilantro, these herbs can form hard wood that makes them look and feel more like a small shrub. Typically, the longer a perennial herb has been growing, the woodier it'll be.

You can propagate from hard wood, which is firm and will snap if you bend it, but you'll get faster propagation from soft wood, which is often found at the tip of stems and can be bent without breaking.

If you're propagating woody, mature stems, it's best to root them in coarse sand or soil. They're less likely to grow roots in water than tender green stems.

Propagating herbs in water is the simpler, faster method. You'll likely have roots forming in just 1 to 2 weeks. The downside is that the resulting plants sometimes struggle to adjust to soil after being in water for so long. Propagating herbs in sand or soil takes longer (about a month), and you'll have to watch the cuttings closely. Overall, though, you'll end up with stronger, healthier plants. I've had lots of success starting herbs in sand as long as I was consistently paying attention to them.

Propagation Supplies

You'll need the following supplies based on your preferred rooting method:

• Herb cuttings - You can take cuttings from mature, healthy plants in your garden or a friend's garden (with their permission, of course). You can also root fresh organic stems from the grocery store
• A clean pair of scissors or pruners to cut herbs
• A dibber (or a chopstick, a butter knife, or the eraser end of a pencil) to make holes in the growing medium

To root herbs in water:

• a shallow cup, narrow-mouth jar, or clean spice shaker filled with fresh water
• a 6-12" container filled with organic potting mix and compost (once your cuttings have successfully rooted)

To root herbs in sand:

• a small container filled with coarse sand, like paver sand (available at any hardware store)
• rooting hormone or cinnamon to help with root formation

The container you choose for either method should have a drainage hole in the bottom to let water out. I personally like terracotta pots. You can put a piece of burlap or an unfolded coffee filter over the drainage hole so that your growing medium doesn't wash out.

All right, gather your supplies, and let's perform some plant magic!

Step One: Take Herb Cuttings

Select only the very best stems (they'll have the healthiest, freshest-looking leaves) to turn into more plants. Remember, you want soft cuttings about 4 to 6 inches long for the water method. Look for the spot where the stem transitions from soft to hard wood, and use your scissors or pruners to cut there, just above a leaf node. Cut the stem at a 45° angle. This opens up the stem's capillaries so that the cutting can absorb water better and grow new roots.

Step Two: Prepare the Cuttings for Propagation

Once you have your cuttings, gently strip the bottom third of the leaves from the stem. This gives you a nice, bare stem to place in the water and allows the plant to focus more on growing roots.

Your cuttings might look a little bare now, but don't worry. They'll grow new leaves soon enough.

Take the leaves you’ve stripped from your cuttings and either dry them or use them right away in your kitchen.

Step Three: Place Herb Cuttings in Water

Pop your freshly trimmed stems into a little jar or spice shaker filled with fresh water.

The trick is to keep the leaves out of the water. Only the stem should be submerged. Wet leaves can lead to mold or mildew, and your cutting will start to degrade instead of turning into a healthy plant. That's why I like to clean out an old spice shaker and use the large holes in the cap to hold the cuttings up and away from the water.

Step Four: Tend Your Cuttings

Place your cuttings somewhere that doesn't get too hot or cold, in a spot with filtered sunlight. I like to put them in my kitchen window.

Over the next 10 to 14 days, just keep an eye on your cuttings. Change out the water every couple of days so that it doesn't get cloudy. Remove any molded or yellowing leaves. There's usually at least one stem that falls into the water or that can't reach the water, so make sure to clean those out as soon as you see them struggling.

At the end of the second week, it's time to perform the big reveal. Say your favorite magician's phrase and pull up the cuttings. There should be nice, healthy roots waiting for you all along the bottom of the stem. Magic!

Step Five: Plant Your Rooted Cuttings

When your cuttings have formed at least 4 to 5 roots, it's time to re-introduce them to soil. I like to pot them up in a mix of compost and potting soil. I keep them in this pot near their newly rooted brothers and sisters until they're a bit more robust and ready to go out to the garden.

Use a dibber to make nice, large holes in the soil before gently placing your roots inside. Avoid disturbing those fragile little roots as much as possible. Give each plant a couple inches of space.

Water your new plants in well. Set the container in indirect or filtered light, and baby these plants over the next couple of weeks. They need time to adjust to life out of the water. If there's no chance of frost, you can move them outdoors to a semi-shaded area. Water your container regularly.

You'll soon have healthy new plants that you can transplant to your garden or pot up.

Step One: Prepare the Cuttings

Just as you did for rooting the herbs in water, you'll take a 4- to 6-inch-long cutting by trimming the stem at a 45° angle just above a leaf node. Remove the bottom leaves.

You can dip the angled tips in rooting hormone, if you have it. Otherwise, use some cinnamon. This will prevent the stems from rotting as they're trying to form roots.

Step Two: Place in Sand

Sand is a great medium for rooting herbs because it doesn't hold onto too much moisture. Plus, the large particle size allows the sand to shift easily to accommodate delicate new roots.

Moisten the sand first. Then, use a dibber or chopstick to dig a hole in the sand that's the depth of the cutting and at least twice the width. Avoid bending the stem as you place it in the sand. All of the leaves should be above the sand. Push the sand up against the cutting to support it as it starts to produce roots.

You can plant several cuttings in the same container.

Step Three: Keep Sand Moist

Sand will dry out quickly (that's what sand's meant to do), so it's your job to keep the sand nice and moist but not soaking wet. Spray it with water or run it under the tap. Put your cuttings in a spot where they'll receive bright but indirect light.

A potted cutting should form healthy new roots within 4 to 6 weeks. As soon as you see new growth, you can transplant your herbs to larger pots or containers filled with soil or your kitchen garden.

Tips to Keep Your New Herbs Happy

Once your baby herbs are putting on new leaves, give them at least another 4 to 6 weeks before you harvest from them. Start small; never harvest more than a third of an herb's leaves at once.

Give your herbs 4 to 8 hours of sunlight a day. Let the top inch of soil dry out before you give your herbs more water. Harvest frequently to keep your herbs healthy and productive.

That's All There Is to Propagating Plants

Fresh new herbs for your garden or windowsill are really that easy!

Here's the best part: you can keep taking cuttings from your plants and propagating them all over again. You can fill your garden and landscape with your favorite herbs. You can gift herbs to friends and neighbors. You can root herbs all winter long and have thriving plants ready to grow by spring. All for free!

See, I told you it was magical!