How often should you water thyme?
As with all Mediterranean herbs, the same applies to thyme: Water only carefully and with a sense of proportion! Too much moisture and especially waterlogging, the plant acknowledges with rotting roots and ultimately with their death. Strictly speaking, planted thyme does not need to be watered at all - its deep-reaching and widely branched roots are self-sufficient even in dry periods. You can only water your thyme a little occasionally in very hot summer months, when the soil is already threatening to dry out. Potted thyme, on the other hand, needs regular watering. It is best to water the plant whenever the top layer of soil in the pot is already dry.
also read
- Plant thyme properly - this is how it can be grown in the garden and on the balcony
- Pour thyme - but with a sense of proportion
- Preserving thyme and storing it properly
When and with what should you fertilize thyme?
You should also be very careful when it comes to fertilizing - planted garden thyme basically does not need any fertilizer, apart from some compost and / or lime at the beginning of the growing season. Potted thyme is supplied with diluted complete fertilizer about every six to eight weeks. Make sure, however, not to fertilize the plants - regardless of whether they are in pots or in the garden - from July onwards.
Do you have to cut thyme?
The subshrub thyme lignifies with increasing age - which in turn leads to balding, because fresh shoots no longer grow out of the woody parts of the plant. For this reason, thyme should be pruned twice a year. The strong shape cut is best done in spring, but you should never cut into the old wood - instead, leave about two to three centimeters of green wood. Further pruning takes place in the course of the harvest.
My thyme looks sickly - what could it be and what should I do about it?
Very often it is complained that thyme turns brown and dies after a while - the plant looks more or less dried up. Don't make the mistake of watering the supposedly dried up thyme! Most of the time the plant dies due to waterlogging, whereby the roots rot and can no longer supply the above-ground parts of the plant with sufficient water. In this case, you can often save your thyme by moving it to a new pot with fresh substrate (or digging it up again in the garden and working the soil accordingly, e.g. mixing it with sand and potsherds). A root cut should be made, ie you cut off the rotting roots with the help of a sharp, clean knife. Gray mold often occurs in permanent wetness. In the house orThyme overwintered in the greenhouse, on the other hand, often has to struggle with spider mites - these can be prevented by sufficient humidity.
Hibernate thyme properly
The best way to overwinter your thyme depends specifically on the variety - some thyme varieties are hardy, while others are not. For example, you can leave real thyme in the garden in winter and cover it with brushwood or protective mats if necessary, while more sensitive species should overwinter under cold house conditions.
Tips & Tricks
Flowering thyme attracts bees, bumblebees and butterflies. With thyme, lavender and all kinds of wild herbs and flowers you can create a great bee pasture in your garden.
