How to Propagate Thyme

 

 

 

UPDATE 2018 – HERBS WORKSHOPS IN LIQUID and SOIL BASED

 

 

2016 – SOIL BASED

Ms. Erin Lee started with 2 pots of thyme 🙂

Like many of us in Singapore, Thyme is a difficult herb to cultivate in our humid weather. More times than not, they died very quickly. Erin Lee said she failed many times too. But she kept on trying and finally she learned how to propagate thyme and grew them very well. 🙂

 

 

From 2 pots, her thyme expanded to 14 pots of healthy Thyme, which she harvested often for cooking or packed for the freezer.

I can just imagine the scent of fresh herbs along this corridor!

 

 

ERIN LEE’s AERIAL ROOTING

 

STEP 1 – Cut Thyme stems that showed aerial roots

 

 

STEP 2 – Plant roots side into pre-moist soil

 

 

 

STEP 3 – Place pot in a shaded cool environment until new shoots grow

 

 

TIP – Maximum 1 hour of morning sun for just planted seedlings

 

 

3 days after being separated from the parent plant. New stem look liked its dying

 

A sign of recovery is when new leaves showed.

 

Erin Lee said as long as we see new young leaves on the stem, that is the sign that they are recovering and with care, this herb will continue to thrive. After 3 to 4 weeks, a full recovery sign is when the newly planted herb has more standing upright stems.

 

Thyme can grow in a sprawling manner.

 

 

To keep thyme growing well, pruning was done often. Unused herbs could be frozen.

 

 

 

FROM SEEDS 

Not only from aerial roots propagation, we can also start thyme from seeds. Here were tips from Ms. Anupriya in 2016 –

 

Due to high humidity in Singapore, germinating thyme can be quite challenging, however “not impossible” according to Anupriya.

Her soil is a mixture of Aromax soil with homemade compost and lots of crushed eggshells.

She mist spray her soil once every 2 – 3 days and a deep watering soak (see how to in the rosemary post) for her pot once a week.

Her thyme seedlings enjoyed 2 hours of morning sun every day and about 70% of her seedlings survived.

 

 

PROPAGATE IN WATER

 

The easiest cutting to root would be from living plants.

However, if this is not available, we can use store-bought thyme.

 

Rooting in Water

To root a cutting, simply chose thicker woody stems in the pack, trimmed away lower leaves before setting it in a netcup similar to this plant. Only 1 cm of the root is submerged in water for roots to show after 4 – 10 days in water. Some cuttings may take longer to root.

 

 

In netcup and sponge method, access to stagnant water in the reservoir is totally sealed. Thus, there is zero mosquitoes breeding risk.

 

 

2018 – HYDRO THYME (KRATKY method )

 

Having failed many times in soil, from seeds or aerial rooting, we finally succeeded in growing this beautiful herb in KRATKY (non-circulating) hydroponic method.

WORKSHOPS are available to learn how to grow this way.

Learn how to turn a rooted cutting into a mini-bush!

 

 

 

Rooted Thyme may be available for sale. 

 

 

HYDRO Thyme can be transplanted to soil

 

 

 

 

Cooking with Thyme –

Having fresh thyme that we can harvest as needed, is wonderful. The scent of this herb is not heavy in roasts but it does add an extra aroma, and goes very well with lemon, garlic and butter!

 

 

I love my fresh herbs garden along this windows. What made them special for us is that they are all “potted” in recyclable materials.

 

 

 

 

Finally  we can harvest as much thyme as we need, whenever we like to!