Thyme "German Winter"

Here’s what’s ahead:

• Getting Started

• Sowing

• Transplanting

• Location

• Care

• Harvest and Storage

• Enjoy

Getting Started

You can sow your thyme outside from the end of May. We find it best to sow it in bowls, so that you can separate the fine seeds more easily later. Use potting soil mixed with some sand.

Eventually, you will put the small plants outdoors, or simply in a pot. You can also keep thyme on a bright windowsill, but it definitely prefers a sunny, airy spot outdoors.

The most important information at a glance:

• Pre-culture distance: 1 cm

• Germination temperature: 16-20°C

• Germination time: 10-15 days

• Pre-culture: March - May

• Sowing outdoors: end of May

• Final plant distance: 25 cm

• Location: sunny

• Soil: permeable and poor in nutrients

• Pruning: in spring

Sowing

• Fill seed trays or other seed containers with a mixture of potting soil and sand.

• You can also build your own container. We like growing plants in old milk or egg cartons.

• Tear up the seed paper from your calendar, place the snippets face down on the soil 1 cm apart and press down lightly.

• Wet everything with a spray bottle. Keep the soil moist until germination.

• Cover seed trays with clear film/glass pane until germination to retain moisture.

• Remove foil/glass pane for a few minutes daily to prevent mould and remove the cover after germination.

Transplanting

• About 4-5 weeks after sowing, you should prick out the thyme seedlings. Don't wait too long, because the little plants form very deep roots early on, which makes them difficult to separate.

• Carefully lift them out of the seed tray with your pricking stick, shake off the soil a little and place them individually or in groups of about 4 plants in pots with fresh herbal soil.

• Make sure the pots have drainage holes to prevent waterlogging, and be sure not to plant the seedlings too deep.

• For growing in a pot: If you don't want to transplant your thyme into a bed, you can plant it in a large pot with a diameter of about 25 cm either directly when transplanting or after another 4 weeks. A drainage layer of gravel or broken pottery prevents water-logging.

• For growing in a bed: 4 weeks after transplanting, you can plant your plants outdoors. You should first loosen the soil, if necessary treat it with sand or gravel, and water a little after replanting.

• Final planting distance: 25 cm

Location

• Sunny and warm, airy

• Well-drained, dry, calcareous and nutrient-poor soil: Use nutrient-poor herb soil with some sand.

• Thyme likes it dry

• Don't plant too deep

• Good neighbours: sage, rosemary, wild strawberries

• Bad neighbours: basil, marjoram, mint, watercress

Care

• Water the bed only when it is very dry

• Water regularly and sparingly in the pot when the substrate has already dried slightly

• Fertilising is not necessary.

• Compost can be added to potted plants once a year.

Hibernation and pruning

As its name would indicate, the "German Winter" variety thyme is capable of handling freezing temperatures and can easily be overwintered if you pay attention to a few things:

• Cover with brushwood protection in the first winter.

• Overwinter potted plants in a bright and cool place in the stairwell or in a sheltered place outdoors. If necessary, place an insulating layer under the pot and cover it with fleece.

• Do not trim too aggressively in autumn – freshly exposed shoots are more sensitive to the cold and will not hold up as well during the frost.

Diseases and Pests

• Pests are very rare with thyme. In fact, this plant is brilliant as a bed neighbour in a mixed culture, as it can even repel pests from other plants, such as cabbage.

• If the nutrient supply is too high, aphids or other pests such as cicadas will occasionally appear, which you can spray with soapy water or nettle broth. Be on the lookout for soil that is poor in nutrients, and encourage beneficial insects in the garden that like to eat aphids (ladybugs, parasitic wasps, lacewings).

• Waterlogging can lead to mould and fungal diseases such as powdery mildew. Dispose of infested plant parts in your household waste.

Harvest and Storge

• Your thyme should bloom at the very least from June to July.

• It is best to harvest on dry days shortly before flowering and to only cut off whole shoots with sharp scissors or a knife so as to avoid damaging the old wood.

• If you want to dry out your thyme, hang them in bunches by the stems in an airy place. After drying, strip the leaves from the stalk and store in a screw-top jar.

Enjoy

• Thyme can be used fresh or dried as a scent, spice or medicinal herb.

• As a Mediterranean all-rounder, thyme goes perfectly with hearty dishes, soups and sauces.

• Thyme has also seen a special healing effect attributed to it relating to respiratory diseases.

• A warm thyme tea with honey can help if you have a persistent cough.

• In addition, it provides relief from inflammation in the mouth, indigestion, liver, and spleen.