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Keeping herbs alive on a kitchen sill
Mint, basil, coriander and curry leaf by the kitchen window: what they need, and why most die within a month.
Kitchen herbs are the plants people most want and most often lose. The reasons are nearly always the same three.
They need more light than a kitchen usually has
Herbs want four to six hours of sun. A kitchen window above a sink, especially a north-facing one, rarely gives that. If you have a balcony, grow them there and bring cuttings in. If the sill is all you have, choose mint and curry leaf, which cope with less, over basil and coriander, which do not.
Cut them properly
Picking a leaf here and there makes a leggy, bare plant. Cut whole stems back above a pair of leaves and the plant branches from that point. The more you cut mint and basil, the bushier they get. Coriander is different: it runs to seed quickly in Indian heat, so sow more every few weeks rather than expecting one pot to last.
Water at the base, not over the leaves
Wet leaves in a humid kitchen invite mildew. Water the soil, in the morning if you can, and let the surface dry between waterings. Mint is the exception and likes to stay damp.
Keep mint on its own
Mint will take over any pot it shares. Give it a pot to itself and it will reward you for years.
One practical note: herbs sold in supermarkets are grown for a short shelf life and are often several seedlings crammed together. A nursery-grown plant in a single pot will outlive them many times over.
Last reviewed October 2026.
