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Have you noticed how fine days alternate with really foul ones? On fine days it is pleasant to saunter round the herb garden, collecting a bouquet garni as you go, but on foul days, somehow the will isn't there!

That is where a trough of herbs, right by the kitchen door, is one of the cook's best friends! It’s a straightforward and quite speedy procedure to set one up. Find a good-sized trough, make up some compost and dig up or buy in some pots of your favourite herbs and the task is well under way.

CONTAINERS
To accommodate a reasonable number and range of herbs and to make an enduring feature, a good sized container with a depth of at least 9 inches 9 ( 25 cm) is a must if you want to grow the larger herbs. Old sinks are traditional, about the right dimensions and the surface can be made more appealing if necessary. Wooden or concrete troughs are good too, there are plenty of modern designs to choose from. Just make sure there is sufficient depth. Check that it has a drainage outlet and when siting it, try to ensure that the drainage hole is at the lowest level. Place the trough in position before you fill it, to save your back! And choose a spot that is near the house door, so that it is convenient when you wish to harvest herbs. Place a layer of crocks in the bottom, covering the drainage outlet with a few curved pieces to prevent clogging.

COMPOST
A loam-based compost is recommended for troughs, something like a John Innis. It's simple to make up your own using about 7 parts of decent garden loam (which has been enriched with a proportion of garden compost) to 2 parts of grit or sand and 2 parts of organic material - a peat-free organic compost is ideal. To this should be added a handful or two of concentrated nutrients, say an organic concentrate, pelleted chicken manure, etc. Follow instructions on the packaging for optimum results. Mix the lot together in a wheelbarrow, for example, and then tip into the trough. Water well and allow to drain while you assemble the plants.

HERBS
It's important to choose herbs that you enjoy cooking with. Most people will need a good clump of parsley, curled or flat leaf or both, and chives. I would include French tarragon as it is less easily available in the shops, it's so much better fresh, and is such a versatile herb. Thymes, both traditional and lemon-scented, are a valuable addition, and oregano would be hard to do without. Three or four other herbs appear regularly in my kitchen: coriander, rosemary, garlic and mint. I germinate coriander in seed-trays and pot on, so from time to time, I would squeeze a pot of coriander into an existing container at my back door and use it until it needs replacing. Rosemary deserves a nice pot all to itself, or maybe there is a small bed at the foot of the exterior wall where it can soak up the sun. Garlic really needs a bed or a trough to itself, though one of the perennial garlics such as rocambole will produce garlicky leaves and bulbils over a long season. Mint runs so vigorously that it is better isolated in a container of its own, a large pot, half barrel or sink would be fine. You may have other favourites - what about some sage or marjoram or savory? How about planting two troughs? And another for salads such as sorrel, rocket, purslane, marigold and cut-and-come again lettuce?

Once the herbs are selected, knock them out of their pots, scoop out a similar sized ball of soil and set them into place. Arrange the herbs so that thymes and oreganos are near the perimeter as they prefer drier conditions, and parsley, tarragon etc nearer the centre. Check the finished soil level is just a little below the top of the trough for ease of watering, and do not plant the herbs deeper than their original depth.

All that needs to be done now is to water the herbs in and wait for the first clippings to use in the kitchen. Herbs that are regularly used, will respond by sending up new shoots or branches, becoming more clumpy and bushy. An occasional top-dressing with compost and a little organic concentrate is all that is needed to keep them in good heart for some years. When the trough appears to be getting overcrowded, clumps may be lifted out and subdivided. A healthy portion can then be replanted with some fresh compost to give renewed vigour.

So with a herb trough, you have a decorative feature for the garden, a source of pleasure with its contrasting colours and textures and scents and, with its all-year-round harvest of fresh organic herbs, an asset to your kitchen.

Planting a herb trough| Compost heaps, seakale and rhubarb | Harvesting, drying and storage | Extending the season for fresh herbs | Autumn Kitchen Garden | Winter herbs | February sowing | Soil Preparation | April Kitchen Garden