13 Herbs that Grow from Cuttings (Buy Once & Regrow Forever)

Last Updated on October 31, 2021 by Phil

Herbs are a great way to start an edible garden. They’re perfect for cooking and you don’t need a lot of space. Best of all you can buy them once and regrow them indefinitely from cuttings and other propagation techniques.

Below are some of the best herbs you can grow and regrow from the current plant. This saves you money since you can make you own food and keep regrowing them.

Herbs that Grow from Cuttings

Rosemary

Rosemary is one of the most popular herbs because it is used to flavor meats on the roast or the grill. It works amazingly well with steak, roast beef and pork chops.

At the same time, you can enjoy its lovely flavor with poultry and vegetables as well.

These perennial shrubs can grow from between 3 to 6 feet high. You can grow them outside as well as in your herb garden.

The easiest way to regrow more rosemary if you need to propagate them is via cuttings. You can likewise start from seeds but the process if very time consuming.

Here’s how to regrow rosemary from cuttings:

Cut off shoots that don’t have flowers. You want at least 3 inches but don’t need more than 6 inches.
Remove the lower leaves.
Place the cutting is water and allow it to root. This can take between 1 to 2 months.
You can use a small glass or even a taller shot glass.

Sage

Sage is a common herb that comes from the evergreen shrub. Because of the shape of its leaves it looks more like a foliage plant or the leaves of a flower than it does an herb.

Nevertheless, it is fragrant and often used with foods.

Growing more sage at home via cuttings is quite easy.

All you need is to cut off a stem that’s a few inches long.
Remove the lower leaves that will get submerged in water.
Place the cutting in water and allow to root.

Basil

Basil if a favorite kitchen herb that’s used either fresh or dried. With the latter, you’ll often see them bottled in containers and sold in supermarkets or specialty stores.

The good news is, you can grow your own and use them fresh. Basil is perfect for salads, meats and fish.

Basil is also what you see in margherita pizza.

To propagate basil from cuttings, you’ll need to

Cut them from just below the leaf node. Take stems that are about 4 to 5 inches long so they’re long enough to stay above the glass.
Keep the cuttings in water and replace the water as it gets dirty.
Also make sure to place the glass where they’re enough sunlight as it needs a warm, sunny space to grow.

Thyme

Thyme is another fragrant herb that is commonly used to flavor food. These are low growing perennials that get to about 6 to 12 inches all.

They are green and gray in color. And, they have woody stems.

To regrow thyme from cuttings, you can cut use a clean pair of scissors to snip off about 3 to 4 inch shoots. You’ll likewise be propagating them in water.

As such, to save on space, you can use the same glass for both thyme and rosemary cuttings.

Bee Balm

Bee Balm is unique much like lavender below in that they have flowers. In most cases, when we think of herbs, we think of small, green, leafy plants.

But, that’s not the case here.

Bee balm belongs to the mint family. As such, it is aromatic as well. In fact, it is known for its strong scent. It is used for salads, teas, and even medicinal purposes.

If you grow them in the garden, you’ll be happy to know that they attract butterflies as well.

Like other others on the list, bee balm is easy to propagate via cuttings. Here’s how.

Take a 6 inch cutting. The best time to do this is during spring

Remove the lower leaves as they’ll be submerged into the water

Place the cutting in water and allow to root. Change water regular to keep it from getting murky.

Once some roots start growing, you can move them into soil.

Lavender

Lavender is best known for its beautiful purple color. Although, there are a few other hues available as well.

In terms of products, they’re most often used in essential oils, fragrances and as scents in all sorts of cosmetic and beauty products.

To regrow lavender:

Take a few non-flowering shoots. Pick those with woody lower stems but are soft and green on the upper portion.
Remove the bottom leaves.
Dip the ends in rooting hormone. You can rub it on like you would with dry rub on foods.
Fill a small container with potting mix.
Plant the cuttings into the soil.

Mint

Mint is well-known because it is used in different commercial products as flavoring including gums and candy.

In some cases, you’ll also see it used with food like for lamb or lamb chops.

Of the many varieties of mint, you’re probably most familiar with peppermint and spearmint. Both have refreshing flavors and are used for different things from gum all the way to essential oils and other fragrances.

Note that mint is invasive in the garden. This means it is very easy to grow. And, is spreads quickly.

As such, you may need to control it to keep it from overrunning the plants nearby.

To propagate:

Take a cutting that’s just below the leaf node.
Place the cutting into a small glass of water. You can also use a plastic cut if you wish. Although something transparent works better so you can watch the progress of the roots.
After a few weeks, you’ll see roots developing.
Once roots are there, move the cuttings to a small pot with soil.

Fennel

Fennel is something you either love or hate. I remember not liking it as a kid so my mom would mix it with my favorite foods.

This forced me to eat them in order to eat my favorite dishes. The strategy was sly. But, it worked.

Fennel are a bit different since you’ll be removing stalks instead of using the small stems or shoots when propagating.

Once you’ve cut off the stalks, take the bulb and place it in water. You want to let the entire bulb be submerged.
Keep the bowl near a window where the bulb can receive lots of sunlight.
After a while, you’ll see new shoots start to grow again.

Oregano

Oregano is a small evergreen shrub with lovely oval shaped foliage. It is another popular cooking herb. It is heavily used in Italian cuisine.

To grow oregano, make sure it gets a lot of sunlight. You can keep in indoors, in containers or in the garden.

To propagate:

Take a 3 to 4 inch cutting just below the mode.
Place the cutting in water making sure that at least one node is underwater. The nodes are where the roots will sprout from.
It will take anywhere from 7 to 15 days to start seeing roots.
Once the roots are a bit longer, you can move the plant to soil.

Lemon Balm

Lemon balm are not related to lemons or lemon trees. Instead, they’re another member of the mint family.

However, they produce a mild lemon scent, which is how it gets its name.

You’ve probably noticed that there are many different species of mint, each having distinct characteristics. But, the one thing you want to be careful with mint is that they’re very invasive.

So, do take measures to controlled them if you’re growing them with other plants or in the garden.

You can propagate lemon balm in water or soil. Water tends to help them root faster. And, offers a higher success rate. This is why when possible people propagate plants in water more than soil.

To do so, take a 3 to 4 inch cutting.
As always, remove the lower leaves but leave the top ones that won’t get submerged in soil and water.
You can them plant the cuttings in soil or place them in water to roo.

Parsley

Parsley is something I got used to as a kid growing up. That’s because it was my grandpa’s favorite herb. This small, leafy plant is actually a biennial. That is, it lifespan lasts for 2 gardening seasons, then die.

Thus, it is a good idea to grow many of them then regrow them so you don’t run out.

Like other herbs, parsley are aromatic. And, they go well with food too.

To propagate parsley via cuttings.

Take 3 to 4 inch cuttings. Like pruning, never cut off all the shoots. You want to leave some. Besides you only need a few to shoots to regrow them.
Place the cuttings in a small glass of water.
Keep this glass near a window so its received ample sunlight. Ideally, the spot is likewise warm and humid.
Once the cuttings root in water, plant them into soil and watch them grow.

Marjoram

Marjoram is not as popular as other herbs. Thus, you may or may not have tried them.

This perennial herb is a member of the mint family. It can be used dried or fresh when cooking. They are enjoyed for their aroma and slightly bitter flavor which can be used to cut through too much sweet or savory.

Propagating marjoram from cuttings is very similar to that of rosemary. You’ll want to cut off a few of them making sure you have at least 3 to 6 inch long stems.

Then, dip in water to allow them to root.

Once they’ve rooted, you can move them to soil.

Chives

Chopped chives are something you’ll hear TV chefs use often when they’re cooking in the kitchen. These are relatives on onions and garlic. Although, they’re closer to the former than the latter.

Chives are best used fresh. And, they’re mostly for garnishing purposes.

When grown, chives look like grass that’s standing upright, much like how wheatgrass looks.

Unfortunately, chives won’t grow from cuttings. Instead, you’ll need to grow them form the bulb.