Do you ever find yourself with all the ingredients for your recipe except the fresh herbs? Who hasn’t bought a bunch of fresh dill or rosemary, only to use a few sprigs and leave the rest to wither away and throw out? Sure, a jar of pesto sauce will do in a pinch, but there’s nothing like homemade pesto with fresh Genovese basil from your own garden.

Some of the tastiest summer dishes require fresh ingredients, like seasonal produce and fresh herbs.

1. Basil

What’s better than fresh basil for pesto, on pizza, in a strawberry salad, tomato sauce, or even a mojito with a twist? Starting basil from seed is super easy and fast, but even a fresh basil plant is less expensive than buying a package of fresh basil.

Just place your plant on a sunny windowsill and keep the soil moist. For a different flavor, plant Thai basil, the signature ingredient to any Thai recipe or for a new twist on marinades.

2. Mint

Mint is the perfect refreshing summer herb. Use it in a watermelon mint salad, mint tea, or mint lemonade. You can also make various fruit aguas frescas, like cucumber lime mint or a mint julep.

Mint is very easy to grow. The only downside is that it grows so quickly that it could easily take over your other plants, if you don’t set boundaries. It’s recommended to buy a young mint plant in a container because starting mint from seed is difficult.  Keep your mint by a sunny window and make sure the soil is always moist.

3. Parsley

Parsley is versatile and useful in so many recipes. Whether you’re using it in potato salad, tabbouleh, or making your own chimichurri dipping sauce, parsley is a must-have in the kitchen.  You can opt to start growing parsley from seed, but it will take a couple weeks for the seeds to germinate. If you don’t want to wait, start with a young plant.

On the bright side, parsley doesn’t require much maintenance or light, so it’s very easy upkeep.

4. Chives

Do you love the brightness of onions but want to avoid the possibility of an overpowering taste? Chives are ideal to add that subtle zing without using a full-blown onion.

Fortunately, they’re also very easy to grow! You can buy a young plant or pull up a bunch, roots and all, from an already-established plant, then plant it in a container of well-draining soil. Chives flourish in full sun, but you can also keep them in a place in your home where they get about 6 hours of sunlight a day.

5. Rosemary

If you’re not sure how green your thumb is yet, start with just one of your favorite and most-used herbs. Once you’re comfortable, you can add other herbs to the same container to save space, so your windowsill is a one-stop shop for your recipes

6. Oregano

Whether you’re making salad dressing, marinade, pizza sauce, garlic bread, or roasted veggies, oregano brings a warm and pleasantly bitter flavor with an earthy sweetness to your food. Frequently used in Mexican and Mediterranean cuisine, oregano contributes a richness to any dish.

Start oregano from seed in light, well-draining soil, watering only when the topsoil is dry to the touch. Make sure there’s a hole in the bottom of your container so you don’t waterlog the plant, and keep it in a sunny location.

The seeds should germinate in just a week and once the plant is established, it doesn’t take much upkeep at all!