How to Grow Extra Herbs for Yourself, Friends, and Maybe a Little Extra Income
A practical backyard guide to the herbs people most often grow, dry, bundle, replant, gift, and sometimes sell in small quantities, with ballpark seed costs, per-seed estimates, and national-average value ranges.
Why herbs keep showing up in grow-for-profit advice
- small space can still produce saleable or usable volume
- many herbs can be handled in more than one format
- culinary herbs have simpler buyer recognition than niche herbs
- input cost is low compared with many larger crops
What this page is really about
- kitchen replacement value first
- better use of herbs already earning space in the garden
- starter plants, bundles, dried herbs, or tea herbs as secondary outputs
- small-scale backyard economics, not inflated farm claims
What people on the internet are actually doing with these herbs
Fresh kitchen packs
Most beginner herb sellers start with familiar culinary herbs like basil, parsley, cilantro, dill, and chives because the use case is obvious and the buyer education burden is low.
Dried herbs
Thyme, oregano, mint, chamomile, rosemary, and lavender keep showing up because drying extends shelf life and reduces the pressure to move everything fresh.
Starter plants
Small herb starts are one of the easiest backyard formats because the product is easy to understand and the price point is usually low-friction.
Gift and neighbor formats
Potted herbs, tied bundles, tea herbs, and divided clumps keep coming up because they are simple to explain, simple to package, and manageable at backyard scale.
How to plant, grow, dry, and use them in the most practical ways
Best herbs for fresh packs
- basil
- parsley
- cilantro
- dill
- chives
Grow these in repeat sowings or multiple clumps so you can maintain steady cut volume instead of one oversized flush.
Best herbs for drying
- thyme
- oregano
- mint
- lavender
- chamomile
Harvest before plants get coarse, keep bundles light, and dry them in a low-humidity space with good airflow.
Best herbs for starter plants
- basil
- chives
- mint
- oregano
- thyme
These are some of the easiest herbs to move as small starts, divisions, or rooted extras without overcomplicating the format.
Best herbs for tea or bundles
- mint
- chamomile
- lavender
- thyme in blends
These are the herbs most often turned into tea bundles, dried blends, or simple giftable packs.
What usually makes the most business sense first
1. Replace your own grocery buys
Start with the herbs you already buy or regularly use. That is the fastest way to create real replacement value.
2. Test a second format
If basil is performing well, test extra starts. If thyme is performing well, dry a batch. If mint is expanding fast, move it into tea bundles.
3. Stay with familiar herbs
Most small growers get better results starting with herbs buyers already recognize and know how to use.
4. Let demand tell you what grows next
Watch what friends, neighbors, or local buyers actually ask for instead of building too far ahead of demand.
How people actually move extra herbs at small scale
Family and friends first
This is the lowest-friction path. Extra basil, mint, parsley starts, or a few tea bundles are easy to explain and easy to hand off without building a whole selling system around them.
Roadside table or porch pickup
Simple herb bundles or small starter plants can work here if the pricing is obvious and the format is clean. This is usually better for familiar herbs than unusual specialty herbs.
Farmers market
This works better when the herbs look consistent and the buyer can understand them fast. Fresh bunches, starts, and a few dried herb formats are usually easier to move than overly complicated products.
Casual repeat buyers
Sometimes the real opportunity is not a formal market at all. It is a few repeat people who know you grow good basil, mint, oregano, or starts and ask again when you have extras.