Eating Garden

How to Grow Rosemary

Salvia rosmarinus

A woody evergreen herb that likes strong sun, sharp drainage and less water than most kitchen herbs.

At a glance

  • Difficulty

    Takes some care

  • Sunlight

    Full sun

    6 hours of sun a day

  • Water

    Not thirsty

  • Growing in a pot

    Suitable for pots

More about this plant

Start with a young plant or rooted cutting, give rosemary full sun and let the soil dry between waterings. In cold winters, keep it in a pot and bring it inside before frost.

  • Comes back each year.
  • Can grow in raised beds, indoors, the open ground.
  • Fine in a small space.

Optional local dates

Planting dates where you live

The growing guide above works anywhere. This section adds local frost dates when we have them.

Optional local dates

Get planting dates for where you live

Save a city or a U.S. ZIP so we can turn local frost records into useful dates. Every crop guide still works without this.

A U.S. ZIP uses official NOAA frost records. Other countries use weather-station records, or a climate reconstruction where stations are missing. Coordinates are used once and not stored. We save only a place label and climate summary in a private browser cookie. You can clear it anytime.

Helpful gardening guides

When to plant

Match these relative steps to your local seasons. Where frost applies, use the last freezing night in spring and the first in fall. In frost-free climates, follow trusted local seasonal guidance.

  • Plant out 0 to 2 weeks after your last spring frostMove a young plant outside after frost danger has passed. In cold regions, keep it in a pot for easy winter shelter.

What you need

  • How to start itFrom a young plantYou can start it indoors first.

Step by step

  1. Begin with a young plantRosemary seed is slow. A nursery plant or rooted cutting gives a faster, more reliable start.
  2. Choose the sunniest placeGive at least six hours of direct sun and shelter from cold winter wind.
  3. Make drainage the priorityUse a pot with a hole, a raised bed or light soil that never stays soggy.
  4. Water only after dryingSoak the root ball, let extra water leave and wait until the soil dries well before the next drink.
  5. Shelter before frostIn cold regions, bring a potted plant into a cool, sunny place before frost.
  6. Clip green sprigsHarvest small amounts through the season and use the cuts to keep the plant compact.

Common mistakes

  • Watering on a fixed scheduleRosemary needs the soil to dry between drinks. Check the soil instead of the calendar.
  • Planting in heavy wet groundPoor drainage causes root rot. Use a pot, raised bed or mounded site if water lingers.
  • Digging up a large plant each fallRosemary can resent transplanting. In a cold climate, keep it in a pot from the start.

Water

Not thirsty

Water deeply, then let the soil dry well before watering again. Established plants tolerate drought better than wet roots.

  • Too dry
  • About right
  • Too wet
  • If it goes dryPuts up with dry groundNeedles turn dry and brittle and tips die back.
  • If it stays wetRots quickly in wet groundYellowing, brown tips, weak growth and root rot are common when soil stays wet.

Looking after it

  • FeedingRarely needs feedingFeed only if growth is pale or weak and a soil or potting-mix check shows a need. A light spring feeding is enough for most plants.
  • PruningNeeds pruningClip sprigs through the growing season. Light pruning keeps the woody plant dense, but avoid cutting all green growth away at once.
  • MulchKeep the crown open and dry. Use gravel or a very thin dry mulch instead of a deep wet layer.

Harvest

You will know it is ready when: Harvest once the plant has several healthy green branches and enough growth to leave most of the plant intact.

Clip tender green sprigs as needed. Cut above a leafy joint so the branch can make new side growth.

  • Keeping itUse fresh sprigs soon, or dry the leaves and store them in a sealed container away from heat and light.

Is this right for you?

A sunny, dry climate with mild winters. Rosemary is reliably perennial mainly in zone 8 and warmer; cultivar and shelter still matter.

  • LightFull sunAbout 6 hours of direct sun a day.
  • ShadeCopes with a little shade
  • SeasonA warm season cropUsually grown in spring or summer.
  • FrostSurvives a light frost
  • HeatLoves heat
  • Hardiness zonesZones 8a to 10bZones describe winter cold only. They do not say when to plant.

Soil

  • Soil pH6.0 to 7.0A cheap test kit from a garden centre will tell you yours.
  • Soil it likesSandy, Loam, Chalky
  • DrainageNeeds fast drainage
  • RichnessHappy in poor ground

Use light soil or potting mix that drains quickly. A raised or slightly mounded bed helps where the ground stays wet.

Test the soil before adding lime or fertilizer. Rosemary seldom needs feeding when growth is healthy.

The year at a glance

Measured from your last spring frost, because seasons differ from garden to garden. In frost-free climates, use trusted local seasonal guidance alongside these relative steps.

  1. Plant out

    0 to 2 weeks after your last spring frost

Questions people ask

Can rosemary survive winter outside?

It is most reliable in zone 8 and warmer. In colder places, grow it in a pot and shelter it before frost.

Why is my rosemary turning brown?

Check drainage first. Wet roots cause many indoor and outdoor rosemary problems, even when the tips look dry.

Can rosemary grow indoors?

Yes, if it has very bright light, cool air and soil that dries well between waterings.

When can I harvest rosemary?

Clip green sprigs whenever the plant is large enough that most healthy growth remains.

Also filed under: Herbs

Where this came from

Advice varies with your climate and variety. Check the sources behind each section.

Sources & review dates
Planting
University of Illinois Extension, Rosemary · checked 2026-09-15
Timing
University of Illinois Extension, Rosemary · checked 2026-09-15
Looking after it
University of Illinois Extension, Rosemary · checked 2026-09-15
Harvest
University of Illinois Extension, Rosemary · checked 2026-09-15
Step by step
University of Florida IFAS Extension, Rosemary · checked 2026-09-15
Questions people ask
University of Illinois Extension, Rosemary · checked 2026-09-15
Back to the essentials ↑