wrote:

Hey folks:

I'm going to grow herbs for the first time this year; I have focused on
veggies until now. I'm planning to do cilantro, regular basil, and
potentially hot peppers (jalapenos or habernos). I live in the foothills of
Boulder, Colorado. The soil here is crap (50% rock) so I've dug some pits
that I'll fill with soil (plus other goodies like manure, etc.) that I have
bought at the store. I am thinking of putting seeds in the ground in a few
weeks.




For the hot peppers, concentrate on the jalapenos. Habaneros take a long
time to mature and I generally start my plants in January for a
September crop. Jalapenos are quicker. Rather than starting them
directly from seeds, start the seeds indoors a few weeks before you are
going to set them out. They'll get a head start and the large plants are
much easier to distinguish from the weeds in the garden. No thinning is
required since you set the plants out at the desired spacing.