Yes, the growing season has been lovely. But all good things must come to an end. And it looks like fall is fast approaching. It feels as if winter is just around the corner. So what does a good herb gardener do right about now?

No, you don't sit down and cry, lamenting about a lost season. This is the time you can spring into action, harvesting the herbs you have, preserving them for the long winter -- and transplanting those you can to keep them growing next year as well.

It may sound like work, but keep in mind that these herbs have provided you with an incredible amount of joy this spring and summer. And they're about to provide you with more flavorful meals during the cold winter months. And some of these herbs may just help you avoid some of the toughest germs, and colds going around this winter.

Besides, you know darn well this really isn't work -- it's a labor of love.

If you're planting or even transplanting seedlings outside, the best method I've found is to dig the hole, adding just a "dash" of compost and bone meal for drainage as well as extra nutrients.

You'll discover as you grow a larger variety of herbs that many herbs grow best in an alkaline soil. Knowing this, you may want to add a tablespoon or two of agricultural lime. This helps the roots to absorb nutrients more efficiently. All of this, gets mixed into the soil in the hole before putting the herb in.

You'll discover too that even though your herbs are eventually destined to be part of an outdoor garden, you'll want to start them indoors. Some herbs just seem to get a much healthier start when begun inside. Some of the plants you may want to start inside include basil, borage, marjoram, oregano, chamomile, catnip, sorrel and thyme.

Simply place the seeds in the flats containing well-drained, airy soil with lots of organic matter. Borage and sorrel, though, would rather be in soil that is most and rich.

When your seedlings are about four inches tall and the weather is warm, you're ready to "introduce" them to the outside environment. As strange as this may sound, it is very necessary. It's a step many beginning gardeners fail to do, simply because they don't know about it.

Introducing these plants gradually to the out of doors is called hardening off". This process should not begin in earnest until the overnight temperatures rise to a dependable 50 degrees or more.

Also, ensure that the plants you're "hardening off" are placed in sturdy containers with moist soil. Start the process simply by placing the flats outside starting at 9 a.m. Leave them here for several hours.

Remember that you are dealing with delicate seedlings. Don't take them out on windy days. These guys are small; even a light gust may knock the pots off the deck or patio.

The potential for broken stems in this situation is extremely real. If any of your plants, by the way have any lids or cellophane coverings, by all means, remove them before you take them out. One the first day be especially vigilante that the soil doesn't dry out or the leaves don't droop.

Repeat this process for the next five or six days. Every day increase the amount of time the seedlings spend outdoors. The only exception to this is the unexpected, wild fluctuations of temperature as sometimes happens during the spring.

If the temperature varies more than 15 degrees from one day to the next in either direction -- warmer or colder -- then shorten the seedlings exposure outside. Basically, what you're doing is acclimatizing your plants to the environment.

Don't place the herbs out if it is extremely rainy or excessively hot. The process won't be ruined when they're kept in for a day or so.

Do this for about five days. After that your plants should be ready to be planted outdoors.

Alternatives to hardening off.

Some herbalists prefer to use other methods than the hardening off to prepare the seedlings for the outdoor garden. One method is a low-water approach.

In this method, you don't place the plants outside, you leave them indoors, but you decrease the watering of them in increments. Each time, allow the soil to dry out a little more than the last time. Do this for two to three weeks.

Eventually you'll only water them when they begin to droop. Once they're to this point, they're ready for the outside world.

Propagating new plants.

You've planted your herbs, they all seem to be doing quite nicely thank you. But now, you'd really like to take that next step. Propagating new plants.

There are three main methods you can do this. You can create more plants through dividing the roots of the existing plants, by taking cuttings of the herbs in your gardens or through a method called healing in or layering.

Root division.

This is a simple approach to creating more herbs. With a spade or shovel, work the roots from a clump of the densely growing herbs. Taking this grouping out of the ground, separate the plants starting at the roots. You want to do this rather carefully.

Once separated you can place one of the groupings back in the original spot. The other group or groups may be planted anywhere you like.

Creating herbs from cuttings.

This is another straightforward approach to propagating herbs. In either the spring or the fall, you'll take a long, woody shoot from the plant of your choosing. Cut the shoot at an angle close the grand.

Remove the leaves from the very bottom of this cutting. Coating it with a rooting powder, you'll pot it in a light soil mix. Water this well.

This was a peak inside of this great book called secrets of successful herb gardening.