Thyme

Meet thyme, the small grey-green plant that looks as if it should struggle in Dubai and mostly does not. Its leaves are tiny, its stems wiry and woody, and the smell released by a brush of the hand is stronger than its size suggests.

Its character is stoic, with one weak spot. Sun, heat and thin soil suit it, as a native of dry, stony Mediterranean coasts, but wet roots do not. The surest way to shorten a thyme's life is to keep its soil soggy.

What it brings is a steady supply of sprigs for stews, roast vegetables and fish, and a low shape that works as a pot edge, a gravel-path plant or a bed border: The National's guide notes that its low form can be interplanted in gravel paths or beds.

Thyme is the tough one of the herb pots. Common thyme (Thymus vulgaris) is a woody, evergreen subshrub 15 to 30 cm tall and up to 40 cm wide (Wikipedia), and The National's herb guide notes that it grows for many years in larger pots with proper care. Bustan Dubai's guide rates it high for heat tolerance and low for water, and gives October to November for planting. The Ministry named thyme, with parsley, basil, mint and coriander, among the herbs residents could grow at home under Plant the Emirates in October 2024 (Khaleej Times).

Drainage matters more than water. Illinois Extension warns that poorly drained soil shortens thyme's useful life, and Bustan Dubai's advice is to soak the root zone and then let the surface dry between sessions. Give it full sun and a pot with drainage holes. Thyme comes from dry, stony places along the Mediterranean coasts and likes poor, light soil (University of Arizona Extension), so a free-draining mix suits it better than a rich one. Keep it apart from moisture-loving herbs such as parsley and mint, and beside rosemary, which shares its low water needs.

Plan to renew it. Wikipedia says thyme can be short-lived in the garden but is easily propagated from cuttings, and Illinois Extension says woody plants are best cut back hard in spring every few years, and that divisions or cuttings are much easier than seed. In Dubai's hottest weeks a desert nursery guide still advises afternoon shade for many herbs, so a small pot is best moved out of the worst sun in July and August.