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Liquid herb feed or fertiliser sticks for herb pots

Updated: October 2026

You are choosing between a watering can and a pack of sticks for a balcony box, and a liquid herb feed or fertiliser sticks is that choice: measure each time, or push a dose in for about two months. This page is from Peter F., the DIY and tools editor, on 20 October 2026. It uses the four amazon.co.uk listings on the [herb fertiliser comparison](/hub/fertiliser-soil-and-bark-mulch/herb-fertiliser). Whether you need a feed at all, and how woody herbs differ, stays on the [herb fertiliser buying guide](/hub/fertiliser-soil-and-bark-mulch/herb-fertiliser/sub/herb-fertiliser-buying-guide). A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Use a liquid if you harvest hard and want to stop next week.

You are choosing between a watering can and a pack of sticks for a balcony box, and a liquid herb feed or fertiliser sticks is that choice: measure each time, or push a dose in for about two months.

Our top picks

Baby Bio Baby Bio Herb Food, pack of 2

Best overall

Baby Bio Baby Bio Herb Food, pack of 2
3.5/10about £5.98
View offer
Baby Bio Baby Bio Herb Food, 2 x 175 ml

Rank 2

Baby Bio Baby Bio Herb Food, 2 x 175 ml
6.9/10about £10.50
View offer
Substral Substral Naturen herb sticks, 30

Alternative

Substral Substral Naturen herb sticks, 30
6.2/10about £12.40
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What changes when you pick a form
  2. 2.Liquid herb feeds in this set
  3. 3.Herb sticks in this set
  4. 4.When to pick which

What changes when you pick a form

A liquid sits in the watering can, so the next drink can be plain water. If the leaves scorch, you do not mix the cap next time. Sticks are a memory aid. You push them in at the rim, and some last about a month or two. BBC Gardeners' World notes that solid feeds are easier to overdose in a container. Which? trials in February 2023 and 2024 were on general container plants, not herbs. The steps, once you have chosen, are on how to use herb fertiliser.

Liquid herb feeds in this set

Three listings are liquids. Only one prints a full dose. Baby Bio Herb Food, 2 x 175 ml, at about £10.50, says 5–10 drops per 0.5 litre or half a capful per litre, poured on. It does not say how often. You can stop at the next watering. Baby Bio in the pack of two, at about £5.98, says every two weeks and prints 1:X. A fortnight without a strength is not yet a method. The title says spray and the bullets say mix into watering, so the liquid belongs in the can, not on the leaves as concentrate. Neudorff's 250 ml bottle at about £7.81 says certified in organic farming and safe for pets, with no dose and no star line. None of the three shows a Soil Association code.
Baby Bio Baby Bio Herb Food, pack of 2

Testsieger

Baby Bio Baby Bio Herb Food, pack of 2
3.5/10about £5.98
View offer

Herb sticks in this set

Substral Naturen is the only stick pack kept here: 30 at about £12.40. The count is 1–5 by pot size, or 2 per plant in a balcony box, every two months, lasting up to two months. The bullets name basil and parsley, indoors and in balcony boxes. A 9 cm pot sits at the low end of 1–5. Three basil plants in a box are six sticks on the per-plant line, not two for the trough. The saved texts are Reviewed in Germany, and two say no growth was visible. Do not quote them as British buyers, and do not add sticks above the label. Rosemary and thyme are a poor fit for a two-month stick aimed at hungry pot herbs.

When to pick which

Pick a liquid when you cut herbs for the kitchen and you want the next watering to be plain water if the leaves look scorched or dull. In this set that is the about £10.50 Baby Bio when you need the drop count on the listing. Pick the about £5.98 pack only if you accept that Amazon prints 1:X and you will read the bottle. Pick Neudorff if the organic-farming and pet lines are the point and you will not mix until the label gives millilitres. Pick the sticks when the plant is basil or parsley, indoors or on a balcony, the count matches the pot, and you know you will forget a fortnight. Do not pick them for compost that already feeds for months, or for rosemary. Keep the label as the ceiling.

Common questions

Are sticks easier than a liquid?
They are easier to remember and harder to undo. One insertion and a two-month note replace a measured can. Substral prints that repeat and a count of 1–5, or two per balcony-box plant. A liquid lets you skip a week or weaken the mix next time. If you already miss waterings, a stick can match you. If you change course when leaves look wrong, the liquid is the easier correction.
Can sticks burn a small herb pot?
They can overfeed a small pot more easily than a liquid you simply stop. Stay at the low end of 1–5 for a small pot, and do not add sticks to compost that already feeds for months. Two German texts reported no visible growth. That is not a reason to exceed the count.
Which form can I stop quickly if leaves look scorched?
The liquid. The next can is plain water, and you can flush the pot. A stick keeps releasing on the pack's clock, up to about two months on the Substral listing. You can pull sticks out if you still see them, but you should not assume the whole dose is gone. Scorch or a wilt after feeding means stop and flush, not a stronger mix of either form.
Is a liquid always more expensive across a summer?
Not on these listings. Here the liquids are about £5.98, about £7.81 and about £10.50, and the sticks are about £12.40 for 30. An about £5.98 bottle can be the cheaper object and still a poor buy if the ratio is 1:X.
Do sticks suit rosemary?
Not these, as a default. Rosemary is a lean woody herb, and extra food is linked with softer, less aromatic growth. Substral names basil and parsley and runs for up to two months. A light liquid after a couple of months is closer to the RHS note for Mediterranean herbs. If the trough is already growing well, leave rosemary unfed.
What if the compost already contains slow-release feed?
Wait. A stick or a full liquid on top of a bag that feeds for months is two supplies in one pot. Let that charge run. The RHS six-week pause after planting is the minimum even when the bag is silent.

Related pages

Best herb fertiliser

Herb fertiliser

Herb fertiliser buying guide for UK pots, beds and boxes

Fertiliser for basil on UK windowsills and in pots

How to use herb fertiliser on pots and balcony boxes

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are from the four amazon.co.uk listings captured on 20 October 2026. An organic-farming line is not an organic-food certificate. Texts marked Reviewed in Germany are not UK reviews. This is not a laboratory test or a taste test.

  1. RHS, Growing herbs in containers (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  2. RHS, How to feed plants (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  3. RHS, Mediterranean herbs in a pot (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  4. GOV.UK, Manufacturing and marketing fertilisers (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  5. The Fertilisers Regulations 1991 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  6. GOV.UK, Organic food labelling (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  7. Plantura, Feeding herbs (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  8. BBC Gardeners' World, feeding pots (retrieved 20 October 2026)