How to Grow Curry Leaves at Home
Curry Leaf Plant for Edible Gardens
Grow your own curry leaf tree.
Beautiful Curry Leaf Tree
My kids make snide remarks about my curry leaf plant when I bring it into the dining room for the winter. I’ll explain why shortly.
But first, an introduction to an exotic plant with culinary appeal. A potted curry tree makes a nice addition to an edible garden in cooler climates. Grow it as a potted patio plant over the summer—then as a houseplant or conservatory plant through winter.
The curry leaf plant has aromatic leaves that are used in many South Asian dishes. In my kitchen, I use them in vegetable curries and chickpea curries.
Along with the glossy, pointy green leaves, it has clusters of white, star-shaped flowers. These flowers turn into shiny, black berries.
Don’t be put off by the word “tree” in the name. While I’ve seen curry trees taller than me, they’re easy to keep small when grown in a pot and pruned.
Where winters are cold, curry leaf trees need protection from frost. Here in Toronto, I grow it as a houseplant through the winter.
If you’re a Latin hound, you'll find it referred to by a couple of different names, depending on the source: Murraya koenigii or Bergera koenigii. The common names you’ll see are curry tree, curry leaf tree, curry leaf plant, and sweet neem. But don't confuse it with neem—that's a different plant. (It’s also different from the curry bush—which I mention below.)
My Kids and the Smelly Curry Tree
Curry leaf tree starting to flower.
Back to the snide comments from my kids: When you rub the leaves or brush against the plant, it smells. In my opinion—and theirs—it smells like tar. I've seen it described as a citrus-like scent, though that seems far-fetched to me. But it's a spicy aroma, for sure.
You might be wondering why grow something with such a smell. Don't worry. When you cook with them, fresh curry leaves add a complexity that’s anything but tar-like. It all changes when you cook with them.
As for my kids complaints, the solution is simple. Don’t put your potted curry plant in a high-traffic area where people will brush against it!
Curry Powder, Curry Leaves, and Curry Plant
Don’t be confused by the name: The flavour of curry leaves is different from that of curry powder. Although you might use both when cooking a curry.
(The run-of-the-mill curry powder around here is usually a combination of coriander, cumin, chilies, fenugreek, and turmeric—though curry spice blends differ by region, and my local South African store has various curry powders that are quite different.)
Then there’s the curry plant—a.k.a. curry bush—which is totally different. Curry plant (Helichrysum italicum) is a shorter, grey-leaved tender perennial that owes its name to the strong sweet curry smell of its leaves. Curry plant has small yellow flowers that contrast nicely with the leaves. Nice plant—but not what we’re talking about here.
How to Grow a Curry Leaf Plant
Location for a Potted Curry Tree Outdoors
Potted Curry leaf plant outside on the patio for the summer.
A potted curry tree makes a good potted patio plant over the summer. Grow it in full or partial sun.
Protect from frost. If you're in a cold climate like me, move the tree indoors for winter.
This is an evergreen plant, meaning that it keeps its leaves year-round. That is, if it’s warm enough. If you leave it out in the fall as temperatures cool, you might find some of the leaves yellowing. With the cool conditions, the plant is getting ready to take a break.
Winter in Cooler Climates
Over the winter, curry leaf plant makes an excellent houseplant.
Give it your sunniest window, preferably a south-facing window with full sun.
If you left it out in cool fall weather and leaves started to turn yellow and drop before you moved it indoors, it might take a little break. It might drop some more leaves while the days are short. This is nothing to worry about. Growth resumes and the plant grows new leaves as days get longer and it’s in a warm location.
Keep Your Lemon Tree Through the Winter
And enjoy fresh homegrown lemons!
Curry Tree Care
Feeding
Growing a potted curry leaf tree as a potted plant indoors for the winter.
Feed your curry leaf plant when it’s growing.
If growth stalls in cool weather, stop feeding until it starts again.
There’s no need for any special fertilizer for curry leaf plants. I use general-purpose feeds.
If feeding potted patio plants seems like a never-ending task, here’s what I do:
In the spring, as I move potted plants outdoors, I give them a half dose of a slow-release feed that lasts for the entire summer. (There are granular products that can be spread over the top of the soil—easy to apply.)
I occasionally supplement with a low rate of a liquid feed—”spoon feeding” as I think the plants need it.
(Why, you might ask, a half dose of slow-release feed? Because I often use manures when I blend my own potting soils, and they contain some nutrients.)
Watering a Curry Leaf Plant
Water regularly while the curry leaf plant is actively growing.
The goal is to keep the soil moist, but not constantly wet:
Water enough so that water comes out of the bottom of the pot.
Then water again as the top inch or two of soil looks dry.
If in doubt, stick your finger in the soil to see how moist it feels.
If growth slows during the winter, water less often. The plant will use less water as growth slows. And if the soil stays too wet for too long, there's more chance of root rot.
Here's my guide to watering potted citrus trees. The same ideas apply to watering your curry tree.
Repotting
I love to use fresh curry leaves in vegetable curries and chickpea curries.
Repot in the spring when the plant starts to make new growth.
As your curry plant grows bigger, repot it into a slightly larger pot every year or two, until it reaches a size that suits you. You'll know it's time to repot when the roots fill the soil and begin to coil around.
Once it reaches the size you want to keep it at, repot every couple of years back into the same pot. You only give it a larger container if you want a larger plant. Remove up to one third of the soil, and then put it back into the same pot, with some fresh potting soil.
An off-the-shelf soilless potting medium is fine. No need for anything special. It should be a well draining soil.
But if you’re growing it into a tall tree, you might want a heavier soil mix to prevent it from tipping over in the wind. In that case, a loam-based potting soil is a good option.
When it comes to choosing a pot, make sure there are drainage holes. Good drainage is important. Otherwise, you're setting yourself up for root rot. If you tend to have a heavy hand at watering, unglazed terracotta pots breathe—so the soil dries out more quickly—and that helps counteract your heavy hand!
Pruning a Curry Leaf Plant
Curry trees get leggy if not pruned. My neighbours have an unwieldy seven-foot-high giant. They can get even bigger and more gangly than that given the opportunity.
I keep mine under four feet high with regular pruning. I prune it back before moving it into the house every winter, and give it a haircut as needed through the summer.
If starting with a young plant, pruning depends on the shape you want. You can grow it as a single-stemmed or multi-stemmed plant. If you want branching to start low down, for bushier growth, nip off the tip of the plant while it's still short to induce branching.
In summer, if there’s a long, lanky branch that you want to have side shoots, pinch out the tip to encourage branching.
Pests and Challenges
I find potted plants growing outdoors are far less likely to have pest problems than those grown indoors. That’s because outdoors, there are natural predators and parasites—and because heavy rain can wash away some pests. (Spider mites, I'm talking to you!)
But indoors, conditions can be ideal for pests…like an incubator.
Three common pests of potted curry leaf trees are:
This curry tree is outside on a warm winter day for an emergency spray to tread a spider mite infestation.
Scale
Spider mite
Mealybug
Here in Ontario, home gardeners are quite limited in the choice of pest control products. But we can get insecticidal soap and horticultural oil—and both of these are all that you need for curry leaf tree pests.
Before moving potted plants indoors for the winter, I spray three times, leaving a few days between each spray.
Soap and oil are good insecticides, but they don't kill eggs. The repeated spraying catches newly hatched critters.
If things go well, you won’t have pests indoors over the winter. But…sometimes it happens. On a couple of occasions I’ve paraded my potted plants outdoors on a mild winter day so I can spray for spider mites. (I’m talking about temperatures above 10°C.) Failing that, I know people who do mid-winter sprays in the shower!
Indoors, if there’s a way to keep the humidity higher, it makes conditions less ideal for spider mites.
Curry leaf plant seedling growing at the base of a larger plant.
Propagation
Planting Curry Leaf Plant from Seeds
The easiest way to get started with a curry leaf tree is from someone who has a mature plant that’s dropped seeds into the pot. Then, young plants spring up on their own. That’s how I got started with curry leaf tree.
They are easy to grow from fresh seed—so if your plant makes seed, share with friends.
You can also propagate curry leaf tree by cuttings.
Where to Get a Curry Leaf Plant
If you have friends or neighbours with a curry tree, that’s a good place to start, because seeds that drop to the soil often grow at the base of the parent plant. Simply pot them up!
Check out our sources guides to find nurseries selling exotic plants such as curry tree, citrus trees, figs, and olive trees.
Harvest and Use
Pick fresh curry leaves as needed year-round.
I like fresh leaves the best. But curry leaves can also be frozen or dried for later use…although no need to do this if you have a plant growing in the kitchen. Then you’ll have a constant supply!
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Top Tips for Curry Leaf Tree
Pinch young plants to encourage branching if you want a multi-stemmed plants.
Spider mites love curry leaf trees…so keep your eyes open for them if overwintering in a centrally heated, dry space! (Grab a magnifier, and look on the undersides of the leaves.)
Curry Tree FAQ
Why are there two botanical names for curry tree?
It's common to find more than one botanical name used for a plant. Plant taxonomists continually regroup and rename plants. And because they don’t always agree with each other, home gardeners get to enjoy Latin-name overload.
Does it have medicinal properties?
Curry leaves are used in ayurvedic medicine. I’m not an expert on its medicinal properties, so I’ll say nothing more.
How do I make my curry leaf plant bushy?
If starting with a young plant, pinch out the tip early on to get it to branch out. If your curry leaf plant is already tall, you can prune it back quite drastically. It will bounce back.
Why is my curry leaf plant losing its leaves?
This is common when overwintering the plant in cool, indoor conditions. As days get longer and growth restarts with warm temperatures, you won't have to worry about leaf production.
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