Herb gardens anyone?
By momof3inTN
@momof3inTN (89)
United States
May 25, 2007 11:01am CST
I have flower gardens and a vegetable garden this year but I have always had some kind of herb garden, even when I lived in a tiny apartment. I like to plant herbs not just for cooking but for medicinal purposes as well. Who else does this? What have you planted this year, what are your plans for the year? Have you found some herbs more difficult to work with and what have you done?
Personally, I am exstatic to have a huge yard with lots of places to plant this year. All my herbs are in the ground and it looks like I'm going to have plenty to harvest from. I have planted sage, rosemary, thyme, lavendar, basil, oregano, chamomile (roman), parsley, tansy, dill, fennel (make sure not to put fennel and dill near each other, they will cross-pollinate), cilantro, chives, echinacea, horehound, lemon balm, pennyroyal, spearmint and peppermint. Whew, that's more than I thought. LOL Anyway, I've never had problems with it before but this year my sage isn't doing as well as in previous years. I'm going to have to figure out what's going on with that. So, what's going on with your gardens?
4 people like this
8 responses
@trinidadvelasco (11401)
• Philippines
25 May 07
i used to have a good size of herbal garden. one day, we had to leave for another place and stayed there for about 6 years. when i came back to our home here in this city, the garden was devastated, it was turned into a zero herbs place. i have been trying to build the whole thing back again. it has come out to be a difficult task already. the more i add, the more they kept dying. now i still have a few more around. i have some oregano, lemon grass, and a kind of cactus for cuts and wounds. not really plenty, they are in fact, so few.
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
25 May 07
The place we bought this year had the perfect garden bed for herbs, we lucked out. The only problem was it hadn't been cared for in years so we are having to bring it back. When I started digging it up, I found it was mostly clay. Talk about a mess. I dug out some and then combined what I left with new soil, compost, a little sand, and potting soil. If I had left it as it was, I wouldn't even have a garden. The soil was so bad even weeds weren't growing. The soil is much better now and my herbs are thriving, except for the sage. I'm thinking it might not even be my problem. It was very root-bound when I purchased the plant, that might be the cause of the problem.
Where have you found lemon grass? I can't find it anywhere near me and I wouldn't know how to grow it if I did. LOL I'd have to look it up.
@maryannemax (12156)
• Sweden
26 May 07
i have a mom who is so inlove with plants especially to plants which have medicinal values. i am not particular with their names but most of them already look familiar to me.
we are lucky enough to have a very big yard where she can plant all those that she wanted to have. and honestly, our yard looks like a mini forest already. hehe. but well, we have received so many benefits from these plants and so, we don't care if our yard's already looking like a small forest to some.
mostly, when we're sick, mom just picks something from the garden and she does something quick with the plants... usually, heat them over fire and some she boils and then she applies these to us. and the healing effects are really quick and make us feel better almost just hours after.
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
26 May 07
My husband teases me about my garden and how much time and energy I put into it but he never complains when he has the stomach flu and I fix him a cup of fresh herb tea and he feels better. He'll go on and on about the variety of herbs I have, "Don't you think you have enough?" BUT he doesn't say a word when the kids won't go to sleep and I give them a drink and they are out within 30 minutes. I use teas a lot with my herbs. Some I make into poultices and there are a few that I use for personal skin care products. But most are used either in cooking or in teas.
@maryannemax (12156)
• Sweden
26 May 07
i guess he teases you because he loves what you are doing. hehe. plus you get to pamper them, too with all the herbs that you got.
my mother does that, too. tea stuffs. but i admit, i don't like the taste so much but the relief... gosh... very great!
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
26 May 07
LOL. No, he doesn't complain. But the taste, yeah, that can be pretty bad with some. Usually a good way to deal with that is, if it won't affect negatively the intent of the tea, you can add honey (which does help a bit) or a sprig of mint (fresh, will help give the tea a slightly different, yet, delicious flavor). I tend to lean more towards the honey for myself and the mint with a touch of honey when making teas for my kids (or my husband, who, though he won't admit it, is a big baby when it comes to being sick). LOL
@venshida (4836)
• United States
25 May 07
I started a herb garden several years ago, but i only have rosemary, mint,basil and oregano. I would love to expand with some other herbs, but just don't have the time right now.
@maryannemax (12156)
• Sweden
26 May 07
the good thing is atleast you started one for yourself. maybe one day, when you're no longer that busy, you can already expand your garden the way you wanted to.
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
26 May 07
At least you have some. When I first started I only had a handful of herbs. It's been several years and I've been expanding my herbs (as much as I can anyway) every year. Some years I've had less and this year I have more. This year I'm a stay-at-home mom, I have more time available to work on my gardens. Maybe when things are a little slower and you have more time, you can expand to include more herbs or find some herbs that are very low maintenance. I have found that, with the right mix, lavendar is very easy and requires little, except for watering. It also adds a wonderful fragrance to the garden. Mint is wonderful, it pretty much takes care of itself. Maybe try some pennyroyal (which is also in the mint family, so be careful or it will take over your garden, a good way to stop that from happening is to plant it in a pot) if you have animals because the dried herb, sewn into a fabric sleeve to make a collar, is GREAT at repelling fleas and ticks. But it is another herb that can be grown with little attention.
@MakeItCount (350)
• India
26 May 07
I have been YEARNING for a garden. But I live in an apartment and it's not possible to have a garden (even a roof garden). I do have a few pots on my balcony and a bit of space on the ledge. Doesn't matter nobody can stop me from dreaming of my secret garden.
@MakeItCount (350)
• India
26 May 07
btw, you seem to know a lot about herbs (and what to do with them). Could you point me in the direction of a website or something where I could pick up some tips on these herbs that cure the stomach flue and help you sleep?
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
26 May 07
LOL. Even with a small amount of space you can have a garden. My first year of grad school I lived in the tiniest apartment and made sure to have my garden. Ever windowsill and the floor beneath ever window was crowded with pots and plants. Walking into that tiny place was like walking into a jungle. Never stop dreaming of your garden. My little table was even set at a window and there was just enough room for me to set a plate down on the table. LOL The trick in a small space is not to have your garden go out and around, but up. I found an inexpensive bakers rack and set some climbing plants at the bottom and trained them to curl up and around the rack. And then just layered plants on up. With tall plants at the bottom and smaller, shorter plants at the top. Plants that needed shade were placed behind larger plants that required more sun. It worked out great, I have pretty flowers and beautiful greenery to brighten this dreary little apartment plus I had fresh herbs all the time.
@SilentRose19 (1733)
• United States
26 May 07
I actually just moved to Georgia, from Texas. In texas we have tons of gardens, herbs and alike. I just started to be the weird lady at the apartment I think, because I have a garden on my back patio. I got assorted pots and planted six different types of tomatoes, zuchinni, yellow squash, onions, eggplant, and some herbs of my choice. I find that it is a great way to pass the time, and it reminds me of texas.
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
26 May 07
Well, welcome to the Southeast. I have family in El Paso but they don't really have gardens, just a patch of pebbles with a cactus in the front yard. Anyway, I loved it, thought it was cool.
Oh pot gardening can be great. I had to do that all last year (landlord problems) and I had some decent results. My mom tried a few veggies in pots and I did herbs (and of course I had my regular potted plants) and they turned out ok. Actually, my mother had the best luck with peppers in pots. She had regular bell peppers and jalapenos (hey, I might not be from Texas but I LOVE spicy food). We also had some luck with zucchini. The tomatoes and peas didn't do well in the pots but hey, it was an experiment, we'd never done veggies in pots before. LOL
@Nardz13 (5055)
• New Zealand
26 May 07
Hi there, My husband and I planted a herb garden about 1 month ago and our herbs are thriving, although its winter here in New Zealand, our herbs are really taking off, they're a hardy little bunch and we are going to eat every last bit of them... Yummm Good luck with your garden...
@momof3inTN (89)
• United States
26 May 07
Good luck with yours as well, I have never tried herb gardening in the winter except in pots in the kitchen. LOL
@Ravenladyj (22902)
• United States
27 May 07
We actually just finished putting in my gardens today :-D they are just small ones this yr cause its all we could afford but we've left space to add 3 more next yr which will be nice....This yr we have
sunflowers (just 2 for kicks LOL)
strawberries (only 3 plants we'll get more next yr)
tomatos
hot peppers (two different kinds)
sweet bell peppers
cucumbers
rhurbarb
then for herbs we have
cilantro
lavander
sage
oregano
basil
rosemary
thyme
and thats all I cant think of right now LOL...
