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Post by sss3 on May 16, 2015 0:40:46 GMT
Just an FYI If you can get the root pf carrots rooted, the tops are much more flavorful than parsley. From what I've read the tops have more nutrients than parsley. The flavor of root tops was so tasty.
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Post by chickenista on May 17, 2015 18:58:08 GMT
Too.Much.Echinacea! I went years without being able to grow it. Now? Too much. Spent an hour hunting the babies down and transplanting them all. Mayhaps I should have thrown them onto the compost heap, but but..it's Echinacea!
Remind me next year when they have taken over what's left of the lower part of the yard and melded completely with the Stinging Nettles and Mint that I did this on purpose. That I put them all into better soil and fed them worm poop and topped them off with Upstart for their roots and watered them and mulched them with barn cleanings.
Now taking orders for Echinacea starts for next spring. Line forms to the right.
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Post by Woodpecker on May 17, 2015 20:42:12 GMT
Too.Much.Echinacea! I went years without being able to grow it. Now? Too much. Spent an hour hunting the babies down and transplanting them all. Mayhaps I should have thrown them onto the compost heap, but but..it's Echinacea! Remind me next year when they have taken over what's left of the lower part of the yard and melded completely with the Stinging Nettles and Mint that I did this on purpose. That I put them all into better soil and fed them worm poop and topped them off with Upstart for their roots and watered them and mulched them with barn cleanings. Now taking orders for Echinacea starts for next spring. Line forms to the right. I guess I'm first in line then!
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Post by chickenista on May 17, 2015 20:43:20 GMT
Excellent! And how's the Motherwort doing? Getting new growth etc..? And did it arrive still all neatly packaged? I forgot to ask these things earlier.
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Post by Woodpecker on May 18, 2015 14:32:45 GMT
Excellent! And how's the Motherwort doing? Getting new growth etc..? And did it arrive still all neatly packaged? I forgot to ask these things earlier. The Motherwort loves it's new home! It arrived neatly packaged too. I would certainly get more herbs from you chickenista!
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Post by chickenista on May 18, 2015 14:43:36 GMT
Oh good. I have received some plants that were in bad shape and always try to make sure that mine make it ok. It's heartbreaking to get plants that have zero chance of survival because their roots have rotted off or they are broken beyond salvation.
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Post by Woodpecker on May 18, 2015 23:47:29 GMT
Oh good. I have received some plants that were in bad shape and always try to make sure that mine make it ok. It's heartbreaking to get plants that have zero chance of survival because their roots have rotted off or they are broken beyond salvation. I will look at them closely tomorrow and tell them you are asking about them. I love talking to my plant's. The roots on the Motherwort were nice, thank very much!
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2015 21:25:16 GMT
Chickenista, I'm wondering how you grow your hops and how much water they need too. Do they need support over 6 feet? How did you choose the variety? When you harvest, do you take the whole plant and start over next year?
Red-veined sorrel is my latest new pot herb - evidently a siren call to skunks in search of bugs and worms! First night dug up, second night tossed out, third night I staggered out after dark to covered it only to find I had been beaten to the mark by You Know Who. Sheesh! Strong life force I guess, it's still ok but will have to grow it in a cage.
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2015 21:25:33 GMT
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Post by chickenista on May 19, 2015 21:55:46 GMT
Hops do well in rich, lightly moist soil. But they seem to be growing ok in the godawful corner that I stuck them in. No amendments to the red clay. Um.. I guess I have watered them at some point, but I don't remember.
But if I would take care of them, they would be huge and lush like my friend's. We bought ours at the same time and split the order.
They do need support, but only a surface that they can climb. They have little hairs that cling to darn near anything, like cleavers. Um.. again I fail. They don't want to cling to a 4X4, so right now they are puddled on the ground. Oh.. I sound like a horrid mistress.
I know. I know. I need to love them up! They are such a useful thing.
To harvest, you just take the cones. It's like a bloom, but really does look like a green pinecone. You can either drop them fresh into alcohol or glycerin for a tincture. You can drop them into honey for a sleepytime tea sweetener that will tuck you nicely into bed. Or you can dry them.. in a cloth or paperbag out of direct sun.
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2015 19:21:33 GMT
Chickenista I wld definitely be interested in echinacea plants as well. I have some seed but haven't got it planted yet. My herb garden has the basics. Oregano, sage, rosemary, thyme, basil, lemon thyme, lemon balm, comfrey, peppermint, spearmint, and chocolate mint. Trying to get parsley going from seed but it's really fighting me. I would love some chamomile but can't find any plants. I tried to grow from seed last year but no luck.
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Post by Deleted on May 21, 2015 22:06:19 GMT
Thanks for the hops review! Very encouraging, I'll have to start sniffing around for growers. Love a sleepy-time herb pillow to nap with.
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Post by chickenista on May 23, 2015 13:43:31 GMT
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Post by Deleted on May 27, 2015 22:00:41 GMT
Thanks so much! There's a great How to Grow Hops PDF to download - way cool!
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Post by bearcreekfarm on Jun 20, 2015 4:53:13 GMT
I lost several of my "perennial" herbs over the winter. We did not get much snow, and with temps down to 40 dg below zero........ So, I started new plantings of thyme (Old English and lemon thyme), oregano, and marjoram to replace those I lost. I added some new mints to my collection, so I now have- Chocolate mint, mojito mint, pineapple mint, spearmint, peppermint, apple mint, Kentucky Colonel mint, candy mint, and ginger mint. Catmint grows wild all over our farm, but I still have a couple of pots of it, lol. I also grow lemon balm and tons and tons of anise hyssop. I have a lifetime supply of borage, which is okay because I love it and use it in the main garden as a companion plant to- just about everything Cilantro, parsley, rosemary, lemon basil, sweet basil, purple basil, dill, lavender, garlic chives and tons and tons of onion chives, lovage, salad burnet, lemon grass, summer savory, comfrey, echinacea, calendulas, and, I think that is it. I am also trying caraway this year for the first time (a spice I know, but goes right along with the herbs). I do not have any sage or tarragon, and wish that I did. I use most of my herbs at some point in salads and/or salad dressings. Anything mint can go in iced tea. I do not drink mojitos or mint juleps, but have the mints just in case, lol. No, I just love mints. I make tabouleh with whatever mint I have on hand, I have never had Pesian mint- wonder what I have been missing? Some herbs get used in smoothies, along with foraged greens (lamb's quarters, dandelion, stinging nettles, etc). A lot of my herbs are used as seasonings during cooking; some are used in pestos; soups; sauces; raw on sandwiches; cilantro goes in pico de gallo; dill with cucumbers for dill pickles; and there must be many more uses because I seem to be out in the garden snipping some herbs just about every day I also feed loads of herbs to my chickens, rabbits, and guinea pigs. Fresh when in season, and dried in the winter. I am drying tons of herbs this year because I have so many animals that love them, I can't keep up.
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Post by bowdonkey on Jun 20, 2015 14:40:32 GMT
Last year I put in Greek Oregano and it made it through a low snow, low temp winter in zone 3a. Much more flavourful than the stuff growing in the yard. I hope it becomes as invasive. I wish I could get Bouquet variety of dill to naturalize, much superior to the wild stuff. Working on a few more to get naturalized, with winter Thyme and winter Savory at the top of the list. Last winter the Lemon Balm and Sage froze out. The Sage had been their a couple years already. In my travels there's a spot in the forest where the Hmongs camp. They always have a little garden. The only herb I've been able to identify is Spearmint. I check this place every so often to watch it's progress. They also have a type of collard? And squash. The deer never seem to bother. At my place they wouldn't last a night. I wish I could meet these gardners.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2015 21:45:33 GMT
Bear Creek Farm, you're growing more mints than I've ever clapped eyes on!
What is the candy mint like compared to regular peppermint?
Ginger, Kentucky Colonel and Mojito are new to me too - I need to get on the stick. Parsley is done giving for the summer, so I could use some more greens.
Speaking of parsley, I've been using lots of green seed lately in just about everything, talk about spicey! I even threw some with those hard little leaves in a grilled pepperjack cheese sandwich and it was just right.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 29, 2015 17:23:21 GMT
Don't have a lot of herbs, but like what I have. Lemon balm, dill, and wormwood are going like gangbusters. Sage, purple basil, chocolate mint, thyme, oregano, marjoram, patchouli, cilantro, umm... Oh! Rosemary and lavender. I'm looking into increasing the sandiness of the soil in a few beds to grow lots more lavender. I love that stuff!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 29, 2015 20:55:53 GMT
How do you use your wormwood Pony?
Cuttings from last summer are still soft! I've just been stashing branches in with silk and wool clothes.
Lavender is at the top of my list for new plants this fall - what kind do you like best for dried flowers? Mine is "grosso" from High Country Gardens, my epiphany this year was to clip the blossoms off the stem before drying - much more fragrant. Plus on the stem it gets dusty and puh...the wands don't send me either.
Lemon balm is proving to be amazingly xeric in our deadly drought - much more sun tolerant than I thought it was too.
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