Owner: The Herb Gardener URL:http://theherbgardener.blogspot.com/ Join Date: Wed, 09 Jan 2008 22:48:40 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Grow herbs and use them in natural herbal remedies, herb crafts, and cooking. Fresh and dried herbs can improve your recipes, make natural cosmetics, and add beauty to your home. Learn herb tips and tricks as well as herbal lore and herb gardening secre Site statistics:Click here
Growing Herbs - A Natural Way to Go Green 2008-03-07 10:05:12 Going green is the latest trend, and thank heavens, but herb gardeners have been doing it for ages. What better way to stay healthy, season your food, decorate your home, deal with pests, and treat your minor ailments than with home grown herbs.
GrowingHerbs
is a Natural
way to Begin a Green
er Lifestyle
Growing herbs is a great start on becoming a gardener and an environmentalist. Herbs
Starting Garlic From Cloves 2008-03-05 16:01:54 You can start garlic from the bulbs you buy at your local grocery store. This is true of regular and elephant garlic. Here's how.
Starting Garlic
from Cloves
Separate the cloves and let them dry on your counter for a few days, but don't peel the paper off. Prepare potting soil to which you have added sand or another loosening agent. If you are planting garlic directly into the garden and have
Growing and Harvesting Ginger 2008-03-05 13:16:13 Ginger grows from a spreading, tuberous rhizome. It does well in moist fertile soil in warm winter areas. If you have seen ginger in the grocery store, the root looks like a flattened, beige, segmented bulb. The foliage is tall and dark green in color, springing from upright, rigid stems. Even in areas that experience a hard frost, ginger can be grown in large pots and over-wintered indoors. Read more:Growing
, Ginger
Produce Department Herb Plants 2008-02-28 21:29:35 The next time you head off to your local produce department, take another look at the fresh herb plants. Usually tucked in an out of the way corner, often by the sacks of peanuts and dried fruits, the culinary herb plants will usually be sitting in black moulded plastic trays. They're green and hardy, or at least they start out that way.
They make me a little sad every time I walk by, and I Read more:Department
, Plants
Plant Tea This Spring 2008-02-27 14:43:18 There are many herbal teas that are made from ingredients that you can grow in your garden easily: sage, ginger, apple mint, saffron, chamomile flowers, peppermint, dandelion, lemon balm, fennel, and lemon thyme among others, all make good teas that can be blended for their unique flavor and restorative properties. When planning your herb garden this year, don't forget to make a spot for tea Read more:Plant
, Spring
Dried Herb Ideas – Useful Decoration 2008-02-26 22:08:28 When I bring in my chili pepper crop, I always dry a batch on the dehydrator (after blanching them in boiling water for about five seconds), and string them on heavy twine with an upholstery needle. This long garland of bright red peppers decorates my kitchen, and pinch-hits as a last minute source of chili peppers for homemade burritos and chimichangas. I will usually take the season end peppers Read more:Useful
, Decoration
Planting Spring Seeds Indoors 2008-02-26 10:37:54 I wrote an article a few days ago and have posted a link to it at the bottom of this page. It will give you some good tips and tricks for starting seeds indoors in February or March. I have thought of an additional tip that can be fun.
Small peat coins can be a useful starting medium for seeds, but I like using potting soil with egg shells too. I think of it as being environmentally responsible. Read more:Spring
Herb Gardening in the Desert 2008-02-26 10:01:32 Keeping herbs in the desert can be challenging, but they provide so much value to your home and garden that they are worth some extra effort.
Herbs and Desert
Soil
Herbs are often native to poor soils, but desert dirt has special problems when it comes to sustaining plants. The presence of salts and acidic minerals makes gardening herbs and other temperate plants more difficult. Raised beds
Headache Remedy - Accupressure, Aromatherapy, and a Foot Bath 2008-02-23 20:33:54 If you suffer from headaches and are reluctant to take conventional painkillers, there's a fast and easy way to get relief. Take a footbath.
Soaking your feet and applying gentle acupressure to the base of your toes while you're doing it will be as effective a many other methods, maybe more so. Include the relaxing benefits of aromatherapy by adding some lavender to the water. If you've made a Read more:Headache
, Aromatherapy
Making Lavender Scented Candles 2008-02-22 09:11:53 Candle making is inexpensive, and once you've done it a few times, it's easy too. Whether you are going in for the more expensive beeswax candles, are opting for parafin, or are thinking about recycling old candles that are lying around the house, combining candle making and aromatherapy can be a great way to enhance your environment, your mood, and your sense of accomplishment.
Lavender
is a Read more:Candles
Snuggle up With Lavender in Your Bed Pillow 2008-02-10 12:32:28 Put your dried lavender flowers to good use in helping you get a restful night's sleep. Just tuck a muslin bag filled with a tablespoon or two of dried lavender flowers into your pillow or under your sheets near the top of the mattress. The essential oil in the lavender will help your body relax by helping to slow your central nervous system.
Just try it once and you'll be hooked. If you suffer Read more:Lavender
, Snuggle
Make Pico de Gayo 2008-02-10 12:31:38 Pico de Gayo is a refreshing summer salsa made from fresh ingredients. An uncooked chow-chow, pico de gayo is easy to make and is full of vitamins and minerals. Use it as a dip, condiment, or as an ingredient in more complex dishes like chimichangas, omelets, or rice dishes.
What Types of Herbs are in Pico de Gayo
Pico de Gayo uses some herb favorites like cumin, cinnamon, garlic, cilantro,
Make Lavender Water 2008-02-08 16:13:28 Lavender water is a good way to add the fragrance of lavender to your linens, general cleaning, and crafts.
Lavender Water Recipe
4 Cups Distilled Water
5 Tablespoons of Vodka (Cheap Vodka is okay)
30 Drops of Essential Oil of Lavender
Mix thoroughly and decant into decorative bottles, atomizers, or all-purpose spritzer bottles.
You can also use it in spritzer bottle when ironing clothes, or Read more:Lavender
Making Peel and Eat Shrimp 2008-02-06 19:03:38 I've been preparing to write this entry for a few hours now. My original plan was to explain how to make lavender facial scrub, but the topic isn't doing much for me today. I'm into Super Bowl preparation, and all of my creative juices are intent on appetizers for the big game tomorrow. So, here are my tips for creating some of my husband's and my favorite special occasion munchies, starting Read more:Shrimp
Make Lavender Facial Scrub 2008-02-06 17:18:51 Lavender facial scrub uses the antibacterial properties of lavender and the soothing qualities of almonds to exfoliate and rejuvenate your skin. It smells wonderful, and can be a great overall relaxing agent if you apply the scrub while you are still in the bath or shower. Consider it a small aromatherapy benefit to the process. If you have dry or sensitive skin, the almonds are particularly Read more:Lavender
History of the Wild Mustard Plant and the Conquistadors 2008-02-06 10:37:06 One of my favorite stories about herbs involves the Conquistadors. The mustard plant was introduced to the Americas by the conquistadors or their attendant Padres (depending on who you're listening to), who planted the fast sprouting seeds to mark their trails. The fast-flowering plants were seeded to show them a golden road back along their route (the yellow brick road?).
An annual, wild Read more:Plant
, History
Herbs for Oral Health 2008-02-05 08:43:04 If you've had concerns about the use of strong mouthwashes and toothpastes, consider their safer and gentler alternatives. Herbal oral products provide antibacterial protection without the fillers and stabilizers associated with major manufacturer's brands. They also often drop the strong bleaches, chemical antibiotics, and dyes that you've come to accept from the more common drug store offerings Read more:Herbs
, Health
Herb Notes for February 2008-02-03 22:20:09 The following are a few thoughts on the herbs I keep around the house.
Peppermint
Grow peppermint in a glass of water. A kitchen window is great for this. It will root readily and be available for garnishes all winter long. Fresh peppermint is a flavorful addition to English Breakfast tea, or hot chocolate.
Chives
Indoor grown chives make a convenient substitution for green onion in omlettes Read more:Notes
, February
No Tears Onions 2008-02-03 15:23:20 If you think that onions are the spice of life, you'll be pleased to learn that scientists in New Zealand have perfected a no tears onion. Using the wonders of biotechnology, they were able to switch off the gene controlling the enzyme that causes us to cry. This discovery could put an end to the days of slicing onions for your French onion soup under water, and other strategies for chopping Read more:Tears
, Onions
Growing Your Own Saffron 2008-02-01 22:14:17 Saffron is an expensive spice that has a very distinct flavor and aroma. It is prized throughout the world, but often only used for special-occasion dishes because it is so expensive.
Where Does Saffron Come From, Anyway?
Saffron comes from the three stigmas of an autum blooming crocus plant, the Crocus Sativus. The Crocus Sativus is hardy from zones six through nine in the United States, and Read more:Growing
, Saffron
The History of Tussie-Mussie 2008-01-31 20:34:35 Have you heard of the infamous and misunderstood tussie-mussie? Currently thought of as a nosegay, or compact bouquet of flowers and herbs, it has a colorful, if obscure, past with hilarious connotations. In light of its modern bridal and festive associations, I really couldn't pass on the irony.
The language of flowers, having robust historical and literary antecedents, includes this little gem Read more:History
Using Herbs for Dental Care 2008-01-29 19:43:14 Because commercial toothpastes and other tooth cleaners and whiteners contain harsh abrasives, detergents, and bleaches, you can give your teeth a break by buying herbal toothpastes, or making your own. Here are some tips for quick, effective tooth care:
A sage leaf rubbed over the teeth and gums will help clean them and make them feel smooth and fresh.
Alpine strawberry rubbed over the teeth Read more:Herbs
Do Poppy Seeds Contain Drugs? 2008-01-29 12:40:02 The poppy is a red flower with a thick seed pods that carry the popular poppy seeds used in cooking. Although there's been a great deal of misinformation about the ability of poppy seeds to create false positives in drug testing, more modern testing does not confuse culinary poppy seed ingestion for drug use, and you shouldn't refrain from eating or using poppy seeds in cooking because of it. If Read more:Poppy
, Contain
, Drugs
Make Lavender Sugar 2008-01-28 18:51:25 For an unexpected and rich taste, try making your own lavender sugar. This is a unique treat that's easy to make and fun to use.
Uses for LavenderSugar
Lavender sugar is a great alternative to vanilla sugar as a topping for candies, cakes, and other pastries. It's also a wonderful sweetener for tea. You can leave your lavender sugar white, or use food coloring to give it a slight tint.
It's Not Too Late to Protect Your Plants from the Cold Weather 2008-01-25 18:44:15 The cold weather is upon us, and if you live where there's a freeze, be kind to your plants. Check to make sure that plants that are borderline for your growing zone are well mulched and protected from the wind chill and freezing temperatures. A Calla lily that survived last year's mild winter may not make it to spring this year without a little help. Be good to your plants when the Read more:Plants
, Protect
What's the Difference Between an Herbs and Spices? 2008-03-11 15:12:47 There is some overlap, but the basic difference between an herb and a spice is that spices are considered tropical or semi-tropical in origin. They can be composed of leaves, bark, roots, dried fruits, seeds, or nuts. Almost all spices are imported, and can come from vines, shrubs, or trees. Read more:Herbs
, Spices
What's the Difference Between an Herb and a Vegetable? 2008-03-10 12:25:23 Herbs differ from vegetables in that they are primarily used as an accompaniment and not served alone. Vegetable
s can be eaten alone, cooked or raw. Many herbs can be raised with vegetables, and they can make good pairings to promote a pest free growing environment. Herbs are commonly resistant to pests because they have strong flavors and aromas that many pests avoid.
Because they are hardy and
Soil Considerations in Your Herb Garden 2008-03-18 22:34:11 Although herbs can tolerate poor soil, the addition of organic material and good drainage are important for the growth of healthy plants. Stressed plants are more susceptible to disease and insect attack. The preparation of good soil will go a long way toward guaranteeing a healthy herb patch.
Good garden soil contains at least 25% humus. Humus is organic material that can be compost, manure ( Read more:Considerations
, Garden
Herb Locations 2008-03-18 13:18:58 Like real estate, important considerations for plants are: location, location, location. Areas that are exposed to high winds, brutal heat, constant heavy shade, abundant shallow tree roots, and standing water are not good choices for most plants, and certainly not for herbs. If you have problem spots that need planting solutions, there are specialty selections that will help you deal with these
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