Herb Gardening - Greenhouse Herbs

Most herbs are very hardy, surviving winter well and thriving in relatively poor soil. But people and plants may find it more comfortable to carry out their actions inside the greenhouse. Fortunately, there are several herbs that take to that environment readily.

CHAMOMILE

A variety of Chamomile called Roman Chamomile is an excellent choice. With its apple scented leaves and delicate flowers, it can be used as part of a potpourri or make a wonderful tea. Growing it inside the greenhouse in a large container is easy. Just make sure the soil drains well and that it gets plenty of sunshine. Before long you'll have a plant 2-3 feet high.


CHIVES

Chives are another perennial that do extremely well in a greenhouse setting. It comes in many varieties, all of which do well in the same conditions. The ordinary or Common Chive has a mild onion flavor that is perfect for soups or salads. The Curly type looks great in a greenhouse rock garden, but it's not good for cooking. The Garlic style makes for a perfect seasoning, though, where it gives a tangy garlic-onion tone.


PARSLEY

Ordinary, everyday Parsley is a great greenhouse herb. It can grow well in partial shade, but also thrives in full sunshine. Plant some seeds in a healthy soil and watch the thick green foliage sprout up. Take care not to water excessively. Most herbs prefer a slightly dryer soil.


BASIL

Basil is another common herb, and for good reason - it adds a great flavor to all those Italian dishes you want to try. Enjoying full sun several hours per day, it will grow in winter too. Just make sure the soil drains well and you'll have stems that reach 5-7 inches in no time. Once they flower, dry the stems well after harvesting and you'll have an intense Basil to add to your recipe.


CATNIP

Another common perennial, this time one that your cat will enjoy. The Common variety does indeed make them a little woozy, but it also makes for an interesting tea for humans. The Greek variety has a smaller, more gray-green colored leaf. Sometimes called Catmint, it resists insects well and makes for a fine greenhouse addition.


CORIANDER

This herb is the base for Cilantro, where it has been used in cooking and medicines from Mexico to Southeast Asia. The tangy taste from its seeds is perfect in curry, too. The Vietnamese variety is a perennial, while the common type is annual.


GERANIUMS

Commonly thought of as a simple flowering plant, it is sometimes classified as an herb. In some technical dictionaries, an herb is a plant whose stems are non-woody, and decay with the coming of winter. Perennial varieties will regrow the stem every year. The dried leaves and flowers are perfect for a sachet or potpourri, thanks to the delicate scent.

There are two dozen or more varieties. The Apricot has a pungent scent and produces lovely light pink flowers, while the Chocolate Mint type has a flavor that matches its name. The French Vanilla has a wonderful vanilla scent that is perfect for potpourri.

Let your herbs in the greenhouse sit around the edge or in the center, wherever they'll get lots of heat and sunshine. Keep the soil moist but not wet and go easy on the fertilizer. Then sit down and enjoy the many wonderful aromas from these perfect greenhouse plants.

High Density Gardening

This post is a little different from the others I have posted here, in that it is to do about growing your own vegetables. To me there is nothing better than the taste of REAL fresh vegetables, I am not talking about those "Fresh" Vegetables you get in the supermarket all the year round which could have travelled many thousands of miles before they land on the shelves. No I am talking about the ones that travel just a few yards from your garden to your kitchen and are eaten the day they are picked.

The trouble with growing vegetables in the traditional manner is that it can take up a lot of room and requires a fair amount of effort, so unless you have a large garden that you can transform part of into a vegetable plot or can get hold of an allotment, you are pretty well left with buying from the supermarkets or markets. Well the other day I cam across an E-Book that turns that on its head, the author Ric Wiley, has been using a method of gardening that does not require the large space and the high levels of time and effort. This is the High Density gardening method and in his E-book Ric shows us how to use this method to have fresh vegetables all year round and how to harvest up to 4 different crops from the each mini plot of land in a year, with no back breaking digging, minimal effort and only a few hours of work a week.

By following the principals of High Density Gardening you cut out the in-organic agri-business practices and the vast quantities of herbicides and pesticides they use, and avoid all the potential health risks these chemicals may pose.

Simonegansmith.com/recommends/HDGardening

Acillia millefolium

Acillia millefolium (Yarrow/Milfoil)

• Lifespan Hardy Perenniel
• Height Upto 1oo cm
• Flower Small and generally White occassionally pink, Forms flat clusters and has a pungent scent they appear from summer till Autumn.
• Leaf Has a narrow feathery look with deep cuts and is dark grey-green in colour.
• Stem This is green in colour it is hollow but rigid branching out at the top.
• Seed These are flat tear shaped, quite small and grey-brown in colour
• Dried leaves Give off a mild sage life flavour

Uses

• Decorative FLOWER Dried and used in displays
• Culinary LEAF Can be used in salads and dips, must use yong leaves and be finely chopped
• Garden WHOLE PLANT Helps plants close by to be more disease resistant LEAF One chopped leaf mixed in with a barrow load of compost will speed up decomposition.

This is a potent healing herb and the name may well come from the battle of Troy. Achilles who had been instructed in the use of yarrow the stem the flow of blood from wounds, used it to heal many of his wounded soldiers.

The Druids use Yarrow stems to forcast the weather, and the Chinese combined the use of Yarrow stems and the book of changes to fortell the future.