[Ag-eq] Garden

Mon Jul 13 17:22:31 UTC 2015

Hi Nella.
I used to have pineapple sage.  It's great!  The flowers are edible, too.
Your mint soap sounds great.
I've never made herb vinegar, but I've read about it, and it sounds nice. 
I have some garlic-infused olive oil I bought, and I really like it.  I
like to drizzle some on vegetables or pasta just before serving.  Bet
herb-infused olive oil would be good, too.

I have lavender.  It's blooming now, in fact.
You might like bee balm, monarda.  It has a lemony-mint scent, and great,
fluffy flowers.  It makes good tea.  The Colonists used it during the
Revolution, when they couldn't get English tea.
Tracy

> Tracy:
>
> Right now I have all the herbs in big pots and that seems to be working
> well.  I
> have peppermint, catnip, oregano, basel, lemon bomb, chives and a pine
> apple
> sage.  The pine apple sage actually smells like pine apple.  I've been
> putting
> a little in salads and stir fries.  I'm doing the same thing with the
> lemon
> bomb.  I have silanto to, it's gotten huge.
>
> I also have some lavender, but have it in a bed by the front porch.  I
> hope to
> plant some other varieties of lavender; I love it.
>
> Have you ever made flavored vinegars or salts with your herbs?
>
> I thought they could be nice gifts.
>
> Do you have any gift ideas using the herbs?
>
> I do chop up some of them when I make soap.  I make a peppermint soap and
> I use
> mint tea in it.  It's very nice.
>
> Nella
>
> Quoting Tracy Carcione via Ag-eq <ag-eq at nfbnet.org>:
>
>> Hi Nella.
>> Yeah, I love asparagus too.  I was disappointed when it didn't survive.
>> Maybe I'll try again someday.  Maybe it needed more watering, too.  I
>> don't always water as well as I could.  Guess that's not a problem for
>> you
>> this year.
>>
>> It's great you've found a gardener to help and advise.  And she can tell
>> you what does well in your area, too.
>>
>> Roses by your bedroom window sounds wonderful!
>> I bought a couple trellises from Plow and Hearth.  They weren't cheap,
>> but
>> they're steel and look like they'll last a long time.
>> My gardener's husband built her a trellis of 4X4 posts and wires, and
>> bamboo, I think.
>>
>> I think you can make catnip tea.  Also lemon balm tea.  I put a leaf or
>> 2
>> of lemon balm or mint in when I make a salad.
>> I've found lemon balm to be rather invasive.  I put it a couple places,
>> and it's trying to take over.
>> Tracy
>>
>> > Tracy:
>> >
>> > I'll have to do some more research on asparagus; I would love to have
>> > some, love
>> > it fresh and steamed or grilled.  Yes, I think you are suppose to let
>> it
>> > go for
>> > 2 years before you get any.
>> >
>> > I've found a wonderful gardener here and she is helping me get the old
>> > flower
>> > beds in order and build some new ones.  She was also nice enough to
>> remove
>> > the
>> > poisson ivy.  We are working on more plans for my raised bed vegetable
>> and
>> > herb
>> > garden.  I'm learning a lot from her and feel that it's well worth the
>> > money.
>> >
>> > I planted some yellow roses in the spring and I thought they were
>> bushes,
>> > but
>> > they seem to be the vining kind.  So I'm going to have to figure out a
>> > trellis.
>> >  They are outside my bedroom window, so someday I hope the scent of
>> roses
>> > will
>> > come in when the window is open.
>> >
>> > Does anyone know of a use for catnip besides for cats?
>> >
>> > Mine is going crazy; I give pieces to the cats, but just wonder if
>> there
>> > are
>> > other uses.
>> >
>> > What about lemon bomb, have lots of that to.
>> >
>> > Hope everyone is well and their gardens are thriving.
>> >
>> > Nella
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Quoting Tracy Carcione via Ag-eq <ag-eq at nfbnet.org>:
>> >
>> >> Hi Nella.
>> >> Maybe when I retire I'll take some gardening classes.
>> >> I tried asparagus, but never got a crop.  I read you're supposed to
>> wait
>> >> 2
>> >> years, to let the plants get established, but mine died the 2nd
>> winter.
>> >> Maybe I had them in a bad spot.  They were pretty, very ferny, so
>> could
>> >> go
>> >> somewhere more central than I had them.
>> >>
>> >> My neighbors are weird.  I had raspberries near the fence for a
>> while.
>> >> Me,
>> >> I'd help myself to my neighbor's fruit, if it came through the fence,
>> >> but
>> >> they reached over the fence and hacked at them.  Barbarians.
>> >>
>> >> Glad to hear your rain has stopped for a bit.
>> >> My weeds were getting the better of me, too, especially the pesky
>> wild
>> >> grape.  I have a gardener who comes in when I call her, for a fee of
>> >> course,
>> >> so I called her and asked her to tackle the worst of the weeding.
>> >> Barrels-full of weeds and vines.  And she sprayed the poison ivy,
>> which
>> >> would have been all over me.  Worth it, just for that.
>> >> Tracy
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> -----Original Message-----
>> >> From: Ag-eq [mailto:ag-eq-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Nella
>> Foster
>> >> via
>> >> Ag-eq
>> >> Sent: Sunday, July 12, 2015 7:06 AM
>> >> To: Agricultural and Equestrean Division List
>> >> Cc: nfoster at extremezone.com
>> >> Subject: Re: [Ag-eq] Garden
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Tracy:
>> >>
>> >> as usual your garden sounds wonderful.  Have you ever thought of
>> taking
>> >> the
>> >> classes to become a master gardener?
>> >>
>> >> They offer the classes here at the local university and county
>> extention
>> >> office might do it to, not sure.
>> >>
>> >> We have had so much rain I should have planted water lilies.
>> >>
>> >> The lettuce drown, but the chinese cabbage was beautiful.  The red
>> and
>> >> green
>> >> head cabbage didn't do so well, the heads were really small, but
>> good.
>> >> I'm
>> >> starting to get lots of peppers and tomatoes.  I picked the first
>> >> cucumber
>> >> yesterday and the yellow squash are coming on.  I didn't plant much
>> >> since my
>> >> raised beds aren't finished.  My herbs are beautiful and I've been
>> >> cooking
>> >> with them and drying for the winter.
>> >>
>> >> The little fruit trees I planted look great; I hope to find a couple
>> >> more to
>> >> put out there.  The butterfly bushes are blooming I just planted them
>> in
>> >> the
>> >> spring, so didn't know they would the first year.  Also the tiger
>> lilies
>> >> bloomed, there were a lot of them.
>> >>
>> >> Do you have asparagus?
>> >>
>> >> I would like to start a bed, but have been told it's hard to get
>> >> started.
>> >> What is your opinion on this?
>> >>
>> >> If I were your neighbor I would be very tempted to join the animals
>> and
>> >> help
>> >> myself to a few blueberries!
>> >>
>> >> What is everyone else up to?
>> >>
>> >> It's actually clear today, the third day in a row, so am going to try
>> >> and
>> >> get caught up outside.  The weeds are growing faster than I can pull
>> >> them.
>> >>
>> >> Nella
>> >> Quoting Tracy Carcione via Ag-eq <ag-eq at nfbnet.org>:
>> >>
>> >> > Last week, I started getting a few cherry tomatoes, which is early
>> for
>> >> > around here.
>> >> >
>> >> > I’ve gotten some nice turnips.  I sautéed the greens with a bit of
>> >> > olive oil and garlic, and mixed them with pasta and peas.  Yum.
>> >> >
>> >> > I’m getting a bit of lettuce, though it’s getting hot, so it may
>> not
>> >> last.
>> >> >
>> >> > I’ve gotten some fava beans, which are like giant peas.
>> >> >
>> >> > The raspberries are done, and were delicious.  The blueberry in the
>> >> > sun has lots of fruit, though I have trouble figuring out when it’s
>> >> > ripe, and the critters are getting them.
>> >> >
>> >> > The apple tree is loaded with apples.  It took a year off last
>> year,
>> >> > as the experts on the radio said it would after a big crop the year
>> >> > before.  I expect a great harvest, starting probably late August.
>> >> >
>> >> > The squash is coming on, and the passionflower is blooming.  It’s
>> >> > supposed to produce passionfruit, which will be interesting.
>> >> >
>> >> > Some of the roses are blooming, as are the summersweet and lilies,
>> so
>> >> > things smell great.
>> >> >
>> >> > The coreopsis and cone flowers are doing really great, too, and
>> should
>> >> > bloom all summer.  And the butterfly bush is getting ready to do
>> its
>> >> stuff, too.
>> >> >
>> >> > I love summer!
>> >> >
>> >> > And I love this time of year, where a lot of what we eat is coming
>> >> > from the garden or the farmers’ market.  And lots of fresh fruit!
>> >> >
>> >> > Tracy
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> > _______________________________________________
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>> >> >
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
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