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Organic
Gardening |
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The new herb garden
- Your new herb garden can be a part of the landscape for many
years. Before you start planting, use graph paper to plan
a design that's attractive and useful.
- When planning your herb garden, take into account how tall
and how big each plant is likely to get. That info is usually
included with the seeds or seedlings you buy.
- If you have enough room, one way to make herb gardening easier
is to have a "nursery" garden where you grow plants that will
be moved to the permanent herb garden. In the nursery, you
can experiment with plant types and growing techniques with minimum
risk. And you can always have something to fill in empty
spots in the herb garden.
- If you start by planting the perennial herbs, you'll have a
head start next year. Some popular perennial herbs include
angelica, bergamot, black cohosh (grows in the shade!), catnip,
comfrey, purple coneflower (echinacea), feverfew, horehound, horseradish,
hyssop, lavender, lemon balm, lemon grass, lovage, marjoram, mint,
oregano, rosemary, sage, winter savory, sorrel, tarragon, thyme,
valerian, and yarrow.
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| Mint
is one of the most useful and easy to grow herbs in
the garden, with dozens of varieties to choose from. Unfortunately,
it's also very aggressively invasive. Mint spreads by sending
out underground runners, so to keep your mint under control, you'll
need a barrier around it, preferably at least 6-12 inches into the
ground. One good organic choice is to use a 12-inch section
of ceramic pipe sunk into the ground (on end, of course) with the
mint planted inside. You can also use aluminum sheeting, available
at hardware store.
And don't forget to pinch the tips as your mint plants grow to
encourage bushiness.
The easiest way
to dry your herbs is to put individual sprigs together
to form a small bunch, secure the stem end with a rubber band and
hang to dry out of the sun. Keep the bunches small so the
herbs can get enough air circulation to dry quickly and not get
moldy. Once they're thoroughly dry, store them in canning
jars. Storing them whole will preserve more flavor, but crumbling
them will use many fewer canning jars. Be sure to label the
jars with the name of the herb and the date.
You can also freeze
herbs. This is especially good for
herbs that don't dry easily like chives, dill and fennel.
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