Posted by wilde on September 28th, 2006 — Posted in Vegetable
It is really wonderful to have some culinary herbs planted near the front door. Volunteer basil plants sprang up this spring where we planted some basil last year. Periodically the tops are snipped back or leaves are harvested for the kitchen.
Basil bunches provide leaves for pesto pasta sauce.
Borage sprouted out of my herb planting disaster after I dumped the flats in the garden. It’s really starting to flower now that September is here and gone. The bright blue flowers are almost a cornflower blue. Borage would look stunning as an edge plant around a flowerbed.
Borage volunteered in the garden to show off its blue flowers.
The giant blue hyssop did not reach giant status this year, maybe next year. The flowers are not so blue now, but you can see that many flowers are packed closely together on the terminal spikes. Toss one of these on a salad or dinner plate for an anise-tasting treat of a different consistency. The flower heads have a spongy sort of feel when you bite down. The anise flavor doesn’t quite appear at first taste, but rather comes along as you chew the leaves or flowers. Quite nice as a palate cleanser.
Giant blue hyssop flower heads are most impressive in size and taste.
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Posted by wilde on September 19th, 2006 — Posted in Vegetable
Today we harvested the Walla Walla onions from the garden because the tops had died back sufficiently. The once green tails are now brown and dried. The excess dirt was brushed off taking care not to remove the outer layers of skin. The tops were cut back to a couple inches in length.
The onions were placed on a plastic sheet in a protected area that receives sun. The warmth will help to dry the onions for winter storage. Next year, I think we’ll plant two flats of these sweet onions - they are really delicious!
Drying the Walla Walla onions – each onion will be set apart so that no onion touches another while drying.
The weather forecast calls for a snap of cold air, not a frost yet, but cold enough to stop the growth of the Zone 11 Stevia. I harvested the Stevia from the garden, just before it would begin to flower. I considered bringing in the plant to overwinter it, but decided to get a new plant next year instead.
To harvest the Stevia Sweet Herb I used a pair of pruners to cut near the base of each stem that was 2-4 feet tall. I gathered two or three stems together and tied them with twine at the base. The twine was about 2 feet longer than needed for tying the branches together so that it could be used for hanging the herbs.
The herbs were taken to the “drying attic” where we have some spare room set aside just for the purpose of drying herbs. In the center of the room are rafters that the herbs are strung along.
The walls and ceiling of the drying attic are completely finished so there is no worry of loose insulation or anything contaminating the plants stored there. A really nice feature in this attic is the thermostat-controlled exhaust fan. If the temperature gets too hot or cold the thermostat kicks the fan on to bring in some fresh air.
The drying attic with dried herbs hanging near the exhaust fan.
The length of twine holding the Stevia branches together was looped over the rafter with one hand while the other hand held the Stevia bundle so it wouldn’t hit the floor. One hand tied the twine in a couple overhang knots to secure it in place in an upside-down position. This job would be a little easier with an extra hand, but I managed to do it ok by myself. Remember, the herbs will be getting light as they dry so you don’t need to tie expert knots.
Sweet Stevia hanging upside down in the drying attic.
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Posted by wilde on September 15th, 2006 — Posted in Animal, Vegetable
Well, it’s the middle of September and the potted mums are starting to open their buds. Fall colors are just around the corner and the second crop of lettuce in the vegetable garden is coming along nicely. Some brilliant purple asters along the edge of the woods are now in bud. Can’t wait to see their faces again!
Liriope is also planted along the edge of the woods and it’s blooming much later here than the grouping planted in the middle of the backyard that gets more sun. Never did see the berries of the first liriope flowers. Perhaps a bird or some little critter enjoyed them for lunch.
Liriope near the woods edge is just now flowering.
I obtained a couple starts of New Jersey tea while in upstate New York. I transplanted them to an area adjacent to the woods, near a white oak and a small white pine. The area receives filtered morning sun and is mostly sunny in the early afternoon.
New Jersey Tea naturally occurs in glades, which are open spaces in woods, so the edge of the woods should be a good location. I mixed in some compost and lots of sand to increase the drainage in our heavy clay soil. Between the stones and the clay there is almost no organic matter.
New Jersey Tea leaves showing their characteristic three parallel veins curving towards the leaf tips.
New Jersey Tea, Ceanothus americanus, also known as Red Root, was used extensively in making tea. Native Americans used the root tea for a variety of ailments because of its astringent, expectorant and sedative qualities. Care must be taken in its use as a root alkaloid is mildly hypotonic. The leaf tea was an oriental tea substitute and quite popular during the Revolutionary War.
The flowering season is coming to a close in the next few weeks. Marigolds still look great, but the portulacas are fading without the strong summer sun. The purple cone flowers are now sporting their brown and blackish seed heads. The butterfly bush is one of the few blooming plants we have left.
Beautiful blooming butterfly bush bares its blossom to the buzzing bee.
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