James asks…
Do you grow your own vegetables?
And do you think there is too much chemicals in food today?
GardenersCardiff answers:
Yes we have a garden that has tomatoes, cucumber, radishes, corn, onion, peppers, squash, zucchini, green beans, ect. We also grow our own herbs. It’s all organic. So you it’s fresh and you get more nutrients. Once picked, after a day or two, produce starts to loose it’s nutrients. So store bought isn’t as good for you. Not to mention all of the pesticides. Yuck.
Charles asks…
Should I wash my own home-grown herbs?
I picked and pruned some leaves off of my basil plant that I’ve been growing. I haven’t sprayed it with any pesticides or anything like that, just water. Should I wash the leaves before I use them, or leave them be? I’ll keep them in the freezer until I’m ready to use them, but I’m afraid washing them if they don’t need it may lessen the flavor.
GardenersCardiff answers:
Well, dust settles on the leaves, so YES, I would advise washing them… I wash all fruits and vegetables whether grown by me or not, on general principles.
Mary asks…
Growing a herb garden?
I have a mixed herb pack of: parsley, basil, chives, mint, dill, thyme, marjoram & garlic chives.
I would prefer to have them share a pot/ pots so what is the best mixture? How many is enough in one pot? Is a long shallow (25cm deep) pot good or is a deep circle rimmed pot better? Need to conserve space and dont have many pots at hand.
Will be grown under glass in a reasonably sized greenhouse.
Thanks
GardenersCardiff answers:
It’s going to be an experiment for sure. I think 25cm deep is pretty good. A bit more might be ideal but I still think for herbs, it should be just fine. The question is really how wide is the pot? How much circumference are you working with? I think you could be fine with parsley, basil, both chives in one pot. I would put the bushier ones towards the back and chives more in the front(assuming this is a circle, and not a window planter). The thing about chives if you do not know, is per seed is per little chive grass(same for garlic chives). If it’s a window planter sort of plant each in their own square/space along the planter.
Basil, try maybe 3 seeds and pick the two strongest plants. Per seed a plant will get tall and strong. If you only want one basil plant, pick only one seedling which looks strongest after it’s first true leaves appear. True leaves appear about 4 or so weeks, after the initial “baby” leaves. They will be round and distinctly look like fresh basil.
I would personally put no more than 4 herbs together in one pot, 3 per pot ideally. Thyme can get quite sprawling, as can mint. Dill, marjoram I am not as aware of as I haven’t grown them. Mint itself can be very difficult to get going. You need patience. At least with peppermint the seeds are so tiny, they need delicate watering(this is true with many very small herb seeds. A spray bottle is handy for this issue) as to not bury the seeds too deep until they get a start, and can take a lot of your patience waiting or them to spout. My peppermint took well over a month to sprout.
Be prepared to cut back your herbs as necessary as they become matured plants or they may choke out other herbs in the pot you’re growing together.
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Richard asks…
What’s an easy plant to grow for an apartment?
I recently moved into an apartment and I’m very interested in growing my own veggies. Mostly peppers and herbs. I was thinking about something small I could keep out in the patio.
Also, is there any veggies that I can grow indoors? Please keep in mind I’m a single guy in a tiny apartment so it doesn’t have to be a huge arrangement.
thanks
GardenersCardiff answers:
Since winter is coming on, you should plant winter vegetables. Things like peas, beans, broccoli, cabbage, radishes, and lettuce. I once grew about a half-dozen red romaine lettuce plants. Every three days or so, I could go remove the outermost leaves of each plant and have enough for a good salad. I just kept doing that all winter until they finally went to seed in spring.
Peas are pretty rewarding, too. When they’re immature, the pods are edible, and the raw peas are sweet and crunchy. If you have a handful of plants, you can get enough pea pods for a little snack every couple of days. Or, you can collect the peas and keep them in the fridge for a side dish every week or so. Or, put the raw peas in the salad you made with your lettuce.
Herbs can be grown inside in a window planter. Basil, oregano, and parsley are very easy to grow. And, you can use the fresh basil to make a balsamic vinagrette dressing for the salad you made with your lettuce and peas.
Betty asks…
How do i go about growing my own herbs like basil and parsley?
I watch alot of the cooking shows on the food network and they always have basil and parsley in pots on their cabinets…I would love to have my own but dont know how to go about it.
GardenersCardiff answers:
Go to your local nursery or home depot or somethin and buy them – rosemary is nice too, it will eventually grow into a nice bush that smells wonderful in the summer
if you like or need a good groundcover, you could get some creeping thyme
but they will also have your basil and parsley, and it beats growing it from a seed
Sandy asks…
What is the best way to make perfume from my herb garden and how do I make the herbs into essences?
I am about to start to start to build my own herb garden – I have the plans for which herbs I will grow. I want to start making perfumes but don’t know how to make herbs into essences. Which way is the best to do so and which is the best way to make perfume?
Please help,
All contributions greatly received. xx
GardenersCardiff answers:
There is already a great deal out there on this. Go to your library and for a book on making perfumes. I quick way if you already have something going is to buy cheap vodka and soak the herb in then strain through a coffee filter. I made some about 12 years ago using things like coffee, vanilla extract, and magnolia oil. Remember that good perfume always has a fouls smelling odor in dilute quanties to enhance the stuff that smells good. It is called an earth note. People have used everything from the scent glands of musk deer and civet cats to manure, I used garlic
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