Details

• Sylvia Colles
• 2 September 2019
• Herb Garden

Busy butterflies and bees

Each time I’ve been weeding in Woldumar’s herb garden these last few weeks of summer, I’ve been tempted to trim the hyssop into a more hedge-like shape, but there are still small white butterflies working hard in the hyssop flowers.  The bees are buzzing in the anise hyssop (Agastache) and oregano.  The garlic chives are in full blossom and there are a few second blossoms in the regular chives.  Practically all the seeds I start...Read More  

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• Sylvia Colles
• 10 August 2019
• Herb Garden

Late Summer Garden News

The bee balm (Monarada) is nearly finished blooming in the herb garden.  A few flowers have managed to escape through the fence.  The lavender flowers of the anise hyssop (Agastache) are now in blossom. This plant is actually neither anise nor hyssop, but it does smell like anise.  Also blooming are chamomile, yarrow, and feverfew.  The colors in the garden are not as vibrant as they are in the spring but are still lovel...Read More  

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• Sylvia Colles
• 26 April 2019
• Herb Garden

Spring Fever & Herbs update

Still suffering from spring fever – Still starting seeds. Today it was time to plant the seeds that need to be started 4-6 weeks before the first expected frost-free date.  Nepatella (Calamintha nepeta) is a culinary herb.  Also known as calaminta, the plant's green leaves have a strong, distinctive flavor that's described as a cross between mint and oregano.  All the new seeds packed for 2019 except for the ones that need to be sown...Read More  

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• Sylvia
• 10 April 2019
• Herb Garden

Herb Garden Seeds Update

Sylvia has been busy getting a jump start on work in the Herb Garden.  Here is her latest update on this year's plans for plants she is starting from seed:   The lavender cotton (Santolina) is out of the frig and on the heat pad
   (see previous blog for more information on this plant).     The rosemary has germinated only sparsely, but they were old seeds.  Some seeds are viable for many years while others may be good for only ...Read More  

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• Sylvia Colles
• 27 March 2019
• Herb Garden

Herb Garden Addition

Spring is apparently here, at least the calendar says so. The seeds for lavender cotton, which, by the way, is neither lavender nor cotton, have gone into the refrigerator for a two-week cold treatment. Nature has created a variety of locks to put on seeds so that they will germinate only when conditions are right for success.  The two weeks in the frig opens the first lock.  After that the seeds go on a special heating pad at 70 degrees ...Read More  

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• Sylvia Colles
• 8 September 2018
• Herb Garden

“Cow slobber” – a plant?

Now I know why it’s called Cow Slobber.  When in blossom, spiderwort is a gorgeous plant, beautiful blue flowers with sunshine yellow pistols and stamens.  When it is dying and laying its stems on the ground, it becomes a slimy mess.  I’m not really familiar with cow slobber, but it’s probably looks just like the decaying gooey spiderwort mess I cleaned up.  Common names for herbs often refer to the plant’s appearance or to some ...Read More  

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• Joanne Tillotson
• 1 November 2017
• Herb Garden

Added To The Herb Garden...

New to the garden this year, lady's mantle (Alchemilla mollis) is not well known, but it is a beautiful addition to our herb garden. The botanical name means little magical one. Medieval alchemists believed the plant had magical powers and gathered the dew drops captured by the leaves to make potions they thought could cure a wide variety of ailments. Early Christians dedicated it to the Virgin Mary because they thought the scalloped edge of the ...Read More