Most activity on your plot is tied to the seasons, but this month we take a look at one project that can be started off at almost any time of the year – your own herb garden.
As we’ve taken to growing more and more of our own food so we have found ourselves getting increasingly interested in trying out new recipes to make the most of all those lovely fresh flavours. Recipe books abound in our kitchen and they all have one thing in common – the use of herbs, and what a variety of them there is!
Whether you’re looking for a sprig of fresh mint, a handful of rosemary, or some chopped chives what could be better than being able to choose and harvest them right outside your own back door?
Choosing the right site for your herb garden is important, and outside your back door is often a good place to start! Planting near the kitchen makes it easy to pop out for a few fresh leaves when you are cooking, and many of us have a patio which can easily become home to a variety of container grown herbs. Herbs can make an attractive, fragrant and tasty addition to your borders, or you may prefer to opt for a permanent herb bed. If this is the case you will need to give some consideration to containing the growth of some of the more vigorous varieties. This can be done by dividing the bed (a cartwheel design made with bricks is very attractive), or by using pots sunk into the ground.
Herbs comprise of both annual plants, that germinate, grow, flower and die within the year, and perennials that will grow on from one year to the next. Whatever you plant, you will need to find out which type it is and the conditions that it favours. The more hardy perennial types such as thyme, rosemary or mint may be happy outside all year round. One of the advantages of using containers is that tender varieties can be moved under cover during the worst of the winter and even tender annuals like basil can have their season extended by lifting plants to pot up and keep on the kitchen windowsill as autumn approaches.
One of the great things about a herb garden is that it can be continually evolving. Look upon it as just the start of a collection, that will grow with time. Adding a new variety can be as simple as picking up a plant that takes your fancy on a trip out and adding a new pot to your collection.
As well as using herbs fresh from the garden, you can dry leaves by hanging in bunches and then storing in an airtight container, or use ice cube trays to freeze chopped up leaves with a drop of water. Store the cubes in polythene bags, great for adding to a stew in the middle of winter!
Nature tends to dictate what we do in the garden and sometimes it’s just too late to plant those seeds, too early to prune that bush and incredibly you are already on top of the weeding. So what can you do to fulfil that urge to work the land? Why start a herb garden of course!
Jobs for September:-
If you are growing pumpkins for Halloween, you need to support the fruit as it swells and raise it up to keep it off the wet ground and deter slugs. Restrict each plant to no more than three fruits.
Clear up finished crops, clean and store any supports or netting for future use.
Keep planting winter lettuces for a supply of fresh leaves right through autumn.
Fancy fresh strawberries next year? Now is a good time to get new plants established.
Add support to Brussels sprouts by drawing up earth around the stems, or using canes.