Gardening

[Rose White]

My own potpourri. Lavender and Russian sage.

Heavenly! Never had luck with lavender but my Russian sage is doing well, if a little leggy on my shady patio. I like to use it for cooking with fish or pumpkin. Your potpourri is inspiring me to make some with Russian sage and rosemary.

 

[Rose White]

Harvested some monk’s pepper last night. Found a tree growing in the neighborhood that is loaded with the seeds. Also called chaste tree, Vitex is supposed to be helpful for nursing mothers and anyone who wants to cool their libido hence the name. The aroma is kind of like a cross between black pepper, tarragon, and fennel.

 

[Dynamic]

The blackberries are delicious today

Probably my favorite to grow


I’ve barely been consistent so I’m excited to have stuff to eat from home

 

[Friday]

The strawberries, right now, are the best I’ve had in YEARS. Deep red & vibrant to their core. Mind blowing (local?) year for strawberries.

 

[Rose White]

Some chitchat for the gardeners…

Favorite herb (in the moment—I know choosing one is impossible!)
You are growing now,
have grown in the past,
and one you would like to grow?

For me:
Growing now… oregano
In the past… this mystery herb that I said smelled like “a sacred herbal hospital.” I know it was in the mint family, I thought it was skullcap.
Wish I could grow some day… motherwort

 

[Dynamic]

My favorite herb to grow right now is rosemary! I love to use it to make a cleaning spray (light duty but it is good/strong) and for my hair!

I use morherwort in a tea blend I make from bulk herbs @Rose White

 

[Rose White]

@Defaultxlove can you share your recipe for the cleaning spray and the tea blend?

I have a fave tea blend that I will share later, based on hibiscus.

 

[Friday]

My favorite herb to grow right now is rosemary! I love to use it to make a cleaning spray (light duty but it is good/strong) and for my hair!

I use morherwort in a tea blend I make from bulk herbs @Rose White

My parents have a 40yo rosemary bush with stalks/branches as thick as your wrist. That can -and has- been driven over, several times now, and just gets happier & happier for the mistreatment.

They get grumpy with me that I only want the lime green “baby” tops, when I’m cooking at theirs (it’s a 3 meter sized bush, ginormous, it’s not like I’m denuding it).

 

[Mach123]

And the cat

The tomatoes the pumpkins the sunflower the fly trap which is about to flower. Oh and the praying mantis, they are new this year or at least I never saw one here b4

 

[Dynamic]

@Rose White when it comes to recipes I don’t like to measure but I will read recipes to gauge generally how much of this or that (while resting)

I’ve purchased dried rosemary or used fresh
And for cleaning I use more rosemary than for hair rinse or hair tea some people call it

The cleaning solution I add lime or orange to-
-Or essential oils including tea tree or eucalyptus peppermint etc

After low boiling the rosemary (and any extras) for 15 minutes let it cool, strain and store in fridge unless you’ll use up fast so I tend to plan to use the entire cleaning solution that day or weekend

 

[Rose White]

The cleaning solution I add lime or orange to-
-Or essential oils including tea tree or eucalyptus peppermint etc

Do you just put the rinds in when boiling the rosemary.

That is brilliant by the way to use rosemary that way! It grows so prolifically! No vinegar?

And when you add the EO’s you just shake it a bunch before spraying? Don’t they separate?

Thank you for answering and going through this with me! I haven’t yet been able to embrace making my own herbal cleaners other than vinegar and water for countertops and baking soda for scrubbing the tub and sinks.

 

[Dynamic]

@Rose White yeah if I use that many essential oils I would just shake it but I mainly just make it pungent with rosemary and lemon. I boil the stem also but not many woody pieces

I can’t say I’ve never added vinegar
But it’s not my go to. I do love cleaning with vinegar tho!