sustainable-sam: herbalwellness: Chamomile (Chamaemelum mobile)- An herb we all know for its calming properties, but has a few more cool things than you may think. Digestion Soothes nerves Sleep/ insomnia Kidney/spleen/bladder issues Circulation Drug withdrawl Regulates menstrual flow Uterine tonic Antispasmodic Diaphoretic (stimulates sweat glands, good for fevers)  Planted some of this in a bed, and am going to border part of the Hulgekultur with some as well. After we harvest some lavender, I’ll attempt drying both together for one of my favorite tea combinations.

sustainable-sam:

herbalwellness:

Chamomile (Chamaemelum mobile)-

An herb we all know for its calming properties, but has a few more cool things than you may think.

  • Digestion
  • Soothes nerves
  • Sleep/ insomnia
  • Kidney/spleen/bladder issues
  • Circulation
  • Drug withdrawl
  • Regulates menstrual flow
  • Uterine tonic
  • Antispasmodic
  • Diaphoretic (stimulates sweat glands, good for fevers) 

Planted some of this in a bed, and am going to border part of the Hulgekultur with some as well. After we harvest some lavender, I’ll attempt drying both together for one of my favorite tea combinations.

(via botanikopress)

Inspiration for an Urban Kitchen Garden.

Tucked snugly around a terra cotta garden cloche in raised beds: lettuces, chives, rhubarb, and borage occupy a fairly small space. More ideas for the modern urban kitchen gardener include the use of creeping thyme as a ground cover and growing herbs and other vegetables in pots vertically, by arranging them on a vintage step ladder. The cold frame is built into the eaves of an A-frame structure. Take a look at your own outdoor space, and figure out which areas can be transformed into a more serviceable garden. 

Photos from the Malvern Spring Gardening Show by Sally Nex.

The Lavender Labyrinth, Cherry Point Farm and Market, Michigan. Upper photo: Barbara Bull. Designed by Conrad Heiderer. Installed 2004. 

Inside the stacked-stone circle that encloses the labyrinth, lies a beautifully-orchestrated sensory bouquet, created with more than fifty kinds of herbs, including several varieties of parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, basil, and calendula. The 26 arbors surrounding the herb garden were built with 52 posts, representing the weeks of the year. Outside the stone circle, rows of lavender planted on mounds of concentric circles, look like waves of undulating sunbeams surrounding the labyrinth. 

The labyrinth was designed in the style of a 12-point vesica piscis pattern (“Flower of Life”), in which the center of two equal circles are off set by a distance equal to the circle radii. The ancient Egyptians practiced sacred geometry based on the shape of the vesica piscis, where it can still be seen today at the Temple of Osiris, Abydos, Egypt. 

Lower photo: Flower of Life, Luca Giarelli / CC-BY=SA 3.0 from the portal of an ancient house, Erbanno, Val Camonica, Italy. 

motherearthnewsmag: Preserving Herbs for Best Flavor By Vicki Mattern What’s the best way to preserve culinary herbs?  It’s best to dry herbs that have pronounced flavors and tough or needle-like leaves — such as rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano, lavender, mint and bay. Freeze herbs with more subtle flavors and tender leaves — such as parsley, cilantro and chervil. Preserving basil is the exception: It dries well, but its flavor is brighter if frozen.

motherearthnewsmag:

Preserving Herbs for Best Flavor

By Vicki Mattern

What’s the best way to preserve culinary herbs? 

It’s best to dry herbs that have pronounced flavors and tough or needle-like leaves — such as rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano, lavender, mint and bay. Freeze herbs with more subtle flavors and tender leaves — such as parsley, cilantro and chervil. Preserving basil is the exception: It dries well, but its flavor is brighter if frozen.

(via uglytomatoes)

Flowering Vegetable Bouquet: 1  Carrot: Delightful lace umbels for months.Season July-November 2 Garlic chives: Strong sturdy stems and flowers that will last for ten days.Season July-October 3 Orach: Very useful in bouquets.Season September-October 4 Chinese broccoli (Kai-lan): Fastest growing broccoli with white flowers and lots of side shoots.Season Spring-autumn from several sowings 5 Red basil: Dark wine colour and a perfect scent.Season August-October 6 Leek: Very useful, long-lasting flowers.Season August-September Combinations created by: Peter Bauwens, Gardens Illustrated 

Flowering Vegetable Bouquet:

1  Carrot: Delightful lace umbels for months.
Season July-November

2 Garlic chives: Strong sturdy stems and flowers that will last for ten days.
Season July-October

3 Orach: Very useful in bouquets.
Season September-October

4 Chinese broccoli (Kai-lan): Fastest growing broccoli with white flowers and lots of side shoots.
Season Spring-autumn from several sowings

5 Red basil: Dark wine colour and a perfect scent.
Season August-October

6 Leek: Very useful, long-lasting flowers.
Season August-September

Combinations created by: Peter Bauwens, Gardens Illustrated