La Belle's Hobby Farm: The Plan Unveiled!

‎The best laid schemes of mice and men. . .
~ Robert Burns

I was going to publish this on my regular Wednesday Hobby Farm post, but with all the Pope news going on, I waited a day. 

 

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nd gardeners too!

Last weekend, I planned on getting some direct sow seeds into the ground but the soil was still too sodden and unworkable.  Garden gloves fingers crossed that this weekend the rain holds off and I can finally get those sugar snaps in the ground ~ along with a bunch of other direct sow beauties.

Given my love for lists, spreadsheets, and plans in general ~ whether I follow them or not is beside the point! ~ I signed up for an online Garden Planner with the Farmer’s Almanac. It is awesomesauce!  It must be the same one that powers the Mother Earth News one, because it looks the same.  But my free trial ran out on that one, so I signed up again. 

Here is my current draft plan for my direct sow / herb garden. 

I’ll print it out this weekend and see if my vision matches up with reality.  It rarely does, but hey ~ that’s why we dream!

Oremus pro invicem,

~ Mikaela

Did you get any seeds in the ground last weekend?  What are you doing in the garden this weekend?

Top Five Friday: Herbals - To Tea or Not to Tea?

Ecstasy is a glass full of tea and a piece of sugar in the mouth.
~ Alexander Puskin

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ontinuing our celebration of National Iced Tea Month, today I offer up my five favorite herbal teas.

There is nothing more comforting than a cup of tea.  Add some homemade shortbread, a good book, and your favorite lounge-at-home outfit, and you’re set to soothe those commute/misbehaved kids/unfeeling partner/insert your downer here-shattered nerves!

Herbal teas are made from herbs (imagine that!) versus leaves of the Camellia sinensis.  So technically it isn’t tea, it’s a tisane, which Merriam-Webster defines as an infusion used as a beverage or for medicinal effects and which comes from the Latin ptisana ~ to crush barley.  And that is what is done here: the herbs are crushed to make “tea.”



Photo courtesy Desislava Vasileva



Just a reminder: if you are taking prescription meds, some herbs may interact or counteract them.  So read up on your herbs carefully before making a cuppa!  The Herb Companion is a great resource, as well as my mother of all go-to books ~ Nutritional Healing. 

Stomach Ease – Yogi Tea

Love this stuff!  It really does help ease a tummy ache ~ although if one has overindulged, a detox fast is your better bet!

Organic Chamomile with Lavender – Traditional Medicinals

It goes without saying that when putting something in your body, it is best to put in something that hasn’t had toxins sprayed all over it.  TM has great organic teas and this one is my favorite versions of chamomile.  Love the lavender scent! 

Allergy alert! If ragweed gives you the sniffles and makes your eyes weepy-red, give chamomile a pass.

Fairytale Tea

I cannot sing the praises of Mountain Rose Herbs enough.  I buy oils from them and have tried a few of their teas.  Haven’t been disappointed yet.  This tea is scrumptious!  My goal is to try all of them. 

Honeybush Vanilla Herb Tea

Note: I don’t know if this version is organic, but I believe Tazo does make an organic one.  Great flavor, pairs well with cream ~ or in my dairy-free world ~ coconut milk.  A calming tea to drink right before bedtime.

Lemongrass

Grate some fresh ginger in a pot of this and your sinuses will clear and your tummy will settle!

And now to put the kettle on!

Oremus pro invicem,

~ Mikaela

What herbal teas do you enjoy? 

La Belle's Hobby Farm: Raised Beds Suck!

Gardening requires lots of water - most of it in the form of perspiration. 

~ Lou Erickson

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aised garden beds are a pain in the dupa! Week Six of La Belle’s Hobby Farm Project.  All is not going well.  In fact, it is not going at all! 

I hate raised garden beds.

And smug lumber jockeys who try to sell you treated wood for said raised garden beds.

And 3 inch screws that claim they don’t need pre-drilled holes. Liars.

And lumber that won’t lay flat on the ground while you try to screw them together.

I hate them all!!

But I have 48 baby tomatoes that need a permanent place to lay their green heads.  So now I’m scouting around looking for the best home (lots o’ sun!) for these little guys, and then it’s off to find an inexpensive, used rototiller.

I know!

All the research says raised beds.  You hand till, and leave the worms intact to do the heavy lifting of aerating the soil.

But honey, do you know how much dirt I would have to buy in order to fill up a raised bed?  Whoever came up with dirt cheap has never shopped at the local nursery or Lowe’s for organic dirt for a raised bed.

Plus, the soil already there is rich and ready to support and sustain my precious plants.  So I can get away with just adding compost, etc and not worry about pricey organic dirt.

So the raised beds are out, gardening the old-fashioned way is in.

Well, not completely old-fashioned: it’s not feasible or possible for me to hook an ox up to a plow and turn up dirt.  If you know of a greener way to plow a field, email me or share in the comments!

In another news, the three basil plants are surviving; I pinched their little purple flowers off.  This ensures they reach their full potential, both in flavor and production.  For more about growing herbs, visit Margaret Roach’s A Way to Garden – Herb Q&A.  She highlights some wonderful herb-growing advice from her friend Marie Rose Nichols McGee.  As I’ve mentioned before, Margaret’s blog is my second go-to site for gardening advice ~ second only to Mother Earth News!

I have Friday off, so wish me luck on my rototiller buying adventure!

Oremus pro invicem,

~ Mikaela

Ever start a project and then quit out of frustration?  Maybe you decided on a work-around instead.  Share your experience with me and my readers!