16 June 2010

herbs!

A few weeks ago I put together an herb box just like this one as a gift for my sister.
The fun bit was twisting some pink wire into words to label the different plants:
oregano
sage
rosemary
basil
chives
thyme
parsley
mint
 and decorating a bit. I think it turned out nicely!
 A few of the herbs had a sprig or two reaching out beyond the shape of the plant, so I snipped them off to make it look prettier. Stuck in a small water glass this sprig each of rosemary and mint, pinch a bit off for cooking now and then.
 Then I noticed the Mint had grown a few long roots,
 so I potted it up. 
And after smelling all the lovely fresh scents, I had to pick up a little Oregano plant
 for my outside garden. When I tucked it in near the tomatoes,
noticed one of my Basil plants (which have grown very large!) is already forming flower heads.

5 comments:

MOM said...

I was hoping I'd get to see a picture of the herb garden. I heard it was a great success and you have been taking orders.

Jeane said...

Yes! I couldn't figure out how to wrap it, so I gave it to her at her place, not the party. But some of her friends saw it afterward, and now they several of them want one, too!

chrisa511 said...

OMG that is SUCH A fantastic gift idea!!! I would never have thought of that, but I'm so doing this now for people who would like it. In fact, I may make up one of these for my dad for his birthday coming up (already finished for father's day :p) as he loves to cook! What's the pretty purple flower in the box? You're so creative Jeane :)

Jeane said...

I think the little blue flowers are called Speedwell, but I'll have to look at the plant tag (in empty pot out in my shed)and get back to you on that.

Actually, if it is speedwell, it probably wasn't a good choice for the box. That plant spreads out with a dense mat, it's supposed to be a groundcover. I didn't know! And mint spreads via underground runners too, can be invasive and shove out other plants. (Never put mint in the ground in your garden, always keep it in a pot!)

So... next time I do one of these I'm going to do a bit more research on how much space the plants need. I don't want to give someone an overcrowded box where the plants aren't going to thrive!

chrisa511 said...

I learned the hard way about mint a few years back :p We seem to finally have gotten rid of it all! It took over!! Now, the only mint that I have is kept in a pot and it provides us with plenty!