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Grow Your Own Healing Herbs Part 3 |
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By Arizona Pottery
Post Last Updated: 12/21/2016 12:33:55 PM |
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Grow Your Own Healing Herbs Part 2 |
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Welcome back to our series on Growing your own healing herbs! |
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In the last entry we talked about the basics of growing herbs in garden planters. We covered everything from water, fertilizer, plant selection and of course pottery selection. In this entry we will get more specific, starting with the herbs Peppermint and lavender. Two very popular choices.
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| Peppermint: (Mentha x piperita) |
Peppermint is known for soothing your stomach and aiding in digestion. It has a familiar scent, and mild stimulating property. It makes a love addition to a bedroom where the fragrance is calming and inspirational.
Place next to your bed for a comforting sleep. Because it tend to creep and take over a garden, it's perfect for planting in a garden pot, where the roots will be contained. Peppermint loves shade but can handle direct sun if you make sure and keep the soil moist. The leaves of the peppermint plant are great and versatile to use.
They dry easily if you place them in a basket or drying rack, out of the sunlight. Toss a couple of time daily till crispy dry. Discard the stems when ready to use and store them away from heat. Each plant yields several harvests. For a stomach ache, try a cup of peppermint tea. Chilled tea makes a cooling body spray for a refreshing soak for hot days. |
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| Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) |
Prized for it's aroma, lavender is among the best herbs for easing stress and boosting mood. It's also antimicrobial and antiseptic. A perennial, lavender is best started from a nursery plant.
Be careful not to over water as this plant is sensitive. Bundle with a rubber band when ready to harvest and hang in a dark areas with good air circulation.
These bundles make great room fresheners or chop them and make a sachet. Use can use lavender to make a tea. Another great thing to do is use in bath water for a soothing soak. We love a potted lavender plants around the home, next to the bed, in the bathroom or anywhere you would enjoy this lovely fragrance.
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| Stay tuned to Part 3 where we will cover the herbs Basil & Thyme! |
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| Read more.....February in the garden. |
| Read more.....A few yas to keep your potted garden healthy! |
By Arizona Pottery
Post Last Updated: 12/21/2016 12:41:55 PM |
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Grow Your Own Healing Herbs Part 1 |
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Start your own apothecary potted garden with plants such as lavender, mint, lemon balm, and thyme. Make homemade remedies for stress, digestion, immunity and much more.
This is Part 1 of a series on achieving the best results. Enjoy! |
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| This time of year, as the plant world explodes with shoots stretching up toward the sun, we naturally tap into the deep, ancient urge to grow something. Medicinal herbs are among the most rewarding of garden projects, providing both a dose of aromatherapy and the materials to make high quality, inexpensive herbal products. Here is this series, you will learn how to grow and use six versatile herbs. All of these herbs mentioned grow well in garden planters or decorative containers, so there is no garden or yard even required!!! |
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Part 1 explores the basic needs of these herbs, considering soil, sun, food, water, air and of course planter options.
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Start by choosing a good, organic potting soil that provides good drainage and room for fragile roots to grow. Unless otherwise noted your herbs will thrive in full sun, so read your seed packets closely.
Water your potted herbs daily, ideally in the morning, until water drains out of the bottom of the planters drain hole into a saucer. Once the saucer fills with water be sure to pour it off so it doesn't stay full. The soil shouldn't stay soaked but it shouldn't dry out completely either.
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Use a balanced organic fertilizer according to the package directions. Remember that plants can be killed with kindness and take care not to overfeed or over water. Avoid crowding your plants. This will help cut down on any fungal or pest issues.
When it comes to selecting your planter or containers: use terra-cotta, stone, glazed or poly-resin design and style that meets your needs. You can go back to basics with a plain, Italian imported terra-cotta, sunbaked, clay pot, or add a splash of color with a nice shaped brightly colored glazed planter.
There is no right or wrong when choosing a pot to use. Just make sure that it does have a drain hole in the bottom for drainage. You can cover the drain hole with pot shards, packing peanuts, pot filler or any object that will let the water run out but keep the soil in place. |
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| In our next entry we will get specific no what herbs we recommend and what their specific needs are, so stay tuned! |
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By Arizona Pottery
Post Last Updated: 12/21/2016 12:50:51 PM |
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What To Plant Now! |
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| Below are the top 7 plants that you will want to grow this year. Each one is unique and lovely. Plan on setting them up in garden pottery and you should have a magnificent yard or patio! |
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| Fuschia x hybrida - Nice ruffled petal swirl like a flamenco dancers skirt. |
| Phormium Jubilee - It's leaves have cherry hued margins. |
| x Heucherella Stoplight - Nearly glows in light shades. |
| Echinacea Purpurea - Petals like royal feathers. |
| Poodle Skirt Dahlia - Poufs and pets add pizazz in hot pink. |
| Superb Grevillea - Apricot orange flowers. |
Kalanchoe thyrsiflora - Looks like a deep sea creature. AWESOME!
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Make a succulent live bouquet. For a striking display, arrange echeveria rosettes in a elegant vase or garden planter with other eye catching succulents. Try the burgundy flowered scabiosa, blue viburnum berries, string of pearls, all pictured above. Afterward, set the rosettes into decorative containers filled with succulent mix to start new plants. Dividing succulents is easy, saves money and fun to do. Give it a go!
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Go wild with foliage. To make an all foliage garden planter like the one show here, combine plants of various leaf sizes, shapes, colors, and textures. In this Hawaiian garden, the smooth, coffee and apricot hued leaves of ti plant contrast with a blue fan palm's corrugated fronds and elephants ears wavy green leaves.
Mounded red and green tillandsias add punch in the foreground. Your pots can be subdued and quite like the ones show or go with bold, bright ones to add to the foliage colors.
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| Read more.....Do it yourself backyard serenity. |
| Read more.....Sunflower seeds give energy. |
By Arizona Pottery
Post Last Updated: 12/21/2016 12:56:46 PM |
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Pot Grown Veggies |
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Vegetables that take up little space, such as radishes, carrots and lettuce, or crops that bear fruit over long periods, like tomatoes and peppers, are best suited to containers.
Other good options include cucumbers, onions, eggplant and squash. Staking might be needed for tall or vineing plants like tomatoes and cucumbers. Be sure to provide adequate drainage and quality pottery soil. |
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If you like this stacked look, use our Terracotta Italian imported low bowl garden planters. Each pot is imported directly from our supplier in Italy. Made of the finest terracotta clay, the beauty of these planter is hard to beat. Each pot comes with a drain hole.
Click here to see this pot... |
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| Read more.....Planting a potted rock garden. |
| Read more.....Watering your garden containers. |
By Arizona Pottery
Post Last Updated: 12/8/2016 11:27:49 AM |
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