Oct 2011, Garden no 15

GARDEN 2011 N0 15
Rain stopped play today

Rain stopped play today. It was windy when I went out, that would have been OK, but then it poured with rain, so here I am back indoors with out finishing off in the garden.
I opened up the shed, took every thing out and then the rain came down, I was soaked putting every thing away and once wet………….I thought I may as well take a couple more photos.
This is my new garden bench, it’s my old fish tank stand covered with a slab of reclaimed marble. What a lucky coincidence, my son-in-law had this slab of marble sitting in his shed, he doesn’t even know where it originally came from, and it’s a perfect fit. It’s a totally recycled/ reclaimed piece of garden furniture, its too heavy for any one to take away, it doesn’t need to be put away at the end of the day and it's multifunctional. I can sit here, watch the world go by and take a break, or I can use it as a work bench. In the winter when I’m not likely to be out enjoying the view, it can be used to stand pots on to keep them off the ground. As a bonus………….its a dam good looking  garden feature.
This is my new corner garden. Maybe you remember I heaped all the turf that was removed to create the vegetable patch into an unused corner of the garden and covered it with garden membrane and plastic for a few months. It didn’t take long for the grass to die off and the soil to settle. I dug it over, removed what was left of the grass roots and planted it up with new lavender and  heather. I added all the old lavender that was scattered around the garden in pots or odd corners. In the past I've lost lavender over the winter because its feet become too wet in the pots. This is a well drained site and I’m hoping the lavender  thrives here.
The new flower bed along the side is more established now, it should really come into its own next year. I have honeysuckle, jasmine, hydrangea, and a couple of other purple/ pink shrubs that I can’t remember the names of right now.
And it’s too wet to go out to the garden and check.
I wanted to do three things today, I wanted to prune back all the fruit canes, remove the grass and unwanted weeds from the ‘wild flower’ bed and bring in my geraniums to take cuttings and re-pot for over wintering indoors. I still have a good show of colour with the geraniums but if I leave them much longer I risk losing the whole lot to frost. Rain stopped play and I achieved none of that. The geraniums are still out there. They must be my priority now, they need to come indoors urgently.
The water in the pond is looking good, its clear, I can see the bottom and the duck weed is doing a good job of covering the surface. I'm quietly confident, as they say, of being able to put tadpoles back in again next year.
Lastly…………..can any one identify this for me please? I planted it from a packet of mixed herb seeds; it’s a good looking delicate, woody stemmed, aromatic plant. It stands about 8 inches tall and I recognise the smell, I just can’t quite identify exactly what it is.

Tags: garden, garden2011, plants, pond

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delete reply mitchylr wrote on Oct 17, '11 Excellent piece of recycling!! And it loooks good too!! I really like that corner garden :-))

delete reply bernardv wrote on Oct 17, '11 It looks lovely. I'm afraid I'm dreadful at gardening.

delete reply brendainmad wrote on Oct 17, '11 Have you tried looking online at a gardening site that has photos and descriptions of herbs?

delete reply kathyinozarks wrote on Oct 17, '11 Loved the garden tour--and I love that bench as well-yeh-love reuse for special items

delete reply greenwytch wrote on Oct 17, '11 LOVE LOVE LOVE the bench! and free is always a good thing, so well done! your new garden is looking very lovely. heather and lavender.....perfect! the border is looking great, everything looks quite healthy and happy. hopefully you will be able to tend to those geraniums. i just love them, too. the pond is looking really good and i sure do hope the frogs will come back and thrive for you. i honestly have no idea what that mystery plant is....it almost looks like a basil to me, but the leaves are quite different. pretty blossom....i will be curious to know if someone can identify it for you. happy Monday!

April 6, 2009, Multiply, Where did the week go & Lovage

WHERE DID THAT WEEK GO??.....and LOVAGE.

Can’t believe it’s a whole week since I’ve managed to get online for any length of time. Coping with the kitchen totally stressed me out and I needed a couple of days to recoup from the ordeal.

This last week has been the final week of term and I have been very, very busy at my work.
I’ve had more pupils outside getting involved in gardening projects.
We now have a herb garden, three potato barrels and lots more hedgerow bushes planted.
We also have beautiful planters either side of the main entrance with different heathers and lavender plants.
The Wild flowers we planted last year are beginning to grow and the woodland area is showing signs of spring. These kids really seem to take to the gardening.
Last weekend my PC died on me, thank heavens this time I have been backing up as I go. A while ago I bought a freestanding external hard drive, so glad I did because I have been using it religiously every night to back up any thing I had done that day on the computer. If I hadn’t done this I would have lost every thing. I have been so busy I haven’t had chance to get the PC looked at yet, I just hauled down my old laptop from the top shelf and have been making do with that. The lap top is ok………….only real problem is that it ‘lost’ its sound device a while ago, hence no videos. But apart for operating totally in ‘silent’ mode, the lap top does just fine until I get round to getting the PC looked at.
Now school is closed for the Easter break, two whole weeks without having to get up and go to work, oh bliss!! Already I’ve managed to get across the river to Tayport to visit a friend I don’t see very often. She made soup from the vegetables  she grows in her garden, flavoured with her own home grown herbs and washed down with wine she made from her berries last year. She gave me some Lovage……………….don’t think I’ve ever grown Lovage before. Any one know a good use for Lovage??? Sure you do, you probably have hundreds of uses for Lovage so please…… share your knowledge with me.

Two weeks is so little time to do every thing I plan to do. There is work in the garden, work in the kitchen, do a bit of drawing, do a lot of catching up here, fit all that around the inevitable babysitting and  still have time for the 5 day visit to my Mother and Sisters who live about 500 miles south of here.

But for now……………….it’s just very nice to have my kitchen back and round off my day with a bit of time here.

Tags: plants, herbs, eco-schools

Prev: Time for a New kitchen no 9
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delete reply aimlessjoys wrote on Apr 7, '09 What wonderful goings on! Surely lovage must be delightful, but I'm only familiar with it in name, sad to tell. Update when you've discovered more about it, please! Have Fun!

delete reply acousticeagle wrote on Apr 7, '09 Good to see you back. I'm not familiar with lovage at all, maybe it's called something else in Australia. I just had a quick look on Google. One site says :"The classic love root. Generally used to attract and hold a lover. Often used in the bath to become more attractive." Ok, so it smells nice, but I wouldn't be swimming in my bath with celery stalks. Maybe you need to have it dried first? All your gardening enterprises look very promising for later in the year. From little things, big things grow. I had a scale infestation on my new umbrella plant, but I doctored it yesterday and keeping watch for those scales if they reappear. It's my only indoor plant so I'm nurturing it. My system is old so, like you, I don't see videos either. I don't see or hear them. It used to happen, but not anymore. I'll get a new computer someday so I'm not worried.

delete reply hipppy wrote on Apr 7, '09 Lovage (Levisticum officinale Koch) Lovage fruits Lovage fruits (also termed seeds) Used plant part Of this plant, the leaves are most common as a spice. However, root and fruits have the same taste and may be used if a stronger lovage taste is desired; the root is used as a diuretic drug and may be available in a pharmacy, but the fruits are not traded. Plant family Apiaceae (parsley family). Sensoric quality Strongly aromatic, remotely similar to celery.

delete reply hipppy wrote on Apr 7, '09 Very cool blog! Love the gardening pictures! Have fun, and enjoy your time off. PEACE Oh, let me know about the lovage. You have my curiosity up! Okay?

delete reply veryfrank wrote on Apr 7, '09 Loretta, I decided to find the root, no pun intended, of the name lovage. A friend who grows it calls it 'smallage', I have no idea why. Anyway, here is a link with the root information. :-} http://www.linebylineproductions.com/My%20Spices/lovage.htm

delete reply sandycaar wrote on Apr 7, '09 very interesting blog, loretta,,i know nada about lovage, except what i just read here :) it's wonderful that you get your pupils interested in gardening,,they will appreciate that as they get older,,and it's wonderful that you finally have 2 weeks off,,enjoy!!!!!!!!

delete reply dianahopeless wrote on Apr 7, '09 It is so nice that the students are liking learning about gardening. It is something that they will use all their lives, if they really enjoy it. How cool that you all even have potato barrels planted. I am curious who will be tending the plants while you are all on vacation though? Lovage is one herb I have never used or grown. I am glad you posted about it, as I love learning about new things. Use old gardeners can still learn a new trick or two. lol

delete reply brendainmad wrote on Apr 7, '09 I'm glad you got some answers about lovage. I've certainly learned more than I knew, which is nothing. I do know about Maggi though. Isn't it great having some time off?

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Apr 7, '09 Thanks every one ...........I have never seen lovage or used it before and what ever it is it seems to grow more or less wild in my friends garden. Today I will take a photo of it, the photos here are just ones I downloaded. The more I read and see of it the less certain it is actually lovage. My friend calls it lovage....and she puts in in her soups.... so now I'm off to the garden to take a picture of it.

delete reply kathyinozarks wrote on Apr 7, '09 I enjoyed your post about your students and gardening, and I loved learning all about lovage here in comments and a wonderful recipe from Frank too-thank you Frank

delete reply seanymph3 wrote on Apr 7, '09 Lovage is one ingredient in Maggi seasoning.

delete reply djdx wrote on Apr 7, '09 I don't have any lovage nor have I used it, but I believe it is called "l'herbe à Maggi" which is a company that makes bouillon cubes and gives flavour to soup. It is great that you are teaching young people to enjoy gardening.

delete reply starfishred wrote on Apr 6, '09 here it grows wild -I use it some the french use it quit a lot-

delete reply veroniquemariquita wrote on Apr 6, '09 I only tried growing lovage one time and something (I suspect a rabbit) kept eating it as fast as it grew a couple of leaves. The poor thing finally just gave up and died. It has a pleasant celery flavor.

delete reply veryfrank wrote on Apr 6, '09 forgetmenot525 said But for now……………….it’s just very nice to have my kitchen back and round off my day with a bit of time here. Well deserved time, for sure. My Grandparents were from Italy and use lovage for teas, medicinal purposes and the fruit was used as a spice, dried and ground for winter use. I remember a potato, shallot and lovage (just a handful chopped) soup. Also a great addition, again in a small amount, in cooking beans - I especially like it with lentils. Oh yes, the apple chutney!! Apple Lovage Chutney (6 half-pints) Ingredients 6 cups Apples, cored and chopped 1 cup Lovage, fresh, chopped 1 med Sweet red pepper, cored, seeded and chopped 1 med Red tomato, cored, peeled, chopped 1 med Green tomato, cored, chopped 1 med Onion, peeled and chopped 3 Garlic cloves, minced 1 cup Golden raisins 1/4cup Fresh ginger, peeled, minced 1 cup Light brown sugar, packed 1 cup White wine vinegar 1 tbls Mustard seeds 1 tsp Celery seeds Instructions: 1. Combine all ingredients in non-reactive pan. Bring to boil over med-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to med-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, for 45 minutes, or until thickened. 2. Prepare jars, lids and boiling water bath. Fill jars with hot mixture, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rims with clean towel and attach lids securely. 3. Place jars in boiling water bath, and when the water returns to the boil, process for 15 minutes. It is worth the work.

delete reply greenwytch wrote on Apr 6, '09 i don't know too much about lovage, but i thoroughly enjoyed reading about your student's gardening.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Apr 6, '09 wow..............thanks Sea, I have planted it in a container at the moment but maybe later i will plant it out. I think she actualy used lovage in the soup she gave me and it was delicious, a very strong flavour but I liked it. I think it is one of the lesser known herbs, one that is not used so often. sad that you lost your plant, if it was legal i'd get her to post you some cos it grows all over her garden but there are pretty strict laws about import/export of plants etc...........which is a shame. Thanks for the info.

delete reply seanymph3 wrote on Apr 6, '09 I have a blog about lovage and its uses. Just click on herbs in my tags. But if you got a plant lucky you! Lovage is like a combo of parsley and celery, it tastes like both. But you do not want ot use alot of it. Its awesome in soups tho and seems to add some body to them. Ive grown it before and I miss it so much. I had a plant here and the idiot gardeners men ripped it out before it could take off. Ive decided not to plant anymore of anything till I get to Oregon. If you plant this it should and will grow huge!! So plant it at the back of the bed. Im 5'2" and I think my plant ended up about 6 1/2 ft! .....At the end of the summer I cut it back and pick off all the leaves and dry them for winter use. I have only found one source for the leaf online to buy to use and thats Mountain Rose herbs in Ore. I ordered from them till I land in a new house. But theirs has stems and everything in it. So Im careful when I use it. If you just save and dry the leaves you will love using it. Shhhhh its my secret ingredient when I make tuna salad. :)