Monday 19 July 2010

Everyone can enjoy a garden!

With the weather, rather irritatingly changing for the worst over the last week, i have been unable to enjoy our garden that i have been working so hard to make a little tranquil heaven over the last few weeks. This has resulted in my attention being turned to the indoor garden that is my bed of herbs!

This was originally JLowe's idea, "lets grow our own herbs" as the supermarket bought ones tend to shrivel and die after a couple of days in our fridge! I was apprehensive at first, i am so impatient - why bother waiting months for them to grow when i can pop out and in 20 minutes be adding fresh herbs to my dinners!? I agreed to give it a go and i have actually been suprised with how excited i have been getting! I used a basic terracotta tray and a few packets of seeds from a local DIY store to originally plant them. I opted for 4 or 5 packets of seeds - if one didn't grow there would be a much higher chance of the other's growing! I planted the seeds in a row - lemon coriander, basil, mint, thyme (I actually can't remember exactly what i planted - just adds to the fun though!) After just a few days the coriander and basil were waaay in the lead and are now a good 5-10cms tall and i have used the lemon coriander leaves in a dinner! I am genuinely pleased with this, i honestly thought we would be waiting months for any leaves!

Planting seeds, whether they be herbs, cress in the eggcup or flowers is astonishingly easy - for those of you with children it could be a great pastime for the upcoming summer holidays - after 6 weeks there will be results! Plus, once they have germinated you can transfer them to some really gorgeous pots to keep around the home. These are a few which i have come across and love!

These pretty herb pots from Marks & Spencer come with their own seeds and sensibly priced you can create some fabulous flavours for less than £10!
I also love the idea of not using specifically "made for planting" items. How about using pretty teacups or a teapot? For a more unusual look, try using empty containers from your food cupboards. I love the look of the traditional Colemans jars and tins and this mustard powder tin would work really well!



You can use anything you want to grow them in once they are sufficiently established. The beauty of doing this is that everyone could do it if they wanted! You can grow them indoors as i am doing for now, or you can utilise some space or pots in your garden, if you have one! Fun for everyone!

xxx







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