Health News

Basil is easy to grow in frost-free places, needing only open sun and protection from wind for its brittle stems. Sow the round blue-black seeds in early to late spring, and the strong bright leaves should be through in 4 to 10 days. A light blue gelatinous film forms over the seed when it is touched by moisture before germinating, but the seeds, if kept dry, will keep their viability for many years. The young seedlings are easy to transplant, but keep a watch for snails and slugs. Basil grows quickly, and soon you will have enough leaves to use whenever required. Pinch out the centre stem as the plant grows, and let the side stems grow to keep it bushy. Water in the heat of the day: basil thrives only if its leaves as well as its roots have moisture.

Strictly speaking, both varieties are annuals; but if you live in a warm, frost-free area, you may be able to cut the bushes back hard in late autumn and have them come again the next spring. Try growing basil in a courtyard, it loves the reflected heat from stone or brick: and its perfume will be at its best. In India, it is grown as a true perennial; the frost-free, warm climate of the plains and the abundant water keep it in ideal condition. However, it is so easy to raise from seed and so quick to grow that it is advisable usually to sow fresh seed or buy new plants each spring.

Sweet Basil has large (2 to 2|-inch) leaves, and is most suitable for outdoors. Bush Basil will also grow just as well outside, but its small (i inch) leaves and more compact growth make it an ideal herb to grow in a pot. The Sweet Basil has a slightly stronger flavour, but both are delicious.

*47\181\8*

read comments (0)

Nearly all the commonly-grown herbs need an alkaline soil. For soils that tend to be acid and are somewhat deficient in magnesium, dolomite, a natural mixture of magnesium carbonate and calcium carbonate, is preferable to lime (calcium carbonate only), to give the necessary alkalinity. A sure-fire test for soil acidity is this: If your garden grows camellias, azaleas and rhododendrons to perfection, or if it grows in its natural state a fine array of bush plants, it will need lime or dolomite added to the section where you wish to plant herbs.

A light scattering of dolomite can be put through the loose topsoil before planting, together with any manures or blood and bone. This is contrary to accepted gardening practice, but was recommended to me by the Department of Agriculture in New South Wales. Their booklet, Building up Fertility in the Garden, is invaluable. No doubt the Agriculture Departments in other states and countries will have similar material available.

WATERING. Herbs must have regular water for their best growth (in conjunction with the good drainage mentioned previously), even though many of them can still thrive in dry conditions. Water seems to be necessary for the production of a high oil content.

The herbs can all be watered even in the heat of a bright summer’s day, particularly basil, whose brittle leaves and stems need moisture when the sun is at its hottest. In cooler weather it is advisable to water them in mid-morning so the soil will not be too damp and cold overnight.

So now your herbs are ready to set out in their permanent positions. Keep a section for annuals, another separate one for perennials, or if planting them amongst the flower beds and shrubs remember their individual likes and dislikes and they will give you beauty and usefulness from season to season.

*15\181\8*

read comments (0)

Wormwood and southernwood will also grow well in the sooty grimy atmosphere of the cities, especially in industrial towns where the chemically-saturated air seems almost beneficial to these plants. Our ecologists might soon be handing out free plants of southernwood to provide a green barrier for the people who have to live in such areas. Seriously though, these Artemisias may hold the key to establishing a more breathable air in such conditions, as they absorb, recycle and purify the chemical-laden atmosphere.

Poor, crusted soil, and even rocky conditions, will not deter southernwood. It will withstand dryness, but naturally grows more green and thick with sufficient water. In very cold or frosty areas it may drop some of its leaves in the winter, but will shoot again with fresh young green when the warm weather returns.

Germination from seed can be difficult. I have never yet found just which sowing conditions it does like, trying many different approaches and seed from various sources: but the germination rate was always so low as to be quite disheartening. Woody stem cuttings are a far easier way to gain new plants. Take them in late spring or early summer, with a “heel” of the old stem attached.

Wormwood and southernwood are recommended to be grown in poultry runs for shade. The birds will not scratch at them and their insect-repelling oils will keep lice and other vermin away from the enclosure.

*138\181\8*

read comments (0)

Lovage is a close relative of the ginseng family, and has a long history of use in Asian cultures. In India it is used extensively as an antiseptic in times of cholera outbreaks, the blanched stems being chewed raw. In cold climates the tops may die down during the worst winter months, but in warmer areas it should continue green and useful all the year.

It needs careful watching in the early seedling stage: caterpillars, slugs and snails, and aphis too, love the new leaves as they uncurl. Use one of the “safe” sprays to keep them away. Give the young plant a rich, deep soil with plenty of compost and blood and bone well under where the young roots are to lie, and then give moisture continuously; they need this to keep their slow spreading roots growing strongly. Good drainage is particularly necessary for this herb.

A tea made from lovage leaves and stems is very helpful in rheumatic conditions, to free the body of waste materials and stimulate the kidneys. A small handful of the herb to a half-pint of boiling water makes a pleasant drink, needing a pinch of salt rather than a teaspoon of honey, since it has the taste of a broth or stock.

See if a lovage bath will do for you what it did for the village maidens of the Middle Ages. The herb was freely used for its deodorizing properties, a handful or two of leaves being added (bruised, of course) to hot bath water. It was also worn in a cloth bag around the neck when going on a medieval “date” with the boyfriend, not as a superstitious love-charm or in order to weave a magic spell, but in the very prosaic role of a body-deodorant.

Compost in the soil is a must for lovage. Its roots spread and forage deeply, and its slow growth means that initial feeding and working of the ground is necessary to provide its needs for at least four years or more. So take time and care in preparation to get better results.

Persevere with those difficult seeds. The fresher they are the better they will germinate. The end result will be a magnificent plant for the back row in your herb garden. Use its leaves in many savoury dishes, in soups and stews, and fresh in salads.

*108\181\8*

read comments (0)

Comfrey was placed by the astrologers under the dominion of Saturn, the sign of service in helping others—a very apt placing in the light of all the bounty it has to give. The large clumps will grow 3 to 4 feet high, and with a breadth of about 3 feet. The bright green leaves, growing to about 18 inches long, curve back towards the earth, and in spring several flowering stems will appear, bearing downward-drooping clusters of small, bell-shaped trumpets. The flowers on individual plants may be mauve, bluish, or even yellow, but most are a soft plum colour. Like all herbs, the plant grows better and stronger if not allowed to flower: so nip off the flowering stems unless you want them for seed. Sow the seeds in the early spring.

Once you have even one plant, you will never be without comfrey. A perennial, it can also be increased by lifting the clump (and a mature plant can be quite a lift) and dividing it into root pieces. This is best done in late summer. Set each piece of about 3 inches in length at a slight angle into the ground (or small pot, so you can plant out in the following spring), and cover to within about 1 inch from the top of the root. In the warmer weather, within a week or so new small leaves will be showing through. You can also chop off some of the outside offsets from the clump and transplant these, to avoid lifting the whole plant.

*77\181\8*

read comments (0)