Last summer I set up a gorgeous little fledgling herb garden, despite my complete lack of know-how in all matters gardening. "Surely I can keep a bunch of herbs alive, right?" I thought to myself. Well, not quite. It goes without saying that I was devastated when I discovered that herbs have a tendency to (a) go to seed, and (b) die in winter. I don't mind telling you that by September, my pots were looking pretty fucking woeful.
So I set up my new fledgling herb garden last weekend... but alas, as you can see, while the Vietnamese mint, Italian flat leaf parsley, sage and one of the basil plants are thriving, the lemon thyme and the other basil plant on the left have already met with a little accident. See, they were positioned directly under the edge of the eaves of our house... and yesterday's ridiculously monsoonal weather (Tropical Depression Suri, housemate DJ calls it) meant that torrents of water overflowing from the drainpipe were pouring directly down onto my poor little herbs, sending potting mix flying, exposing the roots and battering the itty bitty leaves. :-(
A swift transfusion this evening of replacement potting mix, pinched from Mum and Dad's garden shed when I went over there for paella and pinot, means they're looking a bit happier NOW, but how long will that last??
Stay tuned for the next hair-raising installment of FHG!
5 comments:
I have had much more success with my window box herb garden in London than I ever had in Melbourne - in Melbourne I found it was the possums that were the problem - they loved my fresh basil even more than me I think! Good luck with it.
Go Claire, you can do it!
Make sure you keep the Vietnamese mint in the shade and moist though... my early plant suffered a very sad fate before I realised those little tricks.
best luck!
Hey there GC, glad to read learn there's another corporate lawyer chick out there writing a food blog! Thanks for the encouragement, and glad to hear the window box is thriving in olde London town. Will have to get recommendations from you when I (hopefully) visit in June!
Thanks also to you Gen - I read on the little tag that the Viet mint likes shade and had positioned it accordingly - I only brought it out into the sun to photograph all the pots together. You'll have to inspect their progress in person next time you come over! :)
I'd like to help you, but I can't. I neglected my chili plant so much that my housemate accidentally snapped the dry bastard in half while brushing past it.
But, that is only because I put all my love and care into the chili plant I believe reigns supreme. God strike me down if I ever have children.
So you play favourites with your chili plants? I was thinking of getting one... how fast do they grow? Can you rely on it for all your chili needs, or is it more of a special occasion chili provider?
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