Balcony herb garden update No.2

It's time for some herbs! This is a follow up on my balcony herb garden, as the No.2 in post title indicates. To get the whole picture, be sure to check out my Balcony herb garden update No.1!

Sometimes I wonder if I overdid it with the number of plants on my small city balcony, it's really a green jungle within a concrete jungle. Maybe it's just a little bit overcrowded. In fact I even lost a few plants due to lack of space and their stronger neighbors overgrowing them.
I had a great Thyme variety that was shaded by her much bigger neighbors, so it looks pretty much dead right now. This was a classic example of planting without planning, but we live and learn. It was a herb used for many dishes in my kitchen, offering great taste and aroma. Fortunately enough, I have another variety that's growing fine, but again it's not as tasty as the other one was.

Here's just one of three Rosemarie plant varieties I grow on my balcony, my bushy Lavender plant and some heavily harvested Parsley.

Here's another Rosemary variety guarded by a garden elf.



One more Rosemary plant.



Lovage



Sage

And that's it regarding the herbs on my balcony garden! I think the list is complete, but who knows, maybe I'll be growing even more herbs, even more varieties very soon! Lets hope so!

Balcony herb garden update No.1

As I've said many times before, I really enjoy growing herbs and I can't imagine my balcony garden without them. They keep good company to my veggies and keep my urban home free of flies and mosquitoes. Not to mention the fragrance and the taste...hmmm!! If you love to cook like I do, you'll be sure to find some space for a little herb garden of your own!

You could see from my previous post that my purple basil is growing just fine and is constantly rewarding us with fresh basil leaves. However, I have some additional young basil plants growing in a small container waiting to get transplanted.

I like growing more plants of the same variety, as well as more varieties of the same plant specie. Not only because of a greater harvest, but because that gives me the opportunity to experiment and learn the specific needs of each plant variety I grow. My green basil variety has given us a significant amount of fresh leaves for the past few months. Unfortunately, I don't know the name of the variety in question, but I bought it anyway. The old lady that was selling plants at the local market really seemed to have a green thumb. All of the plants she was offering were looking happy&healthy and she was very kind to share some great gardening tips. When I buy my plants, I tend to do it from local gardeners. There are several reasons I do this, but the most important are supporting the community and creating real human relations. Big up for green thumb granny! Well, back to my basil plants! Here are a few smaller plants that I intentionally left to flower, because I would like to have some seeds of this particular variety for the next year.

Here's another flowering herb from my garden and also a very rewarding one. It's a Mint variety I like to use in some dishes, but it's especially great in all kinds of beverages. It's a pretty invasive plant that tends to fill out your garden space very quickly, but constant pruning&harvesting will keep them in control. Take a close look at these photos, behind my Mint plant and you'll see that there are a lots of other herbs growing in my garden!

Even if you couldn't recognize any of the herbs from my somewhat lousy photos, I'll be posting more on those in my Balcony herb garden update No. 2.! For now, I'd like to show you another Mint variety I grow on my balcony. This plant makes a great tea, of course sweetened with some Stevia Rebaudiana leaves(the second photo)!

Enjoy your herbs!

Pruning Basil

Herb gardening is a convenient choice for every family, living in urban or rural environment. Don't be discouraged if you live in a small apartment and don't have a balcony, you can grow your herbs on a windowsill. All it takes is plant box(container), some potting soil, seeds or cuttings of your favorite herbs and you're on a right way of becoming a proud owner of a herb garden.

Basil is one of those herbs I can't stop growing, as well as using I might add. It's a pretty easy plant to grow and comes in lots of varieties you can choose from. Basil varieties differ in color, aroma, taste, leaf size and flowers, and are commonly used as ornamental plants, as well as in culinary practice. It's also a very rewarding plant to grow offering a continual harvest of fresh leaves throughout the season. However, proper pruning is crucial when it comes to growing basil and will be the factor that will determine how much herb you'll be able to harvest. I might say pruning is a number one gardening tip when it comes to successful basil growing. I've already stated the importance of pruning in Pinching basil plants, but now I've made more photos, this time of my purple basil.

I prefer pruning, i.e harvesting my plants every week or so, and that way I always have enough fresh basil in my kitchen. Here's the flower forming, but it's going to be snipped off, with some leaves of course.

Here I'm pinching flowers off my basil plants.



A pinched off basil flower.



Taste some!

Why herbs on a balcony?

Among many other uses, herbs have been very important part of culinary practice for ages and still are. The best way to add some real natural flavor to your food is to season it with some of your precious homegrown herbs.

Most of culinary herbs are pretty easy to cultivate, so almost everybody can grow his/her own herb garden with minimum effort. The one thing these plants love is the sun, so make sure they have enough of it! And one more thing, herbs usually don't require a lot of moisture, so there's no need for every day watering. Balcony garden, container or a window box, it doesn't matter, because there's always a way to find some space for a couple of your favorite herbs.
Homegrown herbs are essential part of my cuisine and I can't imagine some of my favorite meals without it. I use herbs to add to give some extra flavor and fragrance to my meals. They are very important part of my life and growing them myself gives me the pleasure of enjoying my own fresh herb every day. Of course, once the time comes they'll be harvested, dried and stashed for winter. Use them to add their specific flavor to soups, sauces, stews, salads, teas, juices... Some recipes, soon!

Balcony herbs: Thyme, Purple Basil, Oregano, Lovage

Lovage on a balcony

Herbs represent a great part of my balcony garden and I must say that growing herbs on a balcony has been very rewarding. I have managed to squeeze in my garden most of the herbs I need and commonly use in my kitchen.

Lovage(Levisticum officinale)
This plant is a perennial and it's pretty easy to cultivate, so I can recommend it to most gardeners. It resembles Celery, but grows much bigger and has stronger taste. I use it for culinary purposes, usually in dishes where celery or parsley is used, but it also has a lot of medicinal properties(vitamin C). However, you shouldn't use a lot of it, because it has a much stronger taste than Celery or Parsley. In my country people call this plant Vegeta, because in taste it resembles the product called Vegeta. Maybe some of you heard of it or maybe even tried it. Vegeta is an authentic Croatian product used for seasoning dishes. It's o.k., but a herb is a herb! Take a look at my balcony garden Lovage!

Balcony Basil

As I already said in my earlier post Herbs on a balcony, I am a passionate herb lover.

Basil is one of my favorite herbs and that´s why I grow two strains in my home garden. There is nothing like a smell of fresh basil early in the morning!!!

Basil (Ocimum basilicum)
There are several kinds of basil plants, with different leaf coloration and varying scents and flavors. Basil is usually associated with Italian cooking, although it originates from India.
You can sow the seeds directly in soil, just make sure there´s enough warmth and light. Basil is used for many purposes, but the most common one is culinary. It is best used fresh and/or added during the last minutes of cooking.

My Balcony Basil

Herbs on a balcony

Growing herbs as your home plants is a common and convenient choice for everyone who lives in a flat and has a balcony. Not that, if you don´t have one you can´t grow herbs. Window gardening is always an option, so you can have your herb garden anyway!

Herbs have a special place in my heart, as they had an in important role in life of man for thousands of years. These versatile plants are used for many purposes, such as:

• culinary
• medicinal
• ornamental
• spiritual

Here are a few photos of my garden herbs:

Seedlings

A few days ago the first ones started popping out of the soil and I must say I was jumping around the flat like a little kid. I had some problems before, but this time things are looking promising. Sowing in to plastic cups filled with soil is the most common seed germination method practiced in my garden. Is it the best, I don´t know! You must take good care to keep the soil wet, but still not too wet! I think it´s the method that works best for me, although I had some problems. I sowed some purple basil seeds and tiny seedlings came out, but I over watered them and they died. This time I´m taking it nice and easy with watering, just enough! They are so sensitive in this stage of growth, but it´s worth it, it´s a beautiful herb!!

Basil seedlings