Garden Update ~ 22 May 2019

We’re in the final phase of preparation before the final planting in the garden this weekend. I may wait another few days before planting my Fortex pole bean seeds to avoid any unexpected frost at the end of the month. But I wanted to write an update to show our progress so far.

Beginning out at the apiary greenhouse, I rearranged the interior so that I could put my passionflower over in the far left corner. I added some chicken wire for the vines to climb on and before the flowers bloom, I’ll gather the leaves for tea blends and tincture. Passiflora Incarnata is used as a mild sedative or antispasmodic as well as a hypotensive. The leaves are infused and combine well with skullcap, valerian root, betony, and licorice root for insomnia and nervous tension. There’s also a new lemon tree next to the passionflower with a pot of luffa next and cucumbers (not visible in the picture) next to the door. Marigold seeds are coming up in the two flats and pumpkins are spilling out of their pots. Another new bed sits to the right of the greenhouse with gourds and medicinal lobelia planted in it. It’s covered right now with the cover from the apiary greenhouse cut to fit but a picture of them along with the passionflower appears below.

I have quite a few tomato plants that we’ve grown from seed. Twelve are a San Marzano Roma variety and another group is an heirloom black variety. The first picture below is of the Roma tomato plants, the second of the black variety still sitting in my kitchen when I took the picture. I’ve been pruning the lower branches so that we can plant them fairly deep in the garden. From there, I’ll continue to prune them to keep them from becoming leggy like they usually do. Apparently, the yield is potentially higher if I don’t let the tomato plant itself get out of control. I’m pretty proud of these tomato plants. Their stalks are big which given the winds we have here on the High Desert, is a plus.

I had my husband create two raised beds inside the greenhouse when we put it up for my skullcap and my self-heal. Skullcap is great for tension and headaches and self-heal is used for both internal and external wound healing. I use both in teas and self-heal as part of a poultice for bee stings and insect bites. Skullcap can also be used in tincture form.

I planted grapes in the bed we refurbished as well as marshmallow, sheep sorrel, and Agastache. I also planted a clematis vine at the beginning of the bed and moved some of my pots to that side of the greenhouse. The leafy plants at the back of the row are elecampane. Soon, sunny yellow flowers will spike up from its base and brighten the area. However, it’s the root that is used as a nutrient in a tea blend to soothe inflamed respiratory passages. Elecampane can also be tinctured. Next is Meadow Arnica followed by Stinging Nettle and a small pot of Mountain Arnica. Both arnicas are perfect to include in topical liniments, skin oils, and salves for arthritis conditions. Nettle, on the other hand, is used internally for allergies, urinary conditions, and rheumatic complaints and can be purchased if you don’t grow it in bulk herb form, as a supplement in capsule form, and as a tincture. The large round fabric pot has oats coming up in it and there are two others a few feet away from this one. I harvest the seed when it’s a milky green color for a nourishing addition to herbal tea blends. I harvest the oatstraw toward the end of the season for the same purpose.

I have some Dang Shen growing in the apiary as well as in a raised bed in an old greenhouse. Codonopsis pilosula is also called the “poor man’s ginseng” and is considered an adaptogenic herb to balance and strengthen the immune system and is a common herb used in Chinese Traditional Medicine. It’s perennial and the vine climbs over most of the apiary greenhouse structure (the top ripped and we took it off) and does the same in the greenhouse. It has lovely flowers which I didn’t realize were going to even be there. The root is used and is harvested in the fall. Although the root can be dried (in the oven apparently) and ground into flour, Dang Shen/Codonopsis is typically used as a tincture.

Next to the Dang Shen is Astragalus or Astragalus propinquus. I’ve planted more throughout the bed but it’s not up yet. The ground root is used as a tonic for the spleen and can be added to soups for immune system support. The root itself is decocted and the powder can be found in capsule form or tinctured.

I’ll write a separate post on my medicinal herb garden and the other newer garden space after I’m finished weeding the herb garden and planting the tomatoes in the newer one. But I wanted to show the raspberry and strawberry areas as well as the garlic and the dome. Not much is happening in the dome yet other than volunteer celery, kale, and chard, but the onions are coming up and I’ll be planting Thai peppers in there next weekend. The pictures are below:

I’ll update again after we get the rest planted next weekend. I’m really excited about the garden this year. I’m getting control of my medicinal herb garden with some landscaping fabric and some bark. I didn’t want to do that, but I really have no choice. So, when it’s completed, I’ll do an extensive post on what’s in there. I still have to weed around the elderberry bushes and the vitex (chaste tree) is beginning to show signs of budding. Yay! I grew them from seed after the only one that came up died. This time, I transplanted them into 7 gallon pots and they wintered outside. We planted them in the medicine wheel where we have the elderberry planted. I’m hopeful after seeing the buds forming. I really want the vitex shrubs to survive so that I can use the berries for hot flash tincture.

So, thanks for taking a look!

Green Blessings to All!