Never Enough Thyme

How many times have you heard that play on words? Sorry, just seemed appropriate this morning. I have been enjoying my thyme this year in the gardens. As I took a brief inventory I realized I have lots of the stuff and many varieties.

I wish I would have made more permanent markers (if there really is such a thing) when I planted all the different varieties. I don’t mean to be a collector of thymes but I never miss an opportunity to purchase or grow from seed in the greenhouse a variety I don’t have.

Thyme is a wonderful Mediterranean plant that loves sunshine and good drainage. There are hundreds of varieties with different growing habits, fragrances and flavors. Thymes have a range of bloom times and colors, ranging from white to pink to reddish and purple.

Thyme plants are broken down into two main groups - upright clumpers or ground hugging creepers.

Usually the more upright varieties are used for cooking and medicinal applications. French, English, Lemon, Mother-of-thyme are just a smattering of upright varieties. Just for fun search out some of the more unusual like Orange, Lavender, Oregano or Pink chintz.

Creeping thymes are lovely between pavers, along sidewalks or on rooftops. In England I have seen ground hugging thymes used in lawns as a substitute for grass and on stone benches in the garden. These plants are pretty tough and are fun to use where they get stepped on occasionally to release the scent into the air and make any visit to the garden a sensory pleasure. Wooly, Alba, and Red creeping thymes are some varieties to try.

Thyme is a good companion in the kitchen garden to cucumbers, cabbage and tomatoes. The strong scent helps to discourage would-be pests while calling in honey bees to help pollinate crops. It appears to inhibit powdery mildew as well. I like to use different varieties throughout my landscape to provide a long window of blooms for the bees. Thyme does well in pots, I add it to my kitchen pot gardens.

As with any woody herb, the upright varieties like to be trimmed after it blooms. Thyme often browns out in the center after it is a year or three old. Sprinkle some potting soil in the center and watch it start to leaf out again.

Thymol, which comes from thyme’s essential oil, is a strong antiseptic that is used in mouthwashes and toothpastes. Thyme tea is a wonderful expectorant when you have a cold to help loosen the chest. It has also been used for intestinal worms, urinary tract infections and to disinfect wounds.

Thyme is also a good cleanser for oil skin. It can be used in hair rinses and in the bath with oats to soften skin.

It is easy to preserve thyme for later use by cutting small bouquets just as they start to come into bloom. Hang these little bunches upside down in a well ventilated area out of direct sunlight. When dry run the stems between your fingers and thumb to strip the tiny leaves onto a paper plate. This makes it easy to pour into a jar for storage. Label and place in the cupboard for best flavor retention.

Use excess thyme in wreaths, sleep pillows, potpourri. Cut fresh for small flower arrangements or tussie mussies.

In the kitchen snip fresh thyme into salads, dressings, dips, marinades, soups, steamed vegetables (I especially love it on summer squash). It is tasty on beef and snipped fresh on chicken while grilling.

The Whys of Gardening - Banana Trees

Banana Trees June of 2009 - Below, Banana Trees in June of 2008

I was sitting in my living roof cabana, this morning having a cup and jo and praising the Lord for an incredible cool, sunny, low humidity morning. As my toes nestled into the carpet of thyme beneath my feet, the scent wafted up and I got to philosophying (don’t worry I made that up) and wondering about phenomenas in the garden.

The sun was coming up in the east like it is suppose to but I naturally put my hand up to shield my eyes because I hadn’t thought to bring my sunglasses.
That got me thinking, hey wait a minute, last year on the 2nd day of June I didn’t have this problem.

I planted two hardy banana trees, Musu basjoo last April (I can remember the exact date because my daughter called as I was digging the holes to tell me her water just broke and I might want to speed it up if I was going to make it in time for the arrival of my grand daughter) on either side of the cabana to block the morning and afternoon sun.

They (banana trees) were beautiful and worked perfectly plus they added something I hadn’t counted on, sound. The incredible large leaves make a lot of noise as the summer breezes knock them about. Not annoying white noise like air conditioners but a soothing rhythmic tune that one would expect to hear on a tropical island.

Sitting in the Adirondack chairs under the cool space of the living roof gazing a the movement and reflections in the water of the pool, listening to the beat of the banana tree leaves is not the best place for a gardener to sit for very long. If you are not careful you can catch a laid-back island attitude where all you want to do is nap, snack, read and drink fruity drinks with the cute little umbrellas.

This year my hardy banana trees are a bit too short to catch the wind currents and look more like a shrub. So, why is it those same banana trees are only half the height of last year? I followed manufacturer’s instructions and cut them back to about 6” after the first hard, killing frost and tucked them in for a long winters nap with a thick cover of soil conditioner.

I was thrilled when they sprouted up in the spring like they are suppose to. (They really are hardy) They grew quickly to about 3 feet or so and quit. I put a pile of compost around them for fertilizer this spring so the spring rains could wash it down to the roots. I keep them watered when it doesn’t rain, so why aren’t they doing their job and providing shade from the east and especially west sun?

And, I was driving in a nearby neighborhood this past spring and noticed that some folks had planted banana trees at the end of their drive and it looked to me like they had either never cut them back or they cut them at the point where the leaves formed. Well, they apparently don’t know anything about banana tree maintenance I thought.

Okay, so maybe I’m not as smart as I thought (I hate that) because while I thought I was doing everything correctly my trees are puny while their trees are tall and lush (yes, I drove back by recently to check it out). I think I’m going to hit them hard with Monty’s Joy Juice and see if they will shoot up before the dog days of summer set in…and you can bet I’m not cutting them to the ground this fall, I’ll take my chances and see if that will work better for next year. Feel free to lend advice.

Bienveue a Lafayette

We recently visited Lafayette (pronounced ‘Laugh’ Fayette), LA where our son and his lovely wife toured us around. What a cool place to live. It’s like going to a foreign country without leaving the states. I never thought I would be telling folks I’m from the North when I live in Tennessee. Everything is new and different…flora, fauna, food and French weaved throughout, turning every outing into an adventure. The people are easy going and fun – loving as evidenced in the culture of southern Louisiana.
First stop was the welcome center where they had of course tons of information about the area but also, a small garden area, and a lake that boils with fish and turtles when you toss a slice of bread over the walkway railing.
Black-eyed Susan vines, knockout roses, trumpet flowers and agapanthus were blooming in the garden. We saw agapanthus in bloom throughout the area…it must be hardy this far south.

A music festival was going on in Opelousas, the heart of zydeco (in fact they’re claim to fame is “Zydeco capital of the world”. We danced a few steps when we realized we can’t dance like the natives…they’ve got some moves!

A trip to Lafayette would not be complete without a bowl of gumbo with roux the color of chocolate – yum. We went to a Sunday brunch at “The Blue Dog Café” where the mimosas flowed while the zydeco band (Hadley Catille and the Sharecropper) played on. Crawfish enchiladas and oyster stuffing were new to us and the creamed spinach was spicy. In fact most everything is spicy!
Drove a short distance to the country and toured an organic farm that grows and sells tilapia, veggies, fruit and a myriad of other natural products. The Grotreaux have a delightful family – 10 children between the ages of 5 and 12 who work, study, and play hard.
I had never seen a tilapia operation before. The fish are raised in ponds housed in greenhouses, fed four times a day and harvested once a week (2,000 lbs.) for market. Organic vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers are harvested and sold at the local farmers market. Folks can also come to the farm and buy fresh fish and produce.
A short drive to St. Martin Lake proved successful in the hunt for gators to photograph. They are unique critters that I enjoyed watching from the window of a truck. Oh yeah, the cypress trees with their knees exposed and hanging with Spanish moss where also a sight for Deep South newbies. One final drive to see what I believe is a type of agave that my son had noticed and couldn’t wait to show me. You can see from the picture that it is ginormus – taller than the house! If anyone knows what this monster is, please tell…

Growing Right Along

May was a busy month in the garden. We (okay, I) had projects galore. After a huge arbor, expansion of my "hobbit" house garden shed, including a living roof and a new kitchen garden, I have promised my husband no more "Cindy projects" for the rest of the year (pray I can keep my promise).

The kitchen garden consists of nine raised beds in the front side yard. Three made out of concrete blocks and six are untreated pine which I stained a cedar color on the outside to match the fence and blend a bit.

With the help of some great friends and my son Trevor we hauled composted horse poop (manure for you technical gardeners) and filled the beds 3/4 full then topped them off with leaf mulch. I worked in some wood pot ash since we had such an abundance from our newly installed wood stove.

Planting took place around the middle of May. I grew many of the plants in my greenhouse and purchased some from my neighbor, Joe Toni of Green Valley Greenhouses. As you can see everything is growing right along.

I am harvesting sweet banana peppers and some of the tomatoes are the size of golf balls. I'm trying to recycle materials for trellising beans, cucumbers, gourds and mini-pumpkins without looking too tacky...after all this garden is in our front yard.

I found a metal arbor at a yard sale and have installed it as the entrance and have lots more to do. I'm planting sunflowers, herbs and cut flowers to add color and encourage beneficial insects to stop and munch on any plant destroying suspects and pollinate.

Plus I want it to look as nice for neighbors and passer-bys. I have met a couple of neighbors who stopped to looked and compliment. A biker passed by yesterday and yelled "beautiful garden" which was very encouraging...especially when a neighbor told another neighbor my garden looked like a cemetery with cute little plots. What do they expect from a 'cracked pot gardener'?

Kitchen garden as of June 2nd...

The Cracked Pot Herb Book

Willows on the 'Cheap'

In these days of belt tightening, it can put the hurt on the garden budget...or maybe that is only in my family. Besides lets face it, most gardeners love to brag about their latest plant, gardening tool, pot or garden accessory bargain.

Well, I would never stoop to that kind of bragging...but, while meandering through this year's Lawn and Garden show in Nashville (a great annual display of gardens and garden wares) I noticed a vendor selling red curly willow sticks and pussy willow twigs for a dollar each.

I was thinking I would love to have a RED curly willow in my yard and who doesn't just adore early springtime pussy willow twigs? I told my friend with me, "I bet I could root those sticks and for two bucks have them growing in my yard by spring".

We both got so excited at the prospects that we each bought a twig of each. I trimmed the ends about 1/4 of an inch and filled a five gallon bucket with good chlorinated city water and let them sit.

In about 8 weeks both willows had grown sufficient roots and leafed out. I planted them with a good measure of compost and just before the past three days of rain set in. I will have to keep them watered well through the hot and dry summer months to ensure their success since willows love wet areas. A great plant for a wetland type area in your landscape. Not a good idea to plant near septic lines though as the roots will head for water.

I wish I could brag I have the greenest of green thumbs but in all fairness, willows (in the Salix family) are about the easiest plants in the world to root. If I was really on my game, I could have just gotten a twig cutting from someones willow tree or cut pussy willow twigs in the wild and saved a couple of bucks. Yes, I probably would have asked for permission first...or at least forgiveness after!

And, they don't even have to be rooted in water. I have cut curly willow twigs and just stuck them in the ground in early spring or fall when rains were regular and they grew just fine.

Pussy willows are really a large shrub which can reach about 15 to 20 feet without pruning. They are dioecious though which means to bloom and form the soft catkins a male and female plant is needed. Which one did I root? I guess I will figure it out when it blooms next spring!

Red curly willow will become a small tree about 20-30 feet tall with contorted branches. Curly willow trees seem to be short lived...or maybe they die young in my garden (just can't take any more?) The last curly willow just passed and it was probably around 15 years old. (young for a tree). We ground the stump and I planted this twig there to start the circle of life once more. Being a 'red' curly willow I'm sure this new tree will be a real asset, adding much needed color to the garden in winter.

The Scent of Days Gone By

As I picked my first bouquet of Lily-of-the-Valley this week, I breathed deeply to get every little bit of scent. This incredible fragrance unlocks memories of a small girl growing up in Northern Michigan gathering Lily-of-the-Valley flowers for my mom. They grew just outside the back door in a nice neat rectangle mass.

A few years back I stopped by that old farm house and dug a few from the back door patch. Okay, so my family doesn't own that farm any longer but no one was living there at the time and I doubt anyone will every notice!

I packed them back to Tennessee and planted them at Hyssop Hill where they were very happy and reproduced nicely. When we moved to our new location, I was careful to dig a few to bring with for my new garden. I felt like a pioneer woman bringing slips of plants to the unknown so that when she got homesick there would be something familiar in the garden. Carefully I put tucked the little roots in the edge of the shade garden and waited for spring.

When spring came I was so happy that the family -Lilly-of-the-Valley plants pushed their way up through the soil and were displaying their lovely new shiny green leaves. As I admired my handiwork (well God's handiwork really - I only transplanted them) I noticed a foot or so away some other leaves that looked very similar. In fact there were many many leaves throughout that shady area with those leaves popping up.
You guessed it. The folks who gardened here before obviously loved this plant as well. In fact, as I started working my way through various beds they were everywhere, in every cultivated space. Yes, the joke was on me. But what a great plant to have in abundance. I can pick bouquets to my hearts delight and dance in my mind to the tune of happy girlhood memories of days gone by...but not forgotten. Happy to share if anyone would like some :)