“My First Herb Garden”

I finally “convinced” Roomie to let me create an herb garden (it wasn’t easy—there was a lot of arm-twisting and hot-poker-to-the-eyes, but in the end I prevailed!). It’s fairly small, but I’ll take what I can get. ;-) She just refused to let me dig up half her yard for my mad gardening plans. Damn! Ah, well. For someone who’s been doing her herb gardening in pots for years, this is Big Time for me.

I spent hours in the blazing sun last weekend digging up sod, making the bed, and putting in the little plastic white picket border. I just had to use the little white picket border, to invoke the spirit of the herb garden in Practical Magic. Hehe. And because under the grass is good old Florida soil sand, I knew I needed to “improve” the soil a tad with some potting mix, cow manure, etc. So off I go and dump potting mix into my new bed, and not until I plant stuff and water it do I realize I’ve used the Shitty Mix. And I ain’t talking cow manure! It’s this horrible cheap, black mix sold at Home Depot that, when wetted, turns into mud. THICK, HORRIBLE MUD. And dries into a hardened brick. So I’m lamenting my poor young herbs, some of which weren’t looking that great when I got them (I am such a softie for plants—I have to try to save them all) , which are now ensconced in mud-on-top, sand-on-bottom. If they survive, they’ll be especially Goddess-blessed. I am working on improving the soil mess by adding other things to it, mixing it up, etc; so we’ll see how it goes. I’ve been told the plants will be fine, but I worry over them like a mother. Worse case I’ll have to yank out the plants and redo the bed, but I’m saving that for a last-ditch effort because the plants have already been stressed enough.

The toads have found the herb garden, and at least one seems to have moved in already. I plan to offer them little toad-houses (oh come on, how can I not?) and little saucers of water. Saw a garden gnome at Target I just have to get, and there will be a few other cute decorations. I’ll also offer things for the fairies. ;-) Don’t worry, I won’t overload it with decor—and the idea is for the herbs to grow lush enough to obscure any silly thing I put in the bed—and I absolutely draw the line at pink, plastic Flamingos.

Maybe. ;-)

My potted plants, however, are doing fabulously. I bought some butterfly plants, and so far two Monarchs have been enjoying them; I also picked up three of my favorite plants: a fuschia purslane, a split-leaf philodendron, and a “Mammy” croton, and they are growing happily in the sun.

Pics to come a bit later on!