I'm always so tempted by recipes that call for fresh herbs. But buying expensive fresh herbs in the grocery store--only to use about 1/4 of the package--seems so wasteful to me. So even though I am an absolutely terrible gardener, I'd been thinking for a while that I'd like to have a little herb garden.
This rusty old wagon has been sitting in our shed for quite a while. It used to belong to my husband when he was a kid, and my father-in-law had brought it here for our kids. But they're from the age of "plastic is better" and they already had a big plastic wagon. That little red wagon just sat around, useless.
I figured that it would make a great place for a small container garden. If bad weather is predicted, I can just pick up the handle and wheel it into the garage or back porch. Right now I have it in a sunny spot right near the front door.
My neighbor had a ton of mint taking over her garden, so she offered me a sturdy mint plant to get started. I separated that from the other herbs that are in the same box.
Here's what else I planted (besides the mint):
- cilantro
- dill
- thyme
- flat-leaf parsley
- oregano
- basil
Besides the friendly advice from my neighbor, I got a lot of courage and information from this little book: Get Your Hands Dirty by Jeanne Grunert. It's written for people like me--beginning gardeners, who might even think they have a "black thumb."
My next project: I'm thinking optimistically that my herb garden will thrive and I'll have more than I need. So I'll have to learn all about how to save/freeze/dry these herbs for winter. The idea is to make back my investment (about $50 for 6 plants, 2 window boxes, 1 bag potting soil, 1 watering can). I figure that if I use fresh herbs 20 times, I'll have reached that goal. Anything beyond that is a freebie!
