March 29, 2007

Green Thumb, Anyone?

One of my projects this spring is to grow an herb garden. I've always wanted to do it. I think it would just be so cool to be able to throw your homegrown basil on top of a pizza. I know you're thinking: "So..what's the big deal? Just get the seeds, plant the darn herbs and water them." Uh, uh, uh. Not so fast my friends. You are talking to the Destroyer of All Things Green. I have successfully killed every plant that I've tried to grow.

First there was the beautiful yellow rosebush that my dad sent me when I brought Oldest home from the hospital. Now everybody (save my dad, bless his heart) knows that rosebushes are not for amateurs. And boy did I prove that theory right. Still have the pot though. It's quite lovely, although turned upside down on our front steps.

Then came the pansy that Oldest brought home for me from daycare 2 Mother's Days ago. It met its untimely demise on the front stoop during two (or twelve) thunderstorms. Again, the little red pot is postively charming. And in the laundry room.

And then there was the lovely hanging plant that I thought would bring cheer to our kitchen. And it did! For about 22 days. [Remembering to water the thing was so tedious.]

And finally there are the three topiary trees that grace our deck. They have been dead since last summer and yet still they remain, dry as all get out, in their quaint ceramic pots topped with cute stone pebbles. The idea looked great in BH&G.

And so you see my reluctance to subject any little ol' herbs to the inevitable fate that awaits them at my hand. Unless of course y'all help me! Got any advice on starting (and keeping alive) an herb garden?

6 comments:

Unknown said...

hmmm...I for one, LOVE to garden, the only advice I have for you is to ummm...WATER YOUR PLANTS??? geeze, girl.

Seriously, though, when I first started having houseplants, I picked one day of the week and watered all my plants on that day. It was every Sunday. Mark it on your calender and give them some good liquid lovin'. You can do it!!

Anonymous said...

Parsley, mint and rosemary are pretty hardy, and so good to start out with.

Ditto Beth. But if you're a plant drowner, get one of those nifty 2-layer pots where the pot with the sod and plant has holes in the bottom so excess water can drain out the bottom.

Anonymous said...

As a recovering plant killer myself, I heartily recommend the two suggestions you've recieved so far.

Lines From The Vine said...

Thank you for commenting at my site. My suggestions for you would be to check out the book square foot gardening. It has a wealth of information. I did notice that someone mentioned mint, and she's right, it's extremely hardy, but it's also aggressive. Be sure to plant this one in a container or it will take over everything else.

We started out fairly small, planting herbs here and there around our vegetables and then last year, I took the plunge and made a herb garden in the yard. The one thing that I have definitely learned is that marigolds (that I planted around the outside edges) can get really large and they ended up killing a couple of my plants! I won't be doing that again.

Also, don't try to start an herb garden from seed. Some plants, like Basil take a very long time to sprout and it's just a lot easier to go to the store and buy the plant.

I hope that this helps a little! I'm going to be planting my herb garden soon (we just finished our vegetable boxes, which have some herbs). Visit back and follow the progress...I would love to hear how you do too!

Blessings!
Tracy

Justice Fergie said...

thanks for the tips everyone! especially the one about not starting from seeds. i'll keep you posted on my progress...

GiBee said...

I also belong to that black thumb club. I kill everything in my garden.

My mom suggested making Sundays watering day. Yeah. Okay. Whatever.

Seriously, though... I'm dying to have an herb garden too, so you'll have to let me know how yours goes!!!

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