Some Herb Plants

A few months ago, lots of Thai basil plants seems to be popping everywhere in my potted garden. Must be from the seeds that are found in the soil in some of my pots. Many months ago, the last of my basil plants have dried and wilted due to the extremely hot weather, and now the seeds from those plants that must have dropped into the soil have sprouted new seedlings. I sometimes transfer my other plants from smaller pots to bigger ones, and I supposed that was how the seeds got distributed when the soil was mixed, and also because I placed the pots rather close to other plants due to limited space, the seeds must have fallen into the other pots as well.

Thai basil plant, growing happily at the corner of the rectangular pot of my sawtooth coriander.

Two young seedlings which I planted in two separate pots, are doing great, growing well right now.

The ones here, sprouted on their own and I left them in their own chosen spots, which seems to suit them fine. There are a few more plants in separate pots, and I even had to discard some of the seedlings, as there are just too many, and I do not have enough of space! 

Sweet Basil

Thymes, it was growing really well until..... see photo below.....

...it was infested by some sort of white fungus. I was really disappointed as the thyme plant has been thriving  so well and gets so big, and now this! 

Rosemary, have been growing rather slow, but have been supplying me with fragrant leaves for my bakes and cooking pot.

Chilli Plant, which I bought from a nursery about two months ago, could not resist getting this plant when I saw those cute little tiny chillies growing all over. They are all ripe now, red and ready to be harvested. There's even more small chillies growing! 

What are the herb plants that you are growing in your garden?

Happy Gardening!

Different Shapes and Shades of Greens

My herb plants  ......

Oregano 

Sweet Basil 

Rosemary

Thai Basil

Sawtooth Coriander

Stevia

Dill

Mint

Thymes

Parsley

Curry Leaf

Thymes

Thyme is a great herb to grow in our garden, it loves hot sunny location, with well-drained soil.  I love the smell of thyme, it is fragrant, though not overpowering, really pleasant.  It is not only used in cooking, but it looks pretty and very attractive, gracefully cascading over the pot.  I bought this pot of thyme, common thyme (thymus vulgaris), a couple of months back, and it is growing well. There are many varieties of  thymes, but this is the most popular.

Some interesting facts about tyhmes from Wikipedia :

"Thyme is a good source of iron and is used to flavour meat, soups, stews and baking.  It has medicinal value, it contains an essential oil, thymol, an antiseptic.  A tea made by infusing the herb in water can be used for cough and bronchitis. Because it is antiseptic, thymes boiled in water and cooled is very effective against inflammation of the throat when gargled 3 times a day. The inflammation will normally disappear 2-5 days."

This photo was taken a few days ago.

Thymes can be propagated in a number of ways, seed, root division and from cutting. The quickest way to grow is from root division. Thymes will start to become woody and produce fewer leaves after three or four years, and at this stage, the plant need to be separated by propagation and replanted.  I should really try this, it would be great if this works and I will have another pot of thyme and more to pass around!

The sprigs and leaves can be frozen or dried and will retain their original flavour.  During full bloom, cut 5-6 inch stems and allow them to air-dry.  After the leaves are thoroughly dry and brittle, remove them from the stem and store in an air-tight container. I'm going to try this soon, as I think that my pot is really full.

I have recently made a moist and delightful cake using this wonderful herb.  If you would like to try out this cake, please click Golden Pear and Thyme Cake.

If you do not have a pot of thyme in your garden, it's about time you do!  I bought mine at a nearby nursery and it cost me around RM8.00, but if you are around Sg. Buloh, you can easily buy it at RM5.00.  Growing them with seeds would take forever, for me, at least!  Since I would like to use them for cooking and baking, I just buy them from the nursery and let them grow for a bit before using them.  I am trying to grow dills by seeds.  I sowed the seeds a few days ago, but nothing so far.  But I am in no hurry, I have a pot of dill from the nursery too! 

 

 Happy Gardening!