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The Garden Post Independence County Master Gardeners

University of Arkansas

Cooperative Extension Service

Editor, Nelson Barnett

Editor Emeritus, Marie Fowler

July, 2018 Volume XXIII Issue 7

Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them.—A. A. Milne

Next

Meeting!

7/12/2018

10 am, Extension Office

10:30 am Business Meet

10 am—Discussion of MG County

Fair Booth (set-up 7/15-17, man-

age booth 7/17-21, dismantle

booth 7/22. All hands needed!

Come to the Fair!

Pick Herbs You’ll Eat to

Grow in Your Backyard from the Washington Post

by Becky Krystal

I’m not an avid backyard

gardener. My thumb is less than

green, and my small patio is shaded by trees and

fences, preventing prolific vegetable growth.

Potted herbs, however, are my exception. I manage

to not kill them (usually anyway), and it’s hard to

argue with the convenience and freshness of step-

ping outside and snipping whatever I need.

I recently wandered the aisles of my local nursery

trying to decide what to plant. Unfortunately, my

eyes are bigger than my pots and, really, my

appetite. Here are few different categories that

might help you, too, settle on which culinary herbs

are most useful to plant. Be sure you also think

about what makes sense for the types of dishes you

think you’ll be making – this list is by no means

comprehensive.

Herbs you almost always have to buy more of than

you use How many recipes call for just a spring

or a few tablespoons of an herb, and yet you

are still stuck with a clam-shell package or a

Gardening Tip:

Paint the handles of your gardens tools a bright,

color other than green to help you find them

amongst your plants. You can also keep a mail-

box in your garden for easy tool storage.

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Gardening Tips from the Good Earth Garden Center http://www.thegoodearthgarden.com/learning-center/arkansas- gardening-calendar/

Prune hydrangeas (depending on variety) and gardenias now, before they start setting next years’ blooms! Give annuals and perennials a haircut if needed. Keep fertilizing annuals with BR-61 (water sol-uble) or Ferti-Lome Premium Bedding Plant Food (slow release granules). Water lawns early in the day before plants get stressed. Monitor vegetables for insect and disease and

treat as needed.

clam-shell package or a bunch of extras? There

are at least a couple of herbs I think are guilty of

this, but they’re versatile enough to keep in

your backyard. At the top of the list are thyme,

rosemary, oregano, sage and chives. And they

have a built-in bonus: They all come back each

year. Bonus bonus: Chive blossoms are very

pretty.

Herbs that grow plentifully that you can burn

through quickly Basil (sweet or Genovese) is my

favorite herb that falls into this category. I usu-

ally have at least three for four plants in my

yard since pesto is such a staple of my summer

diet. The more you pick, the more it grows.

Parsley, dill and mint are other prolific options

that also can be used in large quantities. I’d

throw cilantro in, but I have yet to successful

keep a cilantro plant alive through the summer.

If you can, more power to you!

Herbs that are nice to have but hard to find I love

making Thai stir fries and noodle dishes, and

Thai basil is one of those ingredients that really

helps you come close to replicating the flavors

of restaurant dishes. Thai basil can be tricky to

find unless you go to an Asian market, and even

then it can be hit or miss. But your local nursery

probably has it in stock, which makes getting

your own plant an ideal solution in my book.

Like the Italian varieties, it’s simple to grow and

harvest.

Need a little gardening advice, too? Here are tips

from Washington Post gardening columnist Adrian

Higgins:

Herbs like full sun, free-draining soil and an

open an airy location, as opposed to shade,

heavy clay soil and thick wood mulches. If

you’re planting in an herb bed, incorporate

gravel and sand into the soil and then mulch

Continued on Page 3

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Rita’s Life After reading the interesting

article about June Fournier in

the Oomph magazine, Nelson

and I thought it would be nice

to learn more about our fel-

low Master Gardeners. He

suggested I write the first arti-

cle about something inter-

esting in my life that you may

not know.

Did you know that the first

time I saw my father I was 2

1/2 years old because he was

in World War II? Did you know that I attended 13 different

schools in different states and countries because my father

was in the Air Force? Did you know that I graduated from

high school in Hawaii? Did you know that I have wanderlust

and that is what I will write about?

Egypt was one of the fantastic places that I visited. Harold

and I went there in 2000 to visit our son, Allen, who was

attending school in Cairo to study Arabic. We had a visit that

was not the usual tourist trip. We stayed with Allen and his

wife, Jen, in their apartment in Cairo. He did not have or

need a car. He was able to walk to everywhere he needed.

Allen told us ahead of time that it was not appropriate to

wear shorts in public. It was so hot walking in the blazing sun

while wearing long pants. The wind blew dust from the Saha-

ra Desert over the city.

So many things happened on that trip but the most exciting

may have been going to see the pyramids at 9 PM to see the

sound and light show. It was very pretty and our guide spoke

wonderful English. We rented 2 camels and 2 horses and

rode into the Sahara Desert through the busy streets of Cai-

ro. My camel ran my foot into a wall and Jen’s foot brushed

against a car mirror. My camel was very whinny and scared

us but I was so determined to ride a camel. The boys rode the

horses. After the show, we rode into the Sahara Desert and

up a hill. It was scary at night and when we saw our trail in

the daylight we were amazed at how high the hill was. When

we reached the point where we turned around, the guide has

us dismount and change animals. It was interesting to note

the difference in the way the camels and horses walked. The

trip took almost 2 hours and was so much fun.

We also visited the pyramids during the day. We were fasci-

nated to be able to touch and even climb on the largest

one. Touching the pyramids brings good health and long

life. You can pay an extra fee to enter the pyramid but it was

closed when we were there. They said there is absolutely

nothing inside them. All the treasures are at the museum and

we spent a day looking at the vast array of things from the

boy offers you a few strips of toilet paper for a price. How in

the world do you know ahead of time how many sheets to

buy?

We took a 3 day cruise down the Nile River. We made many

stops to visit ancient ruins. It is unbelievable how

many temples and artifacts are still intact. We saw men me-

ticulously painting acetone on the walls with small brushes to

bring out the colors. Many statues were beheaded during

different conflicts.

That is about as exciting as my life is. by Rita Clark

Editor’s Note: Pretty exciting I’d say and a good reason for

all of us to write something, or give highlights of our lives so

we can get to know each other better. What may seem

ho-hum to you may be very interesting to others. I’ll be

passing around a sheet at the July meeting!

(Continued from Page 2)

with a layer of gravel. Water occasionally but

deeply.

Containers make it easy to manage soil and sun.

Larger containers are better for the plants,

but because they can get heavy, make sure

the pot is where you want it before you

start filling it and transplanting the herbs.

Water containers more often but allow them to

drain well, so no saucers underneath.

Leafy herbs like to be used – cutting stems will

promote bushiness.