I walked through my garden today looking for what to harvest. Savory, oregano, zucchini, basil, chamomile, feverfew, sage, calendula, arugula and roses were among the gifts I found growing. The herbs will be dried and put into herb blends later. The arugula we had as a salad for dinner tonight with a honey balsamic dressing. Not too many roses are growing right now so I am glad I cut alot of them earlier in the summer. I pick flowers from the chamomile daily to dry and use in a variety of products. Feverfew (next to the bowl) will become a tincture as well as an infused oil. Calendula is an important herb that I use alot of in skin care products. I’m trying to keep up on what I have dried to make sure I harvest enough culinary, medicinal and skin care herbs to last over the next year.
Chamomile blossoms
I have decided to ‘remodel’ the garden bed right in front of my door. It has become overgrown and is filled with plants I don’t necessarily use. We have cut out several bushes and through FreeCycle I have been able to find homes for many of the plants in that bed. If you have plants that need a new home be sure to check to see if there is a FreeCycle in your town. Once there is enough room I’ll put a path going through the garden space and then fill it primarily with culinary herbs. Having these herbs concentrated in one place rather than scattered throughout the gardens will make things easier for harvesting. I’ll post some pictures in future blogs of the progress.
On another note, Kelly Bloom at Southern Soapers posted a blog last week that has been getting alot of discussion attention among skin care makers. It discusses the definition of a ‘cosmetic’ versus a ‘drug’ and suggests that many of us who make skin care products are actually making and selling drugs illegally by FDA standards. You can read it here: http://tinyurl.com/kl85ul
