Winter Herbarium
I managed to get my herbs in before the big snow which was a relief, especially as it took months for the shiso to germinate and I’m curious about using it. I put the herbs on this table in my mud room last winter, and while they didn’t die, they didn’t exactly thrive either. There’s a window directly opposite the table, and it is the south-facing side of the house, but it doesn’t get a whole lot of sunlight, especially on those gloomy days.
So I bought a couple of brackets and a timer, and rigged up one of the grow lights from my basement seed-starting setup. So far, after a week they seem to be doing pretty well. I’ve got the lights set up for 12 hours a day, and because there’s a light out there I seem to be remembering to water more regularly. I’m not good with houseplants — I forget they’re there and kill them. Or they get whiteflies and die. Or something. But I’m hoping this winter to keep growing basil and marjoram and shiso and thyme and rosemary and mint and chives (the chives are in a post-transplant swoon at the moment. I’m hoping they recover.)
Stumble it!
Posted: October 23rd, 2008 under food, gardening, other.
Comments: 1
Comments
Comment from Jennifer
Time: October 23, 2008, 11:32 am
I read an article the other day about how the American household has gone from being a producer to being a consumer. It made me think. It’s a kind of twist on the enviro do-not-consume mantra: rather than worrying about not-consuming, why not think about what we can produce at home?
If I’m heating my house all day (well, not all day; but it never gets below 60 degrees in here), shouldn’t I use the house to produce herbs or maybe lettuce through the winter? I was lamenting my lack of a greenhouse, but I have a big, south-facing window; isn’t that, in effect, a greenhouse? I think I’ll try it.