I've never heard of lemon verbena, what do you use it for and why 4 different basils do you do a lot of Italian cooking?
I'd never heard of it either, but it tastes like lemony fruity pebbles cereal, so I got it. I figure I'll use it for desserts. And yeah, I do like cooking Italian a lot. I make pasta dough at least once a week. I mainly like growing several varieties for making pesto. I find that using several types of basil in the pesto makes for a much tastier pesto. Also, whole boxwood leaves are great for garnishing pasta or anything else. It's a dense bush with lots of tiny leaves and a taste similar to sweet basil. The Greek basil is kind of spicy (not as spicy as cinnamon basil, though) and the Thai basil has an anise like flavor and I mainly use it for asian dishes, but I add a little to my pesto as well.
I love having fresh herbs growing outside kitchen, food taste so much better with really fresh ingredients. I've just got the one basil that I got from a heritage seed place, Finissimo basil. It is supposed to grow into a perfect little spherical bush with strong scented/flavoured leaves but I think I planted it too close to my curry bushes, the smell gets over powered.
Joined: Apr 18, 2011 Age: 21 Posts: 2674 Location: the old country
Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 9:33 am Post subject:
i love growing herbs and vegies. i used to have a garden back at my old house and to the place i moved but now i have a new home and i havent gotten around to doing anything major with the backyard. i planted garlic and broad beans. the beans are coming along well but the garlic is looking pathetic. the sweet peas did not sprout at all. i can blame this on the position of the one patch of dirt in the yard- full shade, poorly drained soil. the odds are against me. i need to find vegies, fruit or herbs that grow in such adverse conditions. is it possible to uproot garlic and replant it? home grown is better. i dont know what comercial grower do to their produce but it just is not natural. the stuff thats grown naturally is supposed to look like a mutant freak not that steroid fed crap you get from supermarkets.
I love having fresh herbs growing outside kitchen, food taste so much better with really fresh ingredients. I've just got the one basil that I got from a heritage seed place, Finissimo basil. It is supposed to grow into a perfect little spherical bush with strong scented/flavoured leaves but I think I planted it too close to my curry bushes, the smell gets over powered.
That Finissimo sounds a lot like boxwood. Here's a picture of boxwood:
[img]http://www.netcookingtalk.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=7213&stc=1&d=1275837733[/img] _________________ Your Aspie score: 183 of 200
Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 31 of 200
AQ: 38
Finissimo basil is also known as “Finissimo Verde A Palla” basil. It is a type of Bush basil and one of Italy’s oldest and favorite basils. It has tiny leaves that are full of flavor and smell wonderful. This basil is best used in Italian dishes but also compliments many other dishes nicely."
"Boxwood Basil
Boxwood basil is used mainly as an ingredient in pasta dishes. The little green plants make a nice addition to your garden and the basil can also be planted in a pot however they grow quickly and may over run your patio, so you should consider planting them in the ground."
Joined: Oct 13, 2010 Posts: 85 Location: stuck at ground level - but trying to soar
Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 5:53 pm Post subject:
Many vegetables, including tomatoes and peppers can be grown in containers. 5 gallon buckets work well and can be often be picked up for free from local stores, bakeries are usually a good source.
There are many informative videos on You Tube about container gardening.
Check out this guys set up, it's one of the best. It isn't overly complicated but it does take a little construction. On the other hand, it can be as simple as dumping some potting soil in a container of your choice and plant away
Joined: Feb 01, 2012 Posts: 1364 Location: Planet Earth
Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 7:00 pm Post subject:
A few years ago, I planted a small redcurrant bush. It's grown taller than me and very wide by now, and it has a net to keep birds from stealing the berries. There's also a lot of lemon balm in my garden, but that's an accident - I planted some of it in a controlled way, but the next year it had taken over. For some reason, there are two young oaks and a small pine tree growing in my garden. The pine tree is fine for now, but one of the oaks has to go as they're right next to each other..
I hope to clear two small patches of dirt in my garden, then plant some herbs there. There should be several bags of seeds in the shed and the kitchen.
Joined: Feb 27, 2012 Age: 23 Posts: 4851 Location: the place I'm from doesn't exist anymore
Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 1:09 pm Post subject:
Kale (bucketloads of it)
Collard greens
Baby spinach
Broccoli
Rocket
Some lettuces of various types
chilies of various kinds
bell peppers (a.k.a. capsicum)
tomatoes
carrots
sping onions
onions
Butternut squash
Mushrooms
Yuca (and a number of other roots and tubers not normally grow here)
Beetroot
I have much more but this was all I could think of at the moment. I live on a fair amount of acreage, so there is a lot of it. We sell what we don't use, except for the kale. I eat a fair amount of kale since I can't buy it here, so I sell the excess but there usually isn't too much between me and my housemate.
It's paid for itself many times over, not to mention my grocery list is very small if existent these days. I just have to buy meat and seafood for the week and we are usually good here. Unless I happen to run out of tea or coffee. _________________ Diagnostic Tools and Resources for Women with AS: http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt211004.html
