A Seed Saver's Garden

[heirloomgal]

Since my little basil experiment is going well , I've been lurking around looking at other unique kinds of basils. As I've written about before on here, I've experimented quite a bit with the 'regular' Ocimum basilicum types. I've found quite a few other uncommon ones since that I'd really like to try-Ocimum kilimandscharicum 'Camphor Basil', Ocimum american 'Lemon Basil' and 'Lime Basil' another Ocimum americanum. There is another basil, though of the 'regular type', but it has big, poofy serrated light green leaves called 'Napoletano'. Uncommon and tempting. I think most of these I could start pretty early, unlike Ocimum basilicum which can't be started too early or it gets prone to dampening off. I'm so excited to try these! The camphor basil can grow to a metre and a half, so it's probably a perennial variety.

I'm feeling like a 'scented' garden might be nice in 2023. It might be time to give Tulsi another whirl, since I'm drinking more herbal teas these days and that plant smells sooo yummy. I think I'm going to try a few perennial veggies too - Good King Henry, Hablitzia and Skirret. I don't know what oysters taste like so Salsify is out for now. I'm also going to try Quedlinburger Balm which is apparently the cat's meow of all lemon bombs out there. Epazote (turpentine flavoured?...) & Black Cumin (I use the brown plenty, but the black one is new to me) are on the 2023 list along with Hamburg Parsley. Maybe some Korean Perilla too....
Oh, I love a season when totally new things are on the horizon.


On another note, DD was SO excited to make wreaths together this Christmas season. She's been dehydrating citrus for a week and doing greenery clippings, along with collecting all the tools and wire we need. We had fun making these tonight! Everything is natural, minus the green berries.

 

[digitS']

Very Pretty Wreath.

I have grown 3 of the 4 types of basil that you are thinking of, 'Gal. (Neither "camphor" nor "turpentine" would have attraction, shudder) Tulsi should be tried for tea but, I guess that I have just not gotten a-round-to-it.
If I have a problem with starting basil it is fusarium wilt with new seedlings. It's discouraging to see a quarter size area of a new batch of tiny seedlings in a common container just die, or losing 3 out of 4 in a 4-pack. Therefore, I have gone with the new fusarium-resistant sweet basil types in more recent years. Not quite a fit with the "heirloom" orientation. Napoletano is a lovely sweet basil and I appreciate all in that group .

Lemon and Lime, have never had wilt problems. However, while I think that Lemon is an absolutely wonderful choice on a fish fillet coming out of the oven, DW is absolutely fixated on dill. Which is fine ... better than fine but ...

Steve

 

[baymule]

Beautiful wreath and I bet it smells good too! I want to grow some Basil this coming year. You inspire me!

 

[Branching Out]

I love touching lemon basil, and having the fragrance release- it is spirit lifting!
My girlfriend gave me some Piccolino basil seedlings this past summer, and were they ever cute little plants at just 4" tall, with miniature leaves. Seriously adorable. I did not end up using any of this basil as I had so much Sweet basil, but my friend says you can just shear it with scissors and it regrows. That is one variety that I am hoping to grow indoors over the winter, since it remains so small and manageable.
My basil success story from the summer was Aromatto basil, which is purple and can be used as filler in cut flower bouquets. I planted the seedlings in a hot spot that has some moisture even in summer (due to an underground stream, I believe) and this basil thrived on total neglect. It was an ornamental for me, however it is edible as well.

 

[heirloomgal]

Beautiful wreath and I bet it smells good too! I want to grow some Basil this coming year. You inspire me!

Smells soooo good and fresh!

 

[heirloomgal]

I love touching lemon basil, and having the fragrance release- it is spirit lifting!
My girlfriend gave me some Piccolino basil seedlings this past summer, and were they ever cute little plants at just 4" tall, with miniature leaves. Seriously adorable. I did not end up using any of this basil as I had so much Sweet basil, but my friend says you can just shear it with scissors and it regrows. That is one variety that I am hoping to grow indoors over the winter, since it remains so small and manageable.
My basil success story from the summer was Aromatto basil, which is purple and can be used as filler in cut flower bouquets. I planted the seedlings in a hot spot that has some moisture even in summer (due to an underground stream, I believe) and this basil thrived on total neglect. It was an ornamental for me, however it is edible as well.

Beautiful @Branching Out , a lovely landscape arrangement. What is the plant to the right in the photo with the super shiny leaves?

 

[Pulsegleaner]

There is a thread about those on another forum, and because I was interested, I made some inquiries. BC is taking a lot of creative license calling that a bean, because it is a gourd. Apparently a long-season one too. Doesn't mean it's not possible (I'm encouraged by my success with luffa this year) but consider the cost of the seed & the room it will require,. Perhaps not worth trying if space is limited, or could best be used for something more productive.

I gotta admit that I'm still tempted to try growing it; but unless I can find culinary advice, not sure how I'd use it (or if I should). Even the luffas were not very productive; but my Filipino friends treated them like gold. There is a particular soup for which no other gourd will do. Me, I really like the sponges.

Forget them, I've tried. Snake Gourds are REALLY Tropical, and REALLY long season, so unless you are down around the bottom of Florida, California or Hawaii, there's not chance.

And you won't have great chances there either, since the thing they DON'T tell you is the snake gourd opens it's flowers AT NIGHT, and is planning to have them pollinated by BATS. So unless you have fruit eating bats around you (possible in Southern California and a once in a million chance in the Florida keys, but not in Hawaii) you better be prepared to be out there in the dark hand pollinating.

Since I have wound up with several packages now (due to the fact of no two places being able to agree on what genus it belongs to and, hence, me buying a lot of the same seed over and over again due to thinking it is something different), I may this spring try and play around with the Thai mini-gourd, which might also be a kind of Tricosanthes (or a kind of luffa, like I said, sellers disagree).
I also may have Indian thorn gourd, which IS a Tricosanthes (it depends on if 1. The dried fruits get through customs due to being sold as medicine, not seeds and 2. If the fruits actually still CONTAIN any seeds (I can't actually tell from the picture if the fruits are just dried, or if they cut the bottoms off and shake the seeds out before they pack them.

 

[heirloomgal]

I don't know anything about this vegetable species, and saw it only for the first time in Baker Creek's catalogue just recently, but I wonder if it's a different type that Baker Creek is offering? There is a Mother Earth News articles by William Woys Weaver, and he writes in there that he has been growing different varietals of it for ten years - and he's in Pennsylvania? According to him, if you can grow limas you can grow these, apparently the moths pollinate both?

Alas, this means I cannot grow them because I can't seem to grow limas, not well anyway...

 

[Alasgun]

That’s funny you mention ‘The Mother Erth news”; i had a lifetime membership many years ago; still have EVERY issue from #1 until i quit them in the late 70’s. Early on they were real practical and i could relate to most of it. Then they went off the rails with authors who’d apologize to the broccilli before they ate them!

Woke isn’t anything new

 

[Branching Out]

Beautiful @Branching Out , a lovely landscape arrangement. What is the plant to the right in the photo with the super shiny leaves?

That is a laurel. At the moment the name of the cultivar escapes me, but it is a low-growing spreading shrub. The first few years the deer were really hard on it, but it survived their munching and now it is over 20 years old. Only think is that everywhere a branch touches the ground it puts down roots, so it is becoming a bit of a make work project. Looks good in all four seasons though!