The herbs project has gone down like a lead balloon!

Good afternoon to one and all.

@ Flinty - many thanks for your advice and to all others who've provided their input, too. I intend to copy and paste all your suggestions and have a laminated hardcopy close by in time of need.

As for the use of vermiculite, I'll have to find the German word for it, otherwise I'll no doubt receive some rather blank looks in the local garden centre when I pop the question. We've used bone meal/horn chippings (German: Hornspäne) in our compost if that's what you mean? Otherwise, an indepth description or an attached image would be most welcome.

As for your thoughts on my 'midnight raid' :hehe:, well it was certainly meant well. I've only put it into one large pot so I'll keep it in this time round and think twice next year. Incidentally, do any of you grow herbs in winter (I mean outside or underglass) or can they be put on the kitchen window sill once bought from the supermarket?

Although I do my fair share of cooking during the warmer months, I do the majority of it in autumn and winter. In this instance, I'm (we're) reliant on a regular supply of herbs. I'm sure you'll all agree, cooking has the potential to be a rather expensive past-time, especially nowadays (the introduction of the Euro from the German Mark certainly didn't help things here due to the fact that the currency sign changed - not the price. Be thankful you've got the Pound back in Blighty).

Nonetheless, we'd rather invest in the healthier options and devour our own delightful dishes than throw a cheap 'n' crappy read-meal into the microwave. One has to maintain one's values and standards. That said, I'll take your advice on board and do what you've suggested in point 4 Flinty.

Right, that'll do for now. I hope you'll all enjoy what's left of Sunday. :gnthb:

With sincere regards,

V_B 0)

 

Very British

Vermiculite is a type of clay (I think) that's been subjected to great heat. It turns into granules that look like puffed wheat. Its function is to improve soil structure rather than act as a fertiliser in the same way as bone meal or hoof and horn.

As for growing herbs in winter, I let the perennials take their chances in the garden. For me, this comes down to rosemary, thyme, bay and parsley (OK, parsley is a biennial) but it has to be said that the leaves have very little flavour during the winter months. They get used in the kitchen then only out of habit. I think there just isn't enough light, indoors or outdoors, to maintain herbs in their prime at that time of the year.

Even the living supermarket herbs don't seem to have much flavour in the winter. Or maybe it's just my taste buds that are betraying my age...

 

I've just dug out the packet and apparently, vermiculite is a "...naturally occurring non-toxic aluminium iron silicate mineral". So now you know.

 

vermiculit
or
Wurmstein

is the translation I've found

 

Here are a couple of rules of thumb that I've learned when growing herbs:

1. Sage should get its own container. It is very greedy when it comes to space, and will quickly muscle in and take space of anything it has to share with.

2. Very drought hardy herbs like Rosemary, Thyme and to a lesser degree Sage should not share a pot with the likes of Parsley and Basil, as you would have a job keeping them all happy in the same pot. It is easy to over water Rosemary for example, but keeping the conditions just right for Rosemary could lead to the likes of Basil drying out.

3. Parsley is very, very deep rooted. It forms a tap root so will be ok in a fairly narrow pot, but the pot should be as deep as possible. Depth is far more important than width when it comes to Parsley.

Last but not least, even herbs that are known to be very drought tolerant will quickly dehydrate if they become pot bound, or if they dry out before they've had chance to establish a good root system.

 

Greetings to All above,

I'm happy to report that apart from the rosemary having to be thrown away (we've since bought more and is still with us), the flat-leaf parsley and basil made quite a good recovery and we've been fortunate to have had a regular-ish supply ever since.

My thanks to those who provided me with their advice. :thumb:

With sincere regards,

V_B 0)