DAILY DAILIES for mental health

14th April 2023

I spent an hour or so in the garage today resowing all of my medicinal and culinary herbs. Most of them had germinated before but I did not keep up with watering and then I did not transfer them to larger pots so every last one died. Anyway, it is April so I think I just have enough time to get them started again and to see them all grow and flourish with the super hot weather that will be coming our way this summer.

Here is the list of herbs that I had to resow today:

Basil: Tulsi, sweet, opal, Genovese, Thai, lemon, sacred (I think this is the same as Tulsi); Parsley: flat, curled,

Dill: mammoth, fern leaf; caraway, tarragon; Anise, cumin, coriander, chervil, yellow/white mustard

Winter savoury, summer savoury; Spilanthes, Elecampane, lady’s mantle, Valerian,

Astragalus, Ashwaghanda, Boneset, catnip; Oregano, marjoram, borage,

Sheep sorrel, lemon grass, Zloty LAN chamomile; eggplant: Chinese string, black moon hybrid

**Blue Vervain was on the original list but I have discovered that it has self-seeded a hundred plus times in the garden. I hate pulling things out but what am I to do with so many? besides, some are in the pathway and I am determined not to leave anything growing in the pathways this year. When they are small they are fine but once grown, they become a hindrance to gardening efficiency.**

I am still trying to find out what suits me best with growing my garden. I had decided that I would not buy any starts from the stores this year. I am still resolved to do that, but perhaps I will fail, and I will not mind. There are one or two plants that I cannot get germinated or off to a good start no matter how I try. Those are rosemary and lavender. I might relent and get those from the nursery, and if I stick to only those two, it would mean less than $10 invested in plants. I can live with that. I used to direct sow all my seeds. that was okay but no great successes there, no bumper crops, no successive plantings. I think starting seeds in pots might have the greatest reward but I have yet to prove this concept for myself as I am not able to keep up with caring for young seedlings. I will plan on organising my seed collection into categories of what can or should be planted when instead of grouping them into flowers/veg/fruits etc. I think that will make more sense for me as that is how my brain processes information, and it will make succession planting that much easier.

I still think I am financially ahead so far though as the cost of a pack of seeds is way less than seedling starts from the nursery. I almost forgot that I wanted to invest in some wine cap mushroom spores so that when I top up the pathways with chips again, I can inoculate the chips with the spores.

After I was done sowing seeds, I went into the garden and pulled weeds, re-positioned some of the garden totes and the mini greenhouse, and put a barrier around the strawberry bed since it looks as though it will yield quite the harvest this year. I am sure that the chipmunk who has lived in the bed these past two years, and who always gets the strawberries before I am able to will try a way into the bed. I shall remain vigilant. i also transplanted into the garlic bed, the 6 onion plants that I started from seed . Mind you, I sowed around 30 onion seeds to begin with.

There are so many weeds in the garden this year! I have not been able to top the pathways or beds with wood chips and compost, respectively, and what is in the walk-way has degraded. I am constantly pulling weeds out of the beds and walkway as they seem to grow overnight. The weeds are edible but I am not skilled enough to try any. I h ave been watching videos on wild edibles and I have a couple of books on the topic, but I am not ready yet to try any.

Gardening is good for us all. I for one find peace and joy when I am outside in the garden. The time goes by really fast and sometimes I am loathe to leave it. I even speak to the critters, letting them know I am not a threat to them. Dealing with severe illness in your family can be and is for me quite stressful and debilitating at times. Gardening helps me to become centred and it puts me in a peaceful place mentally, and I am able to not focus on all the troubles of life–waiting patiently for my return. To me it is vitally important to be as peaceful as I can all the times I can achieve peace, for if I am stressed all the time, and if I give into anxiety all the time, what good am I to those who need me? What good am I to myself? I know of so many tragic incidents of caregivers faring much worse than the person they are caring for. I want to remain strong and balanced so I can continue to be around for me, and for my family, and gardening, contact with nature and the outdoors, helps me to achieve those goals.

Tomorrow is my daughter’s birthday so I don’t think I will find enough time be in the garden then. Will see. . .