Starting a Herb Garden
“The best thing for ordinary folks would be to keep a small garden near the house and work in it for a few hours every day.”
~Mahatma Gandhi
Spring is in the air, or at least it’s the season to be dreaming of the aromatic, colourful, abundant garden that you’ve always wanted or wanted to expand. Gardening is a living art, a masterpiece that you create and it just keeps on changing with each passing day, week and season. Gardening is one of the most powerful forms of medicine that we have. It keeps us connected to nature and the changing seasons.
If you are planning a small background culinary or tea garden you need to find a location that will suit your needs. Near the back door is great, it’s handy and convenient especially if the backdoor is close to the kitchen. A small garden plot of 10×10 is a good size, to begin with. You can grow a lot of varieties of herbs in a small area. There are five important aspects of creating a garden full of medicinal and culinary plants.
EARTH/ SOIL – Working the soil is a very grounding and stabilizing healing experience. The quality of the soil is the number one priority to having healthy and vibrant plants. It starts with compost packed full of trace minerals and beneficial organisms; the richer the soil- the richer, healthier and more medicinal and nutritious will be the plants. Sandy loam is what the majority of herbs prefer which is good and loose.
AIR/ VENTILATION – For a healthy little ecosystem, give your plants plenty of space between each other, all plants need elbow room. A little 3-4 inch potted plant can turn into a 5-6 foot monster in a few months. Plant the ones that are going to get really big on the north side of the garden bed.
FIRE/ SUNLIGHT – Ideally most plants need at least 6-8 hours of light per day. Plant your shade-loving plants on the north side of the garden and plant your sun-loving or smaller plants, like the thymes, on the south side of the garden. Most plants are happy with east and west exposures during the summer, and with extra water and ventilation, they’ll do fine on the hot south side.
WATER/ RAIN – All plants need a sprinkle of rain before their roots get too dry. A good soaking once or twice during the hotter months works well; it will all depend on your soil type.
ETHER/ SPACE – This is actually the most important aspect of gardening. By space, I mean that of creating a sacred space where miracles of growing happen and I don’t just mean the plants. The elements of nature through plants transform each and every gardener. Cherish each moment for being in the garden is far more powerful than any spice, tea, or herbal tincture you will ever buy. It is the medicine of medicines.
“We learn from our gardens how to deal with the most urgent question of the time: how much is enough?” ~Wendell Berry