Lemon Verbena

Although autumn is here in full swing, my garden is still full of life and abundance. We have yet to have our first frost, so there are still cherry tomatoes on the vine. Greens such as swiss chard and lacianto kale are growing prolifically amongst the blooming asters and toad lily and there is still quite an abundance of parsley making it's way into many a meal these days.

Another herb that is still growing strong is lemon verbena, an herb that I most recently fell in love with. I have my neighbor to thank for that who gifted me a little brown bag of homegrown lemon verbena tea for Christmas a few years ago. That spring it was the very first plant I bought at the nursery and I find that each year I buy a few more plants than I did the last. I tuck them in to as many pots and planters as possible amongst other herbs and annual flower. I love it's bright green leaves and it's spindly, trailing habit.

I use the leaves fresh in both iced and hot tea throughout the summer and in late summer I begin to dry the leaves to store a way for winter. A few weeks ago we were threatened with some cold night time temps. Since lemon verbena is an annual I pulled a few plants from my pots and hung them in my pantry to dry.

Because the leaves are a bit more dry and tough compared to mint or basil, lemon verbena dries quickly. Simply hang in a dry, cool place. In about 7-10 days strip the leaves from the stem and store in an airtight container. To make tea , simply place a handful of leaves in a teapot, cover with boiling water and let steep for 5 minutes. I like my tea with honey but it's also delicious plain both hot and cold.

seasonal interest in the garden

i think for a lot of people in the northeast, autumn in the garden can feel a bit blah. the harvest comes to an end, plants have begun to peter out and well.... things tend to look a bit dead.

but i believe with some creative selection, the fall garden can be quite beautiful even without having to buy mums and ornamental cabbages

over the years my goal has been to create a garden with seasonal interest and to appreciate the beauty in the many cycles of a plant. selecting plants with beautiful bark, seed heads, leaf texture and pattern can all enhance the fall garden even into the winter months.
this crape myrtle not only produces beautiful white flowers in late summer but also pretty little star shaped seed heads and a gorgeous bark that sheds into a stunning, mottled reddish-grey hue.


choosing plants that produce interesting seed heads can create a beautiful billowy landscape. ornamental grasses and joe pye weed are what i am loving in my garden right now.
i especially love these Northern Sea Oats with their bronzed flower heads that shimmer and rustle in the wind. they look beautiful in a fall flower arrangement too.
purple hyacinth bean is one of my favorite annual climbers. they produce a lovely purple bean type flower which then turns into this beautiful bright purple seed pod. these are growing up our chicken run. there will be plenty of seeds to be saved for next season.


our dwarf weeping crab apple tree out front looks beautiful with it's branches dripping with fruit. i think i appreciate it's beauty in the fall even more than it's dainty little pink flowers in the spring. it's a nice pop of color at this time of year
although i cut back a lot of the black eyed susans and cone flowers once they have died back, i do like to leave some for the birds. we love watching the gold finches and chickadees feast on their seed heads. these seeds are also easy to save for next year. a little homemadepacket of these makes a nice gift for a gardening friend.
plants such as lamb's ear, sage, santolina, and kale all have a beautiful grey- blue tone that blends well with purples and greens. they all have a tougher, hardier leaf that allows them to last later into the year sometimes even able to withstand some light frosts.

these are just a few of my favorites. i'll highlight more plants and ideas for fall in the upcoming weeks.

late october in the garden

snow is in the forecast for tomorrow. we keep having false alarms in the frost department, but we felt it was time to harvest our tomatillos. did you know that we didn't think we planted tomatillos this year? we were sent tomatillo seeds instead of the husk cherry seeds that we ordered. i'm not complaining. more salsa verde in our very near future. we also pulled out our matt's wild cherry tomato plants (finally!) and have an entire colander full of various shades of cherry tomatoes sitting by the sink.



it's time to plant garlic. many of you wrote to tell me that you are a bit intimidated by garlic. don't be! it's super easy to grow and doesn't have many pests. just simply break the bulb into cloves. don't peel them.



and plant them with the tip pointing up. i've read different opinions about spacing. 4-6 inches sounds good to me. at the farm, we plant them 8 inches apart because we have the room to do so. push the entire clove into the soil and cover. pat the soil down when you finish planting.

if you have a chance, enhance your soil with some aged manure or compost. at the farm, we add cheep cheep, which is supposed to be good for any plants in the allium family.



our hives are wrapped and ready for winter weather should it truly arrive tomorrow. mouse guards are in place, too. we're all set whether it snows or not.