Lemon Verbena Living, How Did I Miss This?

A Very Early Bloom on My Favorite!

Well, it had to happen sooner or later.  There is a blog that is really and truly about my favorite, lemon verbena.  It is called Lemon Verbena Living from Mia Sherwood Landau in North Texas.  Mia lives, eats, breaths, grows and sells lemon verbena, live and dried.  She also found a book called A Plant of Lemon Verbena by Alicia Amy Leith from 1895 from England!  How did I not hear about this book or this blog?  I have been in my stitching cave, stitching!  That's why!

So I have linked her blog here in this post and in my favorite blogs in the U.S.  Hopefully, I will get some time to sit down and read the entire blog.  Looks like I have a bunch of reading to do Mia from 2014, but I think I will enjoy doing it and I will probably learn a ton about our favorite, lemon verbena.  Glad you found me Mia!  I am very delighted you did!

Since I talked about an Herb Companion post or two last post, I will give you links to my favorite posts about lemon verbena here:   In 2009 I did a post called The Lemon Verbena Lady's Favorite Herb.  In 2010 I did a post called A Summertime Favorite:  Lemon Verbena Jelly.  In 2011 I did a post called The Lemon Verbena Tales:  New Pests and Harvesting Tips.  In 2012 I did a post called The Herbal Harvest:  3 Lemon Verbena Recipes.  So that should give you few thoughts about my favorite in one place.

Here in the 'Burgh, IT IS STILL RAINING!  I have made a box of raspberry jam already.  We are supposed to have our last day of rain tomorrow and then we are to dry out.  I got the great news that my coverlet is finished and so Monday I will pick it up and hopefully show it to you then.  Hope you had a great day in your herb garden.  Ours is a jungle at the moment!  Talk to you soon.

Composer in the Garden!

You could call my friend Lynn Purse, Composer in the Garden which is the name of her blog.  I like to call her the Queen of Color or a Rock Star of Color and Design.  You get the idea.  Her main profession is an Associate Professor of Music Technology at Duquesne University.  She taught my favorite class at Phipps Conservatory a number of years ago on Color in the Garden!  Some of it has rubbed off, Lynn!  I have learned about color combinations and color echoes from Lynn.  We reconnected during those class years because we were in the same class at a local woman's college.  We aren't together nearly enough!  Her garden was featured in the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Town and Country Tour just two weeks ago!  Drat!  Had I known at the time, Bonnie and I would have really gone on the tour.  We had just come back from our road trip and I wimped out at the last minute.  Although it was 90 degrees that day.  So it wasn't an ideal day.  Lynn said that she had 500 gardeners go through her garden.  It was probably because of her description A Garden in the Woods.  It was a beautiful sunny day and so there was a lot of contrast.  Not as ideal day for photos.  I will get another chance later in the week with Bonnie.  So here for your enjoyment and delight is A Garden in the Woods.

A Lovely Herb Circle Before You Enter the Main Garden

This Gate Beckons You to Come in and Enjoy!

The Stone Steps Into the Garden!

A Look Back with Plants on Either Side of the Steps!

Two Wonderful Decks with Opportunities to View the Garden From Above!

Some of Lynn's Color Combos and Lots of Daylilies!

Hydrangea 'Annabelle' at the Back of the Garden

A Stunning View from the Top Deck!

There are Lots of Shady Places to Sit and Relax

Containers with Wonderful Choices of Variegated and Shade Loving Plants

A Bit of Whimsy!

A Seating Area for Dining Alfresco

Some Hostas and Ferns Leading into the Woods!

The Path into the Woods for Angel, the Poodle

A Selfie with Lynn!

Lynn's garden is based on concentric circles as are knot gardens.  When she and Bill bought the house it had been empty for about one year and the deer had taken up residence under their decks.  Soo she waited about one additional year so that she could track the movement of the deer and then they bought deer fencing and installed it.  They installed additional black chicken wire at the bottom of the fence when they discovered rabbits had gotten under the netting into the garden.  With a few additional exceptions, it has worked beautifully.   Bonnie and I will be in the garden earlier on Thursday.  So I will post additional closeups and hopefully the contrast will be better.  Any way it was good to spend time in a Garden in the Woods and with my friend, Lynn.  Hope you had a great day.  It was beautiful here and I picked another batch of raspberries for jam tomorrow!  Almost two boxes of jam already!  Amazing!  Talk to you tomorrow!  

I Got on a Double Decker and Almost Didn't Come Home!

Big Ben in View from the Top!

Well, I guess you have guessed where I have been.  Some of my blogging friends have guessed.  I had to get away to the Chelsea Flower Show because my dear herbal friend, Jekka had her first show garden.  It had her name all over it and won a Silver Gilt Metal!  I gave her a card that said Kick Ass on the outside and I said on the inside Oh, wait, you already have kicked ass!  She was very pleased with the outcome and I will share my photos of the show in a later post.  I spent an afternoon at Sissinghurst in the rain!  I took a class on digestive issues and herbs at the Chelsea Physic Garden.  Went to the Cambridge Botanic Garden and Oxford's as well.  I also got to spend a tiny bit of time with my English herbal companion, Gloria.  Always a joy to be with her.  But it is just a joy to be able to spend time in my beloved England.  I was celebrating the 50th (yes, 50th) anniversary of my first visit to England.  I remember sitting next to an English man on the plane over who taught me all about the different coins of currency.  I loved his accent.  And I will never forget pushing the bell for the butler at the Grosvenor House Hotel and ordering breakfast.  I was a lucky girl then and I am a lucky woman now.  Thank you to The Herbal Husband for tolerating my absence.

With apologies for not writing a lot lately, I am back and not a moment too soon!  We have not had the rain as Texas may have had, but my goodness, the herb garden is a crazy wild blooming mass of plants!  I almost missed its flamboyance, herbally speaking!  As you can see by the back gardens, I have lots of weeding to do, but the English are making more space into wilderness!  Maybe I can go with that story!  Once things are weeded, I really want to go with plants that will bring as many beneficials as possible.  So I have a bit of work to do and I promise that I will sprinkle my English adventures into the mix.  Speaking of rain, we are still getting showers here.  It is soggy and some herbs are tolerating it and others not so much.  Maybe that's what I will discuss next time.  Talk to you later.

The English Are Doing More Wilderness Areas!

It is a Blessing and Honor to be a Blogger!

I have made some very dear friends over the years through blogging.  Some that I have never met.  I still feel close to each of you in different ways.  You will understand my title once I tell you this story.  Several years ago another blogger, Pat Taylor, who writes Thoughts From Taylorsoutback wrote a comment to me about this blog.  We connected through our love of herbs.  We have written back and forth ever since.  Recently she and her husband, John have been dealing with her elderly parents.  I have tried to be there for her when I could because I really lived the life they are leading now.

Among all of the adventures in her life, she owned a quilt shop and she has made me some lovely and cherished pieces over the years.  So the other day she announced to me that a package was on the way.  It arrived today and when I opened it a whole bunch of emotions ran through me.  Here is what the package contained.  It is a very special wall hanging.  I'm sorry the photos don't do it justice.

Garden ABC's

She Did the Embroidery As Well!

The Back is Almost As Wonderful as the Front!

  The Herbal Husband said there is a signature on the back.  It says:

Garden ABC's

Embroidered, Pieced and Quilted by

Patricia Lloyd Taylor

2007

You see the Taylors have begun to downsize as we all must do and she thought that I would enjoy this treasure.  You can be sure that I will dear Pat!  Thank you from the bottom of my heart!  It will bring joy to both The Herbal Husband and me!  It is a blessing and Honor to be a Blogger!

We had some more rain and it has been warm and muggy.  It may be a strange year for the herb garden.  Trying to keep up with weeds, trimming and harvesting.  I will get around to an herbal post soon.  Hope you are having a great day.  Talk to you later! 

An Herbal Stocking Stuffer from Backyard Patch Herbs!

This Butter 'N Cheese Mix is not only good for butter but for cream cheese!

I Love Salad Dressings!  So I Bought A Selection of the Salad Dressing Mixes!

The Butter is Delicious and So Easy to Make!

I Used The Salt/Free Ranch Dressing/Dip Mix with Greek Yogurt for a Light Dip!

I Got This As An Extra In My Order!

Well, it is about time that I write about my blogging friend, Marcy Lautanen-Raleigh, the owner of the Backyard Patch.  She also writes a blog, Backyard Patch Herbal Blog and if that's not enough, she writes wonderful culinary herbal articles for The Essential Herbal Magazine.

I'm being honest when I say that I don't get around to her blog as often as I would like, but sometimes I'm walking down the driveway reading what she has to say in The Essential Herbal Magazine before I can get into the house.  Every time I do stop by her blog, she has invented something delicious that I want to try!  Her head must be spinning with all of great herbal recipes she comes up with.  The herb butter and the ranch dip were excellent.  I may gain a few pounds while making your recipes, Marcy!  She also has tea blends, herbal vinegars, bath and spa herbs, green cleaning herbs, pet herbs, baskets and gift items.  She also has bread and scones mixes.  I really may be in trouble, Marcy!  It is that time of year to have tea bread or scones with tea!  I think another order may be placed shortly!

Not only do you get delightfully smelling packages, but two or three ways to use the mixes.  I bought the salad dressing combination and got a couple of pages of recipes along with the packages of herb mixes.  Besides what I purchased, she sent along a packet of her Cinn-full Dessert Blend to try.  Again, with a bunch of recipes!  I will be commenting as I make recipes so bear with me, but please do get over to her Backyard Patch Herbs page on Etsy and order some stocking stuffers for the herb gardener in your life!  I know you/they will enjoy them!

I have lost track of the weather, but I think we are supposed to get rain and snow tomorrow.  Not really sure.  It was a pleasant day here with the temperature hovering at 50 degrees in December.  It is just weird.  Don't forget about my giveaway.  Two boxes this year.  You do have to be in the U.S.  Just way too expensive to mail a box around the world.  Will try to keep posting about Christmas stuff.  Talk to you later.

A Day at the Chelsea Physic Garden, London, England with Ros and . . .

I am fortunate to have made some lasting friendships in England because of blogging!  I got to see my friend, Ros who I met through blogging again on this trip.  I think we feel fortunate to have found one another.  I know I do and I think she feels the same way!  Instead of going to her this time, she came to me since she had never been to the Chelsea Physic Garden.

The Chelsea Physic Garden had only limited access during the Chelsea Flower Show week for many years.  Now it is mostly open to the public and here are their opening times.  It is just one of my favorite gardens in the London area.  I can go each time I visit and see something new each time.  There is a new Garden of Medicinal Plants that literally just opened in April.  The Garden of Medicinal Plants is laid out in rooms for each practice of medicine.  There are small boxes that have the interpretation of each practice.  The garden is still a bit bare, but I bet by next year it will be a thriving and illustrative garden.  The entire garden is wonderful and for a time you forget that you are in the city of London.

Hans Sloane, The Patron of Chelsea!

The Rockery with Very Old Rocks!

A Magpie Enjoying the Sunshine!

The Garden of Medicinal Plants

The Neurology Garden!

The Neurology Interpretation

I Loved the Serpent Looking Over the Medicinal Plants!

I Found Wormwood!  Yes, an Artemisia at Chelsea!

One of My Favorite Glasshouse Rooms, the Scented Pelargoniums!

A Simple Way of Defining Where You Planted Seeds with Sand!

The Truck Traffic Reminds Us We are in London!

The Garden of Edible and Useful Plants!

Artichokes Getting Ready to Bloom!

One of Many Botanical Order Beds!

The Chelsea Physic Garden just keeps getting better and better.  It is one garden in London that I make sure I get to visit!  I should become a member if I'm going to be in England every year!  Well, Ros and I had a great time and we dodge some raindrops, but had a few retail experiences as well.  We did have part two of our adventure and I'll share that with you next time.

We have the ickies and stickies big time here.  The Herbal Husband took out the hose because rain did not happen yet...  I think it might happen overnight, who knows.  Hope you are having a great day.  Part two of our adventure comes next time.  Talk to you later.   

Cliveden House with Ros in England in 2013-Part Two!

Always Have to Start with Herbs and Veggies!

The Grand Entrance to Cliveden House!

The Fountain of Love on the Grand Avenue!

A Lunch of Spring Vegetable Risotto for Ros!

A Ham Salad for Me!

Cliveden House from the Lawn!

The Parterre Designed by John Fleming in 1855!

Wisteria Blooming in the Walled Garden!

The Bedding Plants Just Getting Started!

A Japanese Influenced Pond!

Ros and I Enjoying Our Day Together!

A Perfect End to Our Day, The Cottage Bookshop!

As I hope you can see from the photos above, Ros and I had a fabulous time at Cliveden House!  We enjoyed our lunch at the cafe there and walked the grounds and just had a great time chatting and spending time together.  We did end the day at a bookshop near her house.  Of course, I found a few books that I did not have in my collection.  We went back to her home and had a light supper of my favorite, chicken and salad.  I got to meet her husband, Mike and their son, Tim.  They showed off the robot they were working on.   Sophie, their daughter is studying chants at the University of Bristol and Tim was going to study the cello at University of Cardiff!  Ros is the glue that keeps this family together!  They are a very special family.  So blessed to have met them and I hope to see them on a future visit!  I got this postcard of one of my favorite English flowers, bluebells.  Hope to get to see them one day!

Bluebells among the beech trees of Dockey Wood at Cliveden!

Believe it or not I have a couple more posts about my 2013 visit to England!  I'll get to those soon.  It has been a windy day but mild here in the 'Burgh!  Hope you have had a great day wherever you may be.  Talk to you later.