Be Sure You Cut These Blooms or You'll Have Tons, Herbally Speaking!

The Beautiful White Flowers of Garlic Chives!

As we are winding down the summer season here in the 'Burgh, it is a sure sign that August is here because the garlic chives are blooming!  A lot of my herbs are done for the year, borage is just about done.  So is the bee balm.  The mountain mint has started to bloom.  The calendulas continue.  The white star shaped flowers are attracting all sorts of pollinators and can be mesmerizing!  Don't be lured in by their pretty shapes and garlic smell.  As soon as you see their seed heads start to form, cut them off or you will have garlic chives everywhere!  I really had to clamp down on these several years in my herb garden and of course, The Herbal Husband replanted them elsewhere in the garden!  My twist on the old expression, if you can't beat them, join them, but don't let the garlic chives seed!

The gardens are growing by leaps and bounds!  We had three inches of rain in less than two days!  Fortunately didn't have floods like other areas.  Was so sad to hear of the passing of Robin Williams.  I was diagnosed with clinical depression in the 80's and got help.  Not as easy with addiction thrown into the mix.  RIP Robin!  Like someone said online, Make God laugh!  Hope you are having a great day!  Talk to you later.

One Last Story from September NYC Trip!

Sesame Crusted Diver Scallops

The Standard Grill under the High Line

We were given the opportunity to stay downtown in NYC to have dinner when we visited the gardens in PA and NYC in September.  Bonnie and I choose to go to The Standard Grill under the High Line.  They serve breakfast, brunch (Sat. & Sun.), lunch and dinner.  They are located on Washington Street at 13th Street.  A very happening place.  A big bar area in the back, but it had lots of families stopping by to have dinner as well.  As you can see sometimes it is all about the food for me! I'm anxious to get back there some day and go to some of the other places that my master gardening friends went.   They were all delicious.  Hope you have had a great day.  Going to be taking a trip down east (Does she ever stop traveling?) in a couple of days.  Soo talk amongst yourselves and I will be back with more adventures later in the week.  Talk to you later.

Tansy, Lemon Balm and Mountain Mint on The High Line in NYC!

Lots of bench space to Enjoy the Views

This Apt. Owner has Fun with The View!

Some Really Great Artwork on the Side of Buildings

Lots of Unusual Vistas

An Attractive Wooden Fence

Tansy in Bloom

Lemon Balm is Always Available

More Seating Areas in Amongst the Buildings

You Wouldn't Know You Were in NYC Here

A Stand of Mountain Mint

Some Vertical Vining to Disguise the View

An Important View-The Statue of Liberty Off in the Distance

The High-Line was built in the 1930's to take the freight trains off the streets of Manhattan's industrial district.  Trains stopped running in 1980.  Since 1999 it has been saved from demolition by a group of determined community activists.  Today the High-Line organization and the City of New York work to keep it a public park space in the city.  Of course, you would figure that I would find the herbs in among the other plants.  It was a bit more brown in color than I expected.  Sometimes though it is about the design and structure that make all the difference.  The link I gave you will give you up to the minute closures of the park, because in extreme weather, it closes for safety reasons.  It is a beautiful day here although still a bit cool, but it is fall!  Have to remind myself.  Hope you are having a great day.  Talk to you later.

Getting My Herb Garden Fix at the NYBG!

The Herb Garden at the New York Botanical Garden

A Very Tranquil Place to Meditate

'Rober's Lemon Rose' Scented Geranium.  Very Happy!

A Very Happy Mixed Border of Herbs!  What a Harvest They Had!

This Lady was Happy to Appear on My Blog!  Have No Idea Who She is!

Another Very Happy Border of Herbs!

The Curry Plant I Should Have Had!

Ambrosia in Bloom

Rosemarys That Are Very Healthy!

An Oregano I Can Easily Kill Called 'Kent's Beauty'

One Last Look at the Herb Garden

We finally have a beautiful sunny day here in the 'Burgh!  Blue sky and no clouds, but cold.  We don't get these days often in late fall or early winter.  Since we changed time over the weekend, it has been getting dark quick!  So I thought I would continue to show you trip photos.  I have also added a link to a list that was on Rock Center with Brian Williams the other night for the victims of Hurricane Sandy on the right side of my home page.  Maybe you can help.  They sure do need it.  I hope you are having a great day.  Go vote if you haven't already done so.  It's important.  Talk to you later.

The New York Botanical Garden-2012

Entrance to the Gardens

They Do Wonderful Plant Combinations at NYBG

Manolo Valdes Monumental Sculpture through next May

Rose Garden from the Tram

A Bit of Vertical Gardening for NYC

The Nancy Bryan Luce Herb Garden

Basil was Thriving

The Enid Haupt Conservatory

Monet's Garden

The Exhibit Looks Very Much Like October in France

Wonderful Flower Combinations

Plant Boxes with Trial Combinations

Well, I'm so far behind my traveling posts that I'm just going to keep going with the last trip I was on to eastern Pennsylvania and NYC.  The next stop on the trip was the New York Botanical Garden.  I was there in 2009 in May and that was a wonderful time to be in the garden because they still had spring bulbs, but they were transitioning to the summer season.  This was also a great time because the herb garden was very lush and the main exhibit about Monet and his garden was beautiful and reminded me of when The Herbal Husband and I were in Giverny in 2007.   Here is a photo of that trip for comparison.  Karen D. did a great job.

Monet's Garden in Giverny in 2007

We took a tram ride to get an overview of the garden.  It is immense.  Saw the rose garden from a far.  I loved the vertical gardening for NYC dwellers at the gift shop.  They had just started installing the Manolo Valdes Monumental Sculpture exhibit and it will run through next May 26th.  The herb garden was very lovely and I share more photos of that garden tomorrow.   Lots to see at NYBG.  Hope you had a great day.  The rose geranium jelly will be made tomorrow.  Talk to you later.  

Where Do I Begin, Herbally Speaking? Harvest Your Herbs!

Well, just got back from a bus trip to Chanticleer Garden near Wayne, Pennsylvania and then up to the New York Botanical Garden and the High Line in New York City.  It was a wild and crazy trip which I will tell you about in the coming days.  Right now I want to get you moving to harvest your basil in whatever way you wish.  I thought it might be OK with a couple of 40 degree days, but we have had more than that!  You can process it in a blender or food processor and freeze it in ice cube trays with oil or water or put it in vinegar of apple cider, white wine or red wine.  It just doesn't dry well.  You can also make jelly like I do.  I need to cut my cinnamon basil at the least and make it tomorrow.  Then I hope to cut some of the sweet basil and hopefully some of it will hold on a bit longer into the season.  I just want to get you thinking about ways to preserve it now that the season is winding down!  Tarragon is also another herb that can't be dried, but can be preserved in vinegar.  You can use the preserved tarragon just like you would use fresh.

You also should think about drying any of the following herbs:  lemon balm, lemon verbena, mints (every kind), anise hyssop, thyme, sage and lovage.  Once they are completely dry you can place your dried herbs in plastic bags, jars or plastic containers.  I would label and date them so you know what each item is.  You can cut some parsley and put it in a plastic container and freeze it.  Parsley will stand a light frost.  You can also chop up some chives in a container and use it this winter for eggs and baked potatoes or for just about any recipe that uses onions.  I like the flavor because it is a lighter onion flavor.  Well, I have been busy.  Hope you are all well.  Talk to you later.

Barely Visible!

I really do love the Allium family.  This is one of my favorites, but you couldn't tell because it is barely visible!  I got these alliums 'Purple Sensation' from the Hudson Valley Garlic Festival in Sagertites, NY.  It will be held on September 25 and 26 this year.  It was a really fun experience.  Note to self.  Move these when they finish blooming!  They are blooming despite the shade!  Hope you had a good day wherever you may be.  Talk to you later!

Guest Blogging for The Herb Companion Magazine!

Here is my latest blog and link for The Herb Companion magazine. This posting is about the New York Botanical Garden that I visited while I was in New York City in May. The picture above is the herb garden. It is very easy to reach by local commuter train and you get to see the magnificent Grand Central Station. The garden has its own stop and I enjoyed my afternoon visit immensely.

Guest Blogging for The Herb Companion Magazine!

They say timing is everything. It's even true when you are visiting famous gardens, such as the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Here is a link to my latest post for The Herb Companion Magazine. Hope you enjoy it! I also want to thank the ladies of the Greybrooke Garden Club for having me speak this morning. We had a great time!

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, No It's a. . .

praying mantis made of bamboo leaves! The Herbal Husband found a street vendor in New York City that was selling these items made like origami! He also bought me a dragon fly. Equally cool!
It's the little things in life that keep it wonderful for me. Every day for me is different, new and exciting! I have a great life and I'm trying to enjoy every day to the fullest. You should too!

My Latest Guest Blog at The Herb Companion Magazine!

Here is a link to my latest guest blog for The Herb Companion magazine about my visit to The Cloisters in New York City. Hope you enjoy it!

Got A Whole Lot of Catching Up to Do!

Had a friend visiting from Peru and he wanted to go to New York City. Not a problem! The Herbal Husband and I had not been in 13 years! So off we went last Tuesday. Above is a beautiful arrangement at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I got in free when I spent the day at The Cloisters. I will talk more about that in another post.
We stayed on the Upper East Side of NYC. Wonderful neighborhood and great restaurants. Wish the accommodations had been better, but for three of us it was cheap! Here is Eli's Foods and they have beautiful figs growing in containers as ours are here. They were also selling beautiful herbs and could be the Tiffany of grocery stores in NYC! Expensive! We also had tea in the garden at Alice's Tea Cup.














I had "The Nibble". Believe me it was a "BIG NIBBLE!" The top plate was a delicious mixed berry scone. The middle tray was an egg salad sandwich and the bottom plate was assorted cookies. I was in heaven! My tea was the Rose Tea Melange which included roses, various white teas and seasonal botanicals. My pinky was definitely extended!

The garden did not stop growing while we were gone, but it is beautiful this time of year. Renewal is wonderful. Also the radishes are enormous as you can see!