Organic French Country Herbs

There is no reason to grow French country herbs in any other manner than organic. It’s easy and we’ll show you how to grow healthy and robust plants that are weather and pest resistant. The most common French country herbs are Winter Savory, thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon and lavender, all simple, fragrant and delicious additions to your organic garden. And you won't have to visit Provence to enjoy them!
While the French climate is ideal for growing French herbs, there are many climates in the United States and Canada that are similar enough for successful growth. Mid to Northern California has a Mediterranean climate perfect for the growth of French herbs and you will find them all over the wine country and the beautiful suburbs of San Francisco. Regions in the Okanagan of British Columbia have similar climate and French herbs can also be grown here.
French Country herbs make a great addition to any vegetable garden. They are attractive and fragrant and attract beneficial insects such as bees. Thyme makes an excellent ground cover and lavender creates a natural boundary as well as attracting bees.
How to plant French herbsYou may choose to plant your French herbs in a traditional herb garden using raised beds and boundaries. Because some herbs are annuals, you will want to combine annuals and perennials for a year-round garden. Most herbs can be grown in window boxes for easy access from the kitchen, as herb plants can be small and do not require much soil.
All herbs require a well-drained soil. If your soil is moist and has high clay content then you will need to plant your herbs in pots or raised beds. However, clay soils can be amended by adding mulched up leaves and manure. French herbs especially need a lot of direct sunlight and regular watering. Fertilize your herb garden just as you would the rest of your organic garden; with a well-developed organic compost and regular mulching.
The following are some details on several specific plants that no French country herb garden would be complete without.
BasilA perennial in warm climates and an annual in areas that frost. Basil should be planted in a sheltered and sunny place in very rich soil. Start plants in small pots in early spring and plant about one foot apart when frost has passed. Keep basil well watered and pinch off flowers as they appear. Basil does especially well in greenhouses.
LavenderA perennial shrub, there are many varieties of lavender, most producing attractive purple flowers. These shrubs can grow to be very large and like direct sunlight. While lavender should be watered regularly, you will find that it does well in dry soil. Be sure to trim back your plants in order to keep their size under control.
RosemaryAn evergreen shrub, this plant makes an attractive border and produces lovely little blue flowers. Though it is evergreen, it is not resistant to very cold climates. Keep your rosemary plants potted and move indoors at risk of frost. Rosemary prefers a sunny location and well-drained soil. Add bone meal to your soil to loosen if necessary. A rosemary bush will provide fragrant cuttings year round. The flowers can be picked and used in salads with a flavor that is not as intense as the leaves.
TarragonA hardy perennial, French tarragon is also especially flavorful. Grow tarragon in a sunny and sheltered spot with good drainage. Protect plants in the winter with a layer of straw. Replace plants every several years as they lose flavor with maturity.ThymeC omes in either a low-growing, ground cover variety or as a tall growing plant. Thyme grows best in soil with a pH of 7.0; you may have to add lime to acidic soil. Be sure to cut back plants after flowering. Winter SavoryA perennial evergreen shrub that can be grown in an herb garden or as a border. Cut back top growth often to encourage growth at the base of the plant. Replace plants every few years as they lose flavor with maturity.
How to keep your French herbs in tip top shapeAs with all plants, herbs are susceptible to various pests and diseases. A good way of “cleaning” your soil before planting is to solarize it. Solarizing the soil means using the sun to naturally burn out any fungi, bacteria or pests that may be living in it.
To solarize your soil, whether for an indoor or outdoor garden, plan ahead. During the hottest part of the year cover a patch of soil with a sheet of clear plastic. Leave the plastic in place for several weeks. The plastic and the sun together will heat the soil to a temperature in which no pests or diseases can survive.
You may also choose to protect your herbs from fungus and bacteria by beefing up the soil with organic matter. A variety of plants in your garden and healthy soil are your best defences. A variety of plants will attract a variety of insects: most insects are beneficial to your garden. Healthy soil promotes healthy plants, which are better able to ward off diseases and pests.
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Overall, herbs are quite hardy and easy to grow. Their strong taste is appealing to us, but not to many insects, which eliminates the need for pesticides. Herbs require minimal care and are happy in many climates. Your organic herb garden is sure to be a fun and delicious addition to your garden and kitchen.

Planting Requirements for a New Rose

A new rose bush can provide decades of beauty and enjoyment if properly planted and tended. The planting requirements for a new rose are both simple and important. The first months in a new home are crucial for the plant’s survival. While it’s true that roses will grow and thrive without the benefit of your expertise, a little knowledge can go a long way.
When you receive your new rosebush, chances are it will be un-planted and its roots wrapped in moss. It is very important that you keep the plant moist and cold until you are able to plant it properly. For example, a basement is an ideal place for an unplanted rose bush. While a rose bush can survive outside of the soil for an extended time, it is also very important that you plant it as soon as possible.
Rose bushes are usually sold in the winter while dormant. They begin to grow and bloom in the springtime and it is crucial that they are planted before this occurs. Your rosebush should be securely rooted in the ground before springtime, when new shoots begin to grow. Generally, March and April are ideal months for planting.
The first step in planting your new rose is finding a good place to put it in the ground. Your rose should get at least 6 hours of sun each day, and should be planted in soil with good drainage. You can check the drainage of your soil with a simple test: dig a hole that is 12 inches deep, fill it with water and wait for the water to drain. Once the water has drained, refill the hole, if it is empty in less than two hours your soil has excellent drainage!
In addition to drainage, roses have other specific soil requirements. They prefer a more acidic soil with a pH ranging from 5.8 to 6.3. If your soil is too acidic—or too basic—you may ask your local nursery what you can add to the soil in order to correct the problem. Pine needles and lime are both acidifying agents that you may find in your own home or garden shed!
If you are planting more than one bush in your garden, be sure that they are reasonably far apart. Remember, they will grow and air will need to circulate between them to keep them disease free. Rose bushes will crowd each other out if planted too close together. The distance between the bushes ranges from two to ten feet, depending on the type of bush. Ask about the specific spacing for your new rose bush at the nursery at the time of purchase.
Weed your garden bed and clear it of plant debris and waste before planting. A clean garden bed means less likelihood of pests and disease ravaging your beautiful roses. They will not tolerate root competition, especially from heavy feeders like grass. Also, if it has not already been done, prune back the roots of your rose bush one half inch; this will encourage new growth.
Soak your new rose bush in water for 24 hours before planting in order to prepare it for the change. Make sure to dig a hole that is at least two square feet for your rose. Build a small mound of dirt in the center of the hole and spread the roots out on top of it. In colder climates, the roots should be buried slightly deeper than in warmer Southern climates.
Once you have planted your rose, mulch the area surrounding it. Remember to leave a space of several inches around the rose clear of mulch. If mulch is placed too close to the plant, rotting can occur. Mulch is organic plant matter that spreads nutrients to the soil surrounding the rose as water runs through it. It is a natural and simple way to improve your soil!
The first few days after transplantation are the most crucial. You should build a small basin of dirt around the base of your rose bush in order to help it to retain water. Water the rosebush daily for the first week after transplantation. After this week, water every three days adjusting to the weather.
Once you begin to see new shoots coming out of the mound of dirt surrounding your rose, it is time to wash the mound away. Your rose bush is growing, this is good! But you must continue to care for your rose throughout its life. Rose specific fertilizers can be found in any drug store and should be added to the soil around your rose bush every two to three months.
By following these planting instructions you are ensuring a healthy, stable rose bush that will beautify your garden for years! A new rose bush is like a baby, while it requires a lot of love and attention at first, it will grow stronger and more independent with time and you will surely be proud of the results!

Transitions

Steps are very useful for marking a transition in a garden; a single step can signify a change from one garden room to another. A single step adds importance to a garden feature such as a summerhouse, statue or focal point. A simple, short flight of steps between two garden areas will make a definite statement telling you that you have moved from one area to another, from formal to informal, from rose garden to potager. It's a device that garden designers use with great sucess, over and over.

Harmonizing with Garden Style

Any terracing or steps are contrived and not 'natural' but the style of the steps will stress or reduce their importance in the overall design. Large, sweeping flights of formal steps, especially double sweeps of steps are designed to impress. More natural materials and low-key design blend the steps into a more natural-styled design. There's a very good reason why important buildings are often reached by way of a long, magnificent flight of steps; they announce that you have arrived somewhere, add substance and impress the visitor. Edwardian gardeners were fond of semi-circular steps with intricate paving, making a grand statement. Major buildings use impressive flights of steps to reinforce their importance Informal steps made of natural materials such as wood, stone, gravel and bark are suited to informal gardens, woodlands, bush and coastal gardens. As they blend in more with the planting and don't dominate giving a more natural appearance to the garden design. In contemporary gardens clean crisp steps give emphasis to a structured, formal design. Rugged steps of hewn stone can create a quite different but totally modern look. In both the steps add to and are an important, integral part of the overall design.

Steps add drama and ease movement around the garden

There's no getting away from it, New Zealand is a pretty hilly country. Our fabulous landscape and stunning views come with sloping, steep and even precipitous gardens. These sites have a big need to handle changes of level in designing a garden, giving rise to some fantastic design opportunities and practical headaches. The transformation of a sloping path or bank when steps are added is dramatic. Suddenly the slope has a purpose, was meant to be there. You can see from our photos that adding steps totally changes the look and atmosphere of a garden.
A hillside garden is not a disadvantage, although some sections resemble a cliffside more than a garden. A change of level offers an opportunity to use steps and terracing to define separate garden areas, mark a transition from one garden 'room' to another, and to create a feature. Steps have an ornamental as well as a practical purpose. On flat sites designers frequently create levels, importing soil to do so, or cut and fill on gently sloping sites to create the illusion of a change in levels. A steep site can be left as a grass bank, but difficulty in mowing and the absence of a flat site for spending time in the garden may lead to terracing, linked by steps. Steps are used in many gardens, some steep and some comparatively flat. You need to be able to get around the garden, and on sloping site steps are one of the most practical ways of getting about. In steep garden steps are almost inevitable. And steps make so much more of the design. Anyone with a flat garden will envy the changes of level possible and the opportunities to mark transitions in the garden using steps. The gradient of the slope and the size of the garden will dictate much of the impact on the steps on the garden design, but planting can be used to soften and the style of the steps will also influence the degree to which they dominate the garden design. Remember that, as you are more conscious of your footing outdoors than in, garden steps that are slightly uneven can still be safe, but very uneven steps will be slow and tedious to negotiate.

But you can do both

Often we're told that we have to suffer now — give up what we want — in order to succeed later, that in order to save we must sacrifice. Give up instant gratification to get delayed gratification.
But you can do both.
For years, I was confused about this, as I read books and websites that sent me two different messages:
Pleasure later. The first message was that in order to be successful, in order to build wealth, you have to delay gratification. You can't have instant gratification and be successful.
Pleasure now. The second message was usually from other sources on Happiness, but sometimes from the same source: enjoy life now, while you can, because it's short and you never know when your last day will come. Live every day like it's your last. Trouble is, I agree with both messages. And if you read this site often, you’ll see that I send both messages: Live frugally and simply! But also enjoy life!
That's because I've reconciled the two philosophies into one: Live life now and enjoy it to the fullest — without destroying your future. The key to doing that? Find ways to enjoy life completely, utterly, maximally … that don’t cost your future very much.
Here are some tips for actually living that philosophy:
Find free or cheap pleasures. Frugality does not have to be boring or restrictive … if you use your imagination. Be creative and find ways to have fun — loads of it — without spending much money. Have a picnic at the park, go to the beach, do crafts, board games, fly a kite, make art, bake cookies … I could list a hundred things, and you could come up with a few hundred more. Make a list of simple pleasures, and enjoy them to the maximum. This is the key to the whole idea of enjoying life now without spending tomorrow's dollar. See Savor the Little Things .
Make simplifying fun. I'm a big fan of simplifying my life, from decluttering to creating a simple lifestyle in every way. And to me, this is great fun. I get rid of stuff (and possibly make money selling it) and have a blast doing it. That’s good math.
Rediscover what’s important. Oftentimes we spend tons of money, shopping, going out, watching movies, eating out … without really enjoying life. And when we stop to think about it, we never have time for the things we really want to do. Well, that's probably because your life is filled with things that aren't very important to you. Instead, step back and really think about what’s important to you. Then get rid of the other (expensive) stuff, and focus on what's important. Listen to some stuff on my list: my wife and kids, other friends and family, reading, writing, exercising, volunteering, spending quiet time in contemplation. Guess how many of those things cost a lot of money? Read more here .
Make people a priority. This is related to the above point, but I thought I'd give it a little more emphasis. If you give "stuff" a priority — stuff like gadgets, nice furnishings, nice clothes, shoes, jewelry, etc. — then you will spend a lot of money. But if you make people a priority — the people you love most, you close friends and family — you don't need to spend a dime to enjoy life. Make some time to visit with friends, or your parents … and have a conversation with them that doesn't involve eating out or going to the movies. Just sit, have some iced tea or hot cocoa (depending on the weather), and talk. Tell jokes and laugh your heads off. Talk about books you've read, movies you’ve watched, new things going on in your life, your hopes and dreams. And make time for your kids or your significant other — really spend time with them, doing things that don't cost money. (See Spend Time with Family and Loved Ones , 100 Ways to Have Fun With Your Kids and 50 Ways to Be Romantic on the Cheap .)
Find time for yourself. Make time every day, and every week, to spend time alone. It really gives more meaning and enjoyment to your life, rather than rushing through life with no time to think, to breathe. For ideas on how to make this time, see these ways to create time for solitude .
Sometimes, splurge. You shouldn't restrict yourself from expensive pleasures all the time — it's not good to develop the feeling of deprivation. To prevent that, once in awhile, buy yourself something … or better yet, give yourself a decadent treat. I love things with dark chocolate or berries. Crepes with ice cream and berries are one of my favorites. Just don't go overboard … and learn to enjoy the splurge to the fullest. If you truly take the time to enjoy a treat, you don't need a lot of it.
Track your successes. It doesn't really matter how you track your success … you can use gold stars for creating a new simplifying or frugalfying habit, or a spreadsheet chart to track your decreasing debt and increasing savings or investments. Tracking is a great way to not only provide motivation, but make the process of changing fun.
Reward yourself. And in order to make it more fun, celebrate every little success! Set rewards for yourself (hopefully not too expensive!) along your path to success — celebrate one day, two days, three days, a week, two weeks, three, a month … you get the idea.
Volunteer. One of the most rewarding things for my family has been when we have managed to volunteer. It's actually something we only started doing last year, but since then, we've done it a bunch of times in a number of different ways. And while it doesn't cost a dime, it is tremendously satisfying in ways that money could never buy. Read more .
Live in the moment. Learn to think not so much about the past or future, but about what you are going through right now. Be present. It may seem trite, but it's the key to enjoying life to the fullest — without having to spend money. Think about it — you can spend money on eating out, but if you are not really thinking about what you're eating, you may not enjoy it much at all. But if you cook a simple but delicious meal, and really taste every bite, it can be tremendously enjoyable without costing a lot. Read more .
Slow down. In the same way, you can't really enjoy life to the fullest if it's rushing past you like it's on fast forward. Ever think about how quickly a week, a month, or a year goes by? Perhaps you're in the fast lane too much. Try slowing down, and things will be less stressful and more enjoyable. Drive slower , eat slower , live slower .
Learn to find cheap, cool stuff. Call me crazy, but I love shopping at thrift stores. You can find so many cool things there, and it costs so little. Garage sales are the same way. Or check out Freecycle , or read 20 Ways to Find Free or Cheap Books .