This week, I created a herb garden. Not only is it a herb garden, but I chose herbs that I could use to make tea. I wanted to create a feature wall in my garden that was both practical and pretty. I have long white walls in my garden. I am reluctant to dig in my garden at the moment, so, I decided to use the wall space instead. This DIY is perfect for any garden size. I have also teamed up with Miracle-Gro to talk to you about the Performance Organics range.
I used an old palette to create wooden shelves. You can use a hand saw to cut them to size but, I used my jigsaw. I checked my wooden shelves to make sure they were strong enough to hold the weight of my pots. Sometimes used palette wood can be damaged, so it is important to check for any splitting. I then sanded my shelves to smooth out the wood. I used my electric sander with medium-grit sandpaper to do this. I then applied two coats of wood stain, and I then applied some clear yacht varnish to seal the wood. I used the hammer function on my drill to drill into the concrete wall. I added some brackets to my shelves and drilled them to the wall. You may need to add a middle bracket to help support the weight of the pots. Flower pots can get quite heavy when they are full of water.
Picking my herbs
Earlier in spring, I picked up this book from Amazon. I wanted to research what plants would be best for use in herbal teas. I placed an order with a local nursery and I was able to get home delivery. I repotted my herbs in terracotta pots. I love terracotta pots, they remind me of holidays. I remember seeing loads of orange pots when I was in Italy last Summer.
Here are some of the flowers I potted in my tea garden.
Lemon Balm
Heuchera
Sage
Calamintha
Chamomile
Verbena
Fennel
Echinacea
Mint
Lavender
Some of these can be used by freshly picking and adding to warm water to infuse. You can also dry them to create your blend of herbal tea. I have been reading up on the drying process but I have yet to try it. I will keep you posted on my tea drying progress.
Feeding my plants
Since Spring, I have been using products from the Miracle-Gro Performance Organics range. The Performance Organics range allows gardeners to get great results by using organic ingredients. They also guarantee to give visible results in 7 days. You can grow your plants twice as big, organically.
If you are like me, and you forget to feed your plants, then don’t worry. I use the granular feed in my pots as this slowly releases nutrients for up to 3 months.
I also use the liquid feed to feed my plants weekly, especially on my flowering annuals. I have found they are much bigger and fuller compared to last year when I wasn’t feeding my plants.
You can also get a vegetable feed from the performance organics range. I have been using this on my peas and they are huge! I have yet to see some pods, but I am hopeful for some peas by mid Summer.
You can find more information on the Miracle-Gro Performance Organics range by clicking this link here.
I will keep you updated on the growth of my tea garden. I am going to take cuttings later in the season to increase the size of my tea garden. I will also keep you updated on the drying process of my teas. You can check out the video below where I show you how I created my feature wall. Let me know below if you have tried making herbal teas from herbs you have in your garden. You can also share your projects over on Instagram by using the #doingadainty. I love to see what you are making. If you want more garden ideas and inspiration, then click here.
Thanks for reading,
Chat soon,
Catherine.
