Growing Culinary Herbs

Many had approached me on how to grow culinary herbs at home, which can be a tricky task as such plants can be quite fussy if the conditions are not right. However in my opinion, these herbs such as rosemary, thyme, tarragon or mint, are easy to grow. The trick lies in the choice of potting media and watering.

Healthy thyme 

Most of these herbs are grown in Mediterranean conditions, which basically means dry soil conditions. Potting media used should be water draining and well aerated, not forgetting to contain good amount of organic matter for nutrients. These plants do not like their roots to be immersed in water for long periods and if so, they will suffer from root rot and start to die down. Water them only when the potting media feels dry and resist the urge to water them too often. I had gardeners who feel “guilty” for not watering the plants!

They are preferred to be grown in 4-6 hours of  direct sunlight. Healthy herbs tend to have stronger fragrance and greener leaves. They can be easily propagated by stem cuttings. This will also mean that the fresh cut herbs available in supermarkets can be used for propagation! Many of my friends had successfully propagated from these sources and had excellent results!

Herbs are not only interesting plants to grow, but also useful in your kitchen. Anytime you feel you need to “spice up” your food, head over to your garden!

Potting up new seedlings

Some of the recent seeds I sowed last month have sprouted. They were sowed in a large pot and now ready to be transferred into their permanent pot. I chose a 6-inch pot and have many numerous drainage holes at the bottom. It is very important to have good water drainage which most plants will prefer.

Coco chips

But with bigger and more drainage holes can also mean the potting media will also leak out of the pot! Here’s a useful tip to prevent this from happening. I have placed a thin layer of coco chips or coconut husks to cover the holes. They are larger chunks and fibrous enough to prevent the potting media to leak out.

 

    A  layer of coco chips at the bottom                     Top up with potting media          

Next, I added the potting media to the pot. The potting media I used for this pot is one of the best mix around. It is mixed with good amount of compost as well as draining media such as charcoal chips. It is also not very lumpy and even smells good! For me, my choice of good garden is good drainage, not lumpy and darker in colour.

The seedlings are then removed from the soil and potted into the new media. Try to use your finger to “dig” a hole deep enough to cover the entire root ball or root system of the seedling. This will ensure that the seedling is stable and increase its chances of survival. After that, water the pot till water leaks out from the bottom of the pot. Only then, the entire pot is thoroughly watered. You may notice that the soil level will sink down by a centimetre and you can add more media if you want to.

Video Blog #3: Wick Watering System

Many members from the Green Culture Singapore forum use the wick watering system for their plants. It is a hassle free, easy to make system which eliminates the need for regular watering, which is very suitable for busy gardeners in the office or home.

In this video, I will share with you the steps of building your own wick watering system.

 

Video Blog #2: Propagating your Rosemary Plant

In this 2nd episode, I will share how to propagate rosemary plant by stem cuttings. There are various ways to do stem cuttings and the way I shown here has been very successful for me.

 

Rosemary plant is an easy to grow herb. As long as the soil is draining and fertile, it will grow very well in various growing environments. Hope you enjoy this video blogs. More to come!!

The “Universal” Potting Mix

I find it very amusing whenever my audience tell me that the “secret of growing plants” lies in the potting mix! The use of appropriate potting mix is no doubt an important aspect in gardening, but there is no secret about it. Different proportions of various media are dependent on growing conditions too, that is why not all potting mix will be successful for every gardener.

Clockwise from top left: Peat moss, Vermiculite, Sphagnum moss and Perlite

One of my commonly used potting mix is the peat moss, vermiculite and perlite combination. The main advantage of using such mix is it enables you to control water retention and draining capabilities by altering amounts of certain media. If water retention is preferred, more peat moss can be added. Same goes to water draining, where I will put more perlite into the mix.

Another positive point is the mix generally contain zero minerals. There is no nutrients in the media which I will be able to gauge the amount of fertilizers being added. This zero nutrient characteristic will mean it is also suitable to grow carnivorous plants!

Equal mix of 3 ingredients 

This mix is also known as the “soiless mix”, where the “ingredients” are mostly artificially processed. This non-natural mix is also an “open” mix, which is very well aerated and well –liked by many plants.

Additional media can be added to the mix too. Long fibre Sphagnum moss can be added to the bottom of the pot to stop leaking of potting mix or added to the top to increase water retention and lower evaporation rate. The basic rule to follow is equal parts of perlite, peat moss and vermiculite, and additional media depending on growing conditions.

I would recommend the use of this mix with smaller plants like Gesneriads (African Violets, Sinningia), bromeliads and carnivorous plants (Pitcher plants, Sundews). It would not be wise to use this mix on larger plants like Chiku or vegetables, as they prefer natural soil with nutrients and this mix can cost quite a bit when used in large quantities!

Potting up a fussy guy…

Most people start out their carnivorous plants journey with the famous Venus Flytrap, then gradually advance to growing sundews. Some may got themselves into growing tropical pitcher plants, so after growing all these exotic plants, what’s next?

          My first Cephalotus                                                         Dried up!

I would say the Cephalotus. Cephalotus Follicularis is a special pitcher plant found only in Australia. They are the ultimate test for carnivorous plant gardeners. Growing them is no easy feat, gardeners need to apply all their gardening knowledge and experience in order to grow them well!

I had tried growing them before and the plant died on me in just a week! The problem was using the wrong potting media, the sand I used was unwashed and may contain some minerals which the Cephalotus dislike. The plant show no sign of growth and suddenly losing all their leaves and roots started to rot.

                                             

                                                Not giving up, my second Cephalotus

I decided to give them a shot again and got hold of this rare plant from my forum guru. It came in a 2-inch pot and it just look so beautiful that no carnivorous plant gardeners can resist! This time round, it survive more than 2 weeks in my growing conditions and still doing well. But their roots have started to wriggle their way out of the pot! Cephalotus is extremely fussy when their roots are disturbed and repotting them is a very delicate job.

I decided to take the risk and prepare the potting media. This time round, I am careful and take note of every detail and procedure of the repotting process. I slowly inch the plant out of its pot, holding the media together. But the media crumbles away when I almost got the entire plant out!

In the end I got the plant into the new pot, and hoping it will survive the ordeal. It looks great in its new pot!

Potting up your Carnivorous Plants

Your Venus Flytrap is going to outgrow its pot? Your pitcher plant’s pitchers has covered the entire pot? And that is when you need to repot your plants! If you are growing them from seeds, this post will also benefit you.

                                               

                    Clockwise from the left eat moss, Dried Sphagnum moss, Perlite

Potting media for carnivorous plants are very different from those used for general potted plants. The media has to be nutrient free and moist but yet draining. So growers prefer using these media: dried long-fibre sphagnum moss (LFS), peat moss, perlite and river sand. They are not that hard to get as they are readily available in many nurseries in Singapore.

Today, I was preparing a pot to germinate those Droseras seeds from my previous post. I decided to use 50:50 peat moss and perlite as the main potting mix. Now preparing the potting media is very similar to cooking. I had provided you with the “ingredients” and now going to show you the “recipe”.

I placed a thin layer of dried sphagnum moss at the bottom of the pot to cover up the holes. This will hold the perlite and peat moss in place so that they won’t “leak” out when sitting in a water tray. The next step will be preparing the peat moss – perlite mix. Mix them together using the “frying method” or whatever method you like. As long as they look evenly mixed, then that will be fine!

                                              

I will then pour the mix into the pot and cover the top with a thin layer of peat moss. This thin layer of peat moss will serve as a “planting bed” for the seedlings to root. Exposed perlite may not be desirable for these small seedlings which is just over 1mm wide! Now you are done with the media and time to wet it. Don’t trying pouring water into the pot directly, as this will cause the peat moss to sink down and perlite will float up, in the end you lost that layer of peat moss. A good way is to mist the layer with a mister. Keep misting till water flows out from the bottom.

                                                 

Your pot is ready and you can sow your seeds in it. This potting mix is generally good for most carnivorous plants. You can always alter the contents of the mix to suit your conditions. If you want water to flow through faster and only keep the media damp, you can add more perlite. Likewise if you want to hold more water, then more peat moss.

This will give you a good start for potting up your plants. If you can’t get perlite, you can always substitute it with river sand. Wash them thoroughly to drain the minerals off before mixing. Hey am I writing a gardening guide or a cookbook recipe?