People who are into natural health often try to grow as much of their own food as possible. Many people raise their own cows or goats for milk and meat and have beautiful vegetable gardens. There is nothing more satisfying than looking at your supper table and knowing that you contributed to the bulk of the harvest there. Herbs are no different and they are easy to grow.
Herb gardens date back as far as the 15th century. Just as herbs have many different uses, so did the types of gardens grown. Every monastery, estate and farmhouse had an herb garden in some form. Herb gardens were a way of life for most people. The midwives had gardens that would contain herbs helpful to women, housewives had gardens that grew the herbs needed for cooking, and English estates had elaborate gardens that graced the property both visually and aromatically. Below are some of the most common types of herb gardens:
Aromatic: This type of herb garden is grown mainly for its aromatic qualities. The flowers are used in floral arrangements, or dried, or the oils extracted for perfume or candles. Some plants you might use are rosemary, lavender, and peppermint.
Culinary: This category probably springs to mind automatically. We cook with herbs everyday and many of them are very easy to grow. Basil, oregano, dill, sage and parsley are just a few herbs common to culinary herb gardens. Rosemary can also be included in this category.
Medicinal: For ages, people have been growing herbs for their medicinal qualities. Herbs like garlic, chamomile, catnip (just make sure the neighborhood cats don’t discover it!), and, echinacea all have medicinal benefits.
Ornamental: These types of herbs are grown simply because they look pretty! Although, there are some herbs that are functional too and cross over from the other categories (lavender, echinacea and rosemary all have lovely flowers when in bloom).
When making your herb garden remember that this is your own self expression. There are no rules that say you cannot mix a culinary garden with a medicinal garden, or make an aromatic garden ornamental as well. Do some sketches and make some plans as to how you want your garden to look and what you want it to do. You can add fountains and statuary, or enhance the natural elements of your yard. There are no limits. It all depends on how ambitious you are and how green your thumb is!
Jeff Clare has worked in healthcare and now writes regularly on health related topics including healthy sleep and lung diseases and much more
Herbs can be annual, biennial or perennial. Herbs with lifespan of one year are known as annuals, while those with a lifespan of two years are known as biennials. Perennials are ones that live longer than two years. Herb gardening is not only an art but also a science besides being a great form of exercise and a hobby. The Chinese, Indians and Greeks have extensively developed herb gardening for centuries. According to the main characteristic of herbs, they can be classified as culinary, medicinal or ornamental herbs.
You can become successful herb gardener if you know the secrets of setting up a herb garden and taking care of it the right way. Even though each herb grows in different conditions, all herbs maintain the equilibrium of their surroundings. Herb gardening can either be done indoors or outdoors. While few grow well indoors in a pot or a container, others grow well only in the garden. Edible herbs grown by you would be free of herbicides. In turn, you can safely consume chemical-free herbs.
Maintenance
Easy maintenance and low costs are the main advantages of herb gardening. However, there are few points to remember when you try growing herbs, especially the edible varieties. If you opt for indoor gardening, make sure you choose appropriate pots or containers. While selecting the edible parts of the herb for consumption, make sure that they are not infected or have any insect bites. Some of the herbs may not like to be restricted to a pot or vessel. Make sure that you do not plant such herbs inside the house.
Herb Gardening In Containers
You can use any container for growing plants. Make sure that there are no insects, bugs or snails hiding inside the vessel or pot used for sowing the seeds. Insects are the worst enemies of any kind of plant, as they destroy the leaves and other important parts of the herb. Also, make sure that the holes are such that bugs cannot crawl into the pot after filling it with soil. Before you fill the pot or container with soil, cover the bigger holes with a thin cloth so that it covers the hole and a small portion around it. The cloth should be one that allows water to drain out and at the same time, keeps the insects out.
Fill the pot with sufficient and appropriate soil, and then sow the seeds in appropriate climatic conditions. You can also choose to purchase ready-made pots with the herb already planted in it. In both conditions, you should remember to change the soil after 3 months. Moreover, make sure that you pluck off the dried and dead leaves, and keep trimming the herb so that it does not grow wild.
Raised bed herb gardens and Parterre are other styles of herb gardening besides container gardening. With a sincere effort on your part and proper care, you too can show off your homegrown herbs to all and sundry.
Get all of the latest in herb gardening tips know how from the one and only true gardening resource at http://www.herbgardensadvice.com/ Be sure to check out our herb gardening tips pages on our web site.
Six reasons to add Cayenne to your diet.
”If you master only one herb in your life, master cayenne pepper. It is more powerful than anything else.” Dr. Richard Shulze.
Cayenne is a medicinal and nutritional herb. Many herbalists believe Cayenne is the most useful and valuable herb in the herb kingdom. Cayenne has been used for centuries as a medicine.
1. Cayenne supplies nutrients and is considered a Superfood. It is a very high source of vitamin A, C and B-Complexes.It is also rich in calcium and potassium.
2. Cayenne helps the entire digestive system. It has been used for cramping pains and gas. It is great for constipation and helps with elimination. Cayenne can help rebuild the tissue in the stomach and the peristaltic action in the intestines. It aids assimilation, and helps the body to create hydrochloric acid, which is so necessary for good digestion and assimilation, especially of proteins. All this becomes very significant when we realize that the digestive system plays the most important role in mental, emotional and physical health, as it is through the digestive system that the brain, glands, muscles and every other part of the body are fed and cleansed. Chili peppers like cayenne have a bad–and undeserved–reputation for contributing to stomach ulcers. Not only do they not cause ulcers, these hot peppers may help prevent them by killing bacteria you may have ingested, while powerfully stimulating the cells lining the stomach to secrete protective buffering juices that prevent ulcer formation. The use of cayenne pepper is actually associated with a reduced risk of stomach ulcers.
3. Pain. Capsaicin is the active ingredient in Cayenne. Capsaicin dulls pain sensations by interrupting the chemical messages sent to pain-sensing nerves. Over-the-counter topical creams, such as Zostrix and Dolorac, contain capsaicin as an active ingredient. These applications are used to relieve pain caused by muscle spasms, rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis, shingles, diabetic neuropathy, and even phantom pain caused by amputation. Capsaicin cream is well established as a modestly helpful pain-relieving treatment for post-herpetic neuropathy (the pain that lingers after an attack of shingles) peripheral neuropathy (nerve pain that occurs most commonly as a side effect of diabetes, but may occur with HIV as well as other conditions), nerve pain after cancer surgery and arthritis pain.
4. Improved circulation. There is no other herb which increases your blood flow faster than cayenne. Cayenne moves blood. It is a circulatory tonic and helps improve circulation. It is thought that cayenne helps reduce cholesterol and triglycerides, thus promoting a healthy vascular system. Cayenne and other red chili peppers have been shown to reduce blood cholesterol, triglyceride levels, and platelet aggregation, while increasing the body’s ability to dissolve fibrin, a substance integral to the formation of blood clots. Cultures where hot peppers like cayenne are used liberally have a much lower rate of heart attack, stroke and pulmonary embolism. Capsaicin is also a natural expectorant, and helps thin mucus, allowing you to expel it more easily. For this reason capsaicin is often included in home remedies for cough, and can be helpful when combined with other medicines as a treatment for pneumonia. If you suffer from cold feet, try cayenne.
5. Metabolism booster. More blood means more oxygen racing through your body. This means more energy! Lose Weight!
All that heat you feel after eating hot chili peppers takes energy–and calories to produce. Even sweet red peppers have been found to contain substances that significantly increase thermogenesis (heat production) and oxygen consumption for more than 20 minutes after they are eaten. It is no wonder cayenne is included in many diet and weight loss products!
6. It makes other herbs work better! When people ask Dr. Schulze, “What are the 10 most important herbs to have in the home?” He tells them, “At the top of the list is cayenne pepper, because it will make the other 9 work better.” Cayenne works to improve all the other herbs and nutrients you are taking in.
It is recommended that the cayenne powder be used, as opposed to capsules. It is believed that you are only getting a small part of the potential effect of cayenne pepper by taking it in capsules. When you put cayenne in your mouth, your stomach secretes digestive juices before the cayenne ever gets there. So when the cayenne gets down there, your stomach is ready for it.
But if you swallow a capsule, your tongue tastes nothing. A capsule goes down in your stomach, and your stomach notices nothing, at first. Then, 5 minutes later the gelatin bursts, and you have a 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper in your stomach and your body is shocked. You surprised it.
What is going on is that some of cayenne’s healing action occurs right in your mouth. As cayenne touches your tongue, the cayenne absorbs in seconds and nerve endings send signals throughout the body – sending waves of fresh blood throughout your body.
I advise clients to start their day with a half teaspoon of cayenne in 8-10 ounces of luke warm water. (Not water from the hot faucet because that contains sediment from the bottom of your hot water heater. Heat water on the stove in a pan or tea pot.) Drink 10-20 ounces of water the first twenty minutes you are awake. This will do more for your body than that cup of coffee!
Marty Meshek is a natural energy and cleanse specialist and operates a natural healing web site filled with free natural energy ideas. http://www.EnergyForToday.com
Image taken on 2008-11-27 10:08:24 by Andrew Selvaggio.
Think of how marvelous your home smells when there are wonderful kitchen aromas wafting around while you are cooking with fresh herbs. It could be your Aunt Helens recipe for marinara sauce or a well spiced Indian dish given to you by your neighbor. The key is the fresh herbs that give each dish a distinct flavor and aroma. Fresh herbs from the super market are expensive so why not pot some fresh herbs on a sunny windowsill inside your home. If you know a few tricks it is easy to have a container garden of fresh herbs right in your bright kitchen. If the kitchen doesn’t have at least six hours of sun put your herb container garden somewhere that has the necessary hours of light.
Pick containers that go with the décor of your home. Since herbs are pretty plants anyway, a well chosen pot will only add to its beauty. After you have chosen the herbs to grow and the container to grow it in put some stones or broken pieces of pots in the bottom of the container to ensure good drainage. Aeration is needed for herbs and this method works well. A loose soil works best for herbs as a compact soil will inhibit root growth.
To plant your herbs, put a bit of soil into the container, add the herb and then loosely fill with additional soil. To keep it simple, put a Popsicle stick with the name of the herb in the soil next to the plant. Keep a small notebook handy to write down the needs of each individual herb you are growing. Now, you are on your way to growing and using fresh herbs and seasonings.
To ensure your herb container garden is a true success there are a few other tricks you should know about. It is crucial that your herbs get from six to eight hours of sunlight per day. If there is no place in your home that this is possible, then purchase some grow lights from your neighborhood garden center. Having your herb container garden indoors cuts down on the amount of fertilizer you will use. Read the information tag for how much the herb will need. Unfortunately, even indoors, pests can be a problem. Be very careful not to use commercial insecticides because you will be using your fresh herbs in cooking. Here is a recipe for a natural bug repellent:
In a jar, combine 1 teaspoon dishwashing liquid and 1 cup vegetable oil. Shake vigorously. In an empty spray bottle, combine 2 teaspoons of this mixture and 1 cup water. Use at ten-day intervals (or more often if needed) to rid plants of whiteflies, mites, aphids, scales, and other pests.
Container Herb gardening indoors will not only add flavor to your food but will also add color and texture to your home. By growing your own herbs you will never lack seasonings for your food and it may even grow into a bigger hobby of growing herbs for medicinal and beauty purposes too.
Happy Herb Gardening!
Copyright © Mary Hanna, All Rights Reserved.
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This report presents a full view of China’s medicinal herb market, provides analysis and suggestions on how to entering this fast growing market in China. The report includes analysis on market shares, competition, key players, market segmentation, import & export changes, sales channel, buyer’s behavior, entry barriers, industrial environment and policy trends; introduces the procedure for exporting products to China, Chinese inspection & standards system, a list of major importers & agencies, annual trade fairs in China; provides full forecast to 2010 and key statistical data.
Through this research report, readers will know who are the major players and supervisors in China’s medicinal herb market, what are the market entry opportunities and barriers, where is the right place to sell products, how many countries / regions exporting their products to China and where they go…
After the development for many years, a group of enterprises reputed as “China’s time-honored brands” have appeared in the field of traditional Chinese medicine in China, such as Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Yunnan Baiyao Group Co., Ltd., Beijing Tongrentang Group Co., Ltd., Tianjin Zhong Xin Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd., etc., which have gradually become the important parts of the developing traditional Chinese medicine industry. According to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, large-scale enterprises in China’s medicine manufacturing industry achieve a gross industrial output value of RMB 565.902 billion Yuan, a product sales revenue of RMB 520.723 billion Yuan and total profit of RMB 49.921 billion Yuan from January to November in 2007, up by 24.87%, 24.56% and 51.07% over the same period of the previous year respectively. From January to November in 2007, the traditional Chinese medicine industry achieves a gross industrial output value of RMB 158.453 billion Yuan and sales revenue of RMB 142.448 billion Yuan, which respectively take 28% and 27.36% in the gross industrial output value and sales revenue of medicine manufacturing industry. Besides, the concentration ratios of enterprise sales revenue and regional sales revenue of the large-scale enterprises have reached 40.58% and 63.16% respectively.
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