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A warm welcome to the
May edition of The Little Herb Cottage newsletter....yes, it is still
may... apologies for getting the newsletter out only so late in the
month!
Strange weather still abound and although we are nearing
the end of the first official month of winter, some days are still
quite nicely warm and I find myself dressing in summer clothes (with a
jersey in my bag just in case) more often than in tracksuits. Granted,
the evenings are now definitely dipping to the lower temperatures and
when there is a wind, it is mostly cold. But aside from a few very
cold, wet and miserable days early in the month, I think we've had a
fairly nice winter so far. BUT don't let that put you at ease - if you still have
not done anything to guard your herbs against the winter's cold, now
is, I think, your last chance. So I urge you to go out and get your
frost coverings for your frost tender plants and mulch your herb garden.
One
of the tasks that I have mentioned as a good thing to do in winter, is
garden lay-out and design. Whether you have an established plot of
herbs growing year after year and it is simply a time of reflecting
what worked and what did not; or if you are starting a brand new area
for your herb projects, winter lends the gardener
a great
opportunity to spend some time planning. This month, as a newsletter
feature, I am taking one garden design aspect - pathways - and looking
at the what, where, how and whys. Pathways are as much part of your
garden, as it is simply functional and I hope to provide you with some
insights and ideas to incorporate in your herb gardens going forward.
As it is the season for sniffles and snuffles - why not have a look at
the section on immune boosting herbs from last year on the March
2007 newsletter.
Happy Herbing!
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- News
- Herb
Gardening: Pathways
- Specials
- Footnotes
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Canada
facing tighter rules around herbs and vitamins
CTV.ca
and Canadafreepress.com
report on the suggested Bill C-51 wherein suggested changes may mean
stricter control on herbal products in the country. More on this story:
Belgium
has herbal drug plans
Belgium is another country to speculate
about imposing restrictions on herbal supplements. Nutraingredients.com
reports that "the Belgian Medicines Agency (AFMPS) has published
further detail of draft amendments to a Royal Decree that may switch
the classification of 250 herbal products from food and food supplement
ingredients to medicines."
Ayurveda to boost tourism
According to Sify.com,
"Sri Lanka is trying to promote ayurveda in the hope that the soothing
herbal therapies will attract travellers looking for relaxation and
rejuvenation and boost its tourism industry, which has been affected by
the ongoing civil war."
Favourite plantings this
year
Quoting reasons such as the global food
shortages, the general concerns about the environment and rising prices
of goods in markets, guardian.co.uk
reports that "for the first time in
decades, vegetable seeds are outselling flower seeds" in the UK and
that this year's Chelsea show will be "brimful of fruits and
vegetables."
Herbs
instead of Sodium Benzoate
Naturalnews.com
reports that an Australian inventor has developed a blend of native
Australian herbs which could replace the dangerous
preservative, Sodium Benzoate, in foods and beverages.
Sangomas get ready for
2010
News24.com
says that a 2010 Soccer World Cup tourism project will soon have
traditional healers as co-owners. "We are getting ready for 2010," said
project manager Eddy Nhlangwini.
"We want to develop the cultural aspects of traditional healing into
marketable products."
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Besides
the obvious function of leading you from here to
there, pathways not only give
you access to your herbs so that you can pick leaves, flowers and seeds
whenever you wish, but they also show off separate beds to their
advantage, making your garden's design more evident and making the
maintenance so much easier.
I
read somewhere that half the fun of getting somewhere is how you get
there - and with your garden this is also true - your garden
path
can be so much more than a straight sterile slab of concrete - it
should form an integrated part of your garden design, flowing
seemlessly
with the rest of the artful image you create with your plants and other
structures. Instead of mimicking a sidewalk where people rush to and
fro, well-designed pathways will compell you to linger and to stroll,
taking note of the environment around you, savouring every single step.
In
this newsletter feature we'll have a deeper look at walkways as a
landscaping element in your herb garden and discuss different design
concepts around it as
well as options of materials that can be used to create
specialised effects, and of course, which plants, in particular herb
plants, to use in and around your paths.
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