Other related Posts: Smudging
May 20, 2021 (2nd Year of Corona Virus)
Today I went to the garden in the early morning hours, and since it's rained the last five days, I had a lot of tiny weeds. I took out a lot and then went on with my planting and general maintenance. I have a huge rosemary plant, around 4 plus feet tall (1-1/2 meters) and I should have trimmed it way back again in the fall, but I did not. What I did have was a new plant (by putting a rock on a piece with dirt over and under it to get it to root. It had rooted over the winter and last summer, so that was a nice thing to see. I also had one Thyme (Tijm) plant that I had in a container herb garden from last year that also worked. Most grocery stores sell fresh herbs in plastic packaging, but honestly just buy a plant and put in a pot, unless you are industrious and want to try your hand at growing yourself. I do not recommend buying Rosemary seeds because they take a long time to germinate and the success rate with seeds is not great (at least that's my experience). There are a couple of different ways to root Rosemary, with the simplest method like I said above assuming you have already planted one previously, or have a nice friend to do for you. You can also just ask your friend for some cuttings in the Spring to early summer when the new growth is starting. Just cut above the nodes and plant in some sand and compost or thin potting soil. I have actually just stuck them in white sand and rooted in the states, but I had a lot of hot summers and not so cold winters there, and a lot less rain. You can get several cuttings from one long cutting. I have also used cacti mix to start them in, and I like that as a base to start alot of clippings, it just works well for me. The first couple of days keep your cuttings in a cool place out of the sun, then you can allow them to have some sun, just not 100 degree sun. Rosemary is a plant that is a "loner", he does not like to be fussed over, will grow in good soil, but actually does better in soil that isn't given regular fertilizer (although I do give some natural fertilizer in the spring to give it a boost for new growth). If your cuttings are successful in a few weeks you should see some new roots beginning, and after 6-8 weeks you should have enough roots to harden them off, and plant.
What to remember!
Cuttings - Cut above the nodes and plant (keep moist but not wet).
Planting - Remember this plant can turn into a giant when you do not keep it cut back in the fall each year, so if you plan on letting it grow to exorbitant heights and width, make sure it is planted where that does not affect your other plantings. If you just want to keep it small, trim back to half size in the fall and root those cuttings to make a herbal potion or to use for air freshener.
Herbal Potion from Rosemary
Rosemary is suppose to have a good effect on the hair and nails, and with giving one energy due to increased circulation in the body. I am not a doctor, so I can not attest to whether this is true, but since it is not poisonous to drink tea from the leaves, and to use the stems for tinctures, I have to believe that it provides some kind of benefit to us besides making chicken, roast, soups and other dishes taste delicious. If you want to try the tea, just take 1/4 cup of leaves and steep like normal tea. If you want to make a tincture, I use vodka in all of my tinctures except one where I use Jaegermeister.
TINCTURE FROM ROSEMARY OR THYME (Tijm)
1//4 cup fresh leaves and steps chopped finely
1 clean sterilized glass jar
Make sure you have washed the rosemary or thyme before you chop.
Once chopped, place the leaves and pieces in the glass jar, cover with vodka. If you live in a hot climate, put this in the refrigerator to process, if you are in a cooler environment then you can just put it on the counter until it processes. Rosemary can be quite strong, but Thyme is much more subtle, so I process the Rosemary 14 days and the Thyme 18. (You can taste to check the strength, just do a drop on your tongue).
Once the processing is finished, I use a different clean sterilized jar to pour the tincture through a sieve (or coffee filter if you do not have a sieve), into the clean jar. I then toss the contents into a tea cup and add a bit of lemon juice and make a cup of tea. Then just put the contents from the plant into your recycle can.
The tincture, can be used by taking a few drops (normal 3-5).
In conslusion, Rosemary does not like to be fussed over, give enough water, but do not keeps roots really wet (he does not like wet feet). Maintenance, check for rot at bottom of the plant stems, and watch for critters, although Rosemary repels more than it attracts. The flowers attract bees, hummingbirds and butterflies, so it's a nice addition to a butterfly or bee garden. Some of the larger birds will actually snip pieces to build their nests in the spring, (my grandfather said it was their way of getting mites and lice away), but I have no scientific knowledge to back up his claim. Rosemary and Thyme are favorite plants for me to snip pieces to stick in tiny vases for a tablescape, in addition to their pretty colors, everytime someone touches them they release their fragrance. They are also nice for using in smudging.
If you aren't familiar with smudging, take a look at my article on smudging that I am moving to this blog today. This is a great activity for spring/summer months to use whenever, but I like them in the cold winters here.
If you have any thoughts or question, I'll be happy to help if I can.
Wishing you faith, grace, love, peace, happiness and good health.
