Is there a list of herbs that can be safely grown outdoors during
this season?

Mine ain't doing too well (Purple basil, basil, a couple mints,
thyme, oregano, and something I don't even remember what it is).

-sw

You have to keep them watered - also, mix some sand with the soil. I have
greek and Sicilian oregano, sweet basil, African blue basil, thyme, lemon
thyme, rosemary, lavender, chives, marjoram, sage, peppermint, lemon balm,
dill, and lots of others, and they're thriving, but you have to water them
daily when the temperatures get above 90.

--
Elizabeth

"Steve Wertz" wrote in message
...
Is there a list of herbs that can be safely grown outdoors during
this season?

Mine ain't doing too well (Purple basil, basil, a couple mints,
thyme, oregano, and something I don't even remember what it is).

-sw

On Wed, 2 Jun 2004 20:36:44 -0500, "Elizabeth"
wrote:

You have to keep them watered - also, mix some sand with the soil. I have
greek and Sicilian oregano, sweet basil, African blue basil, thyme, lemon
thyme, rosemary, lavender, chives, marjoram, sage, peppermint, lemon balm,
dill, and lots of others, and they're thriving, but you have to water them
daily when the temperatures get above 90.

They get watered daily. The soil was pretty well treated as well.
It was original Texas dirt mixed with a bunch of Supersoil and
mulch and aerated pretty well. They get about 4-5 hours of direct
sun a day. The oregano in a completely different part of the
yard, in the shade all day, is doing just fine (year after year).

This is the second year the stuff just dies as soon as it gets
hot, despite all the water they get.

-sw

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 21:58:03 -0500, Steve Wertz
opined:

On Wed, 2 Jun 2004 20:36:44 -0500, "Elizabeth"
wrote:

You have to keep them watered - also, mix some sand with the soil. I have
greek and Sicilian oregano, sweet basil, African blue basil, thyme, lemon
thyme, rosemary, lavender, chives, marjoram, sage, peppermint, lemon balm,
dill, and lots of others, and they're thriving, but you have to water them
daily when the temperatures get above 90.

They get watered daily. The soil was pretty well treated as well.
It was original Texas dirt mixed with a bunch of Supersoil and
mulch and aerated pretty well. They get about 4-5 hours of direct
sun a day. The oregano in a completely different part of the
yard, in the shade all day, is doing just fine (year after year).

This is the second year the stuff just dies as soon as it gets
hot, despite all the water they get.

-sw

You are the culprit. These plants will wilt the same way when overwatered as
they will when they are in dire need of water. Stop watering so much.


Need a good, cheap, knowledge expanding present for a friend?
http://www.animaux.net/stern/present.html

On Thu, 03 Jun 2004 03:30:39 GMT, escapee
wrote:

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 21:58:03 -0500, Steve Wertz
opined:

On Wed, 2 Jun 2004 20:36:44 -0500, "Elizabeth"
wrote:

You have to keep them watered - also, mix some sand with the soil. I have
greek and Sicilian oregano, sweet basil, African blue basil, thyme, lemon
thyme, rosemary, lavender, chives, marjoram, sage, peppermint, lemon balm,
dill, and lots of others, and they're thriving, but you have to water them
daily when the temperatures get above 90.

They get watered daily. The soil was pretty well treated as well.
It was original Texas dirt mixed with a bunch of Supersoil and
mulch and aerated pretty well. They get about 4-5 hours of direct
sun a day. The oregano in a completely different part of the
yard, in the shade all day, is doing just fine (year after year).

This is the second year the stuff just dies as soon as it gets
hot, despite all the water they get.

-sw

You are the culprit. These plants will wilt the same way when overwatered as
they will when they are in dire need of water. Stop watering so much.

OK. Back to square one.

So I should just ask them "Are you thirsty? How thirsty?"

I give them each about a quart of water a day - and the soil is
practically dry when I water them again (in the early evening).

-sw

In article ,
Steve Wertz wrote:

Is there a list of herbs that can be safely grown outdoors during
this season?

Mine ain't doing too well (Purple basil, basil, a couple mints,
thyme, oregano, and something I don't even remember what it is).

-sw

Depends I guess on where you put them.
Mine are on the West side of the house, and I have Basil, Oregano,
Rosemary, Thyme, Mexican Oregano, 2 types of Sage, Dill, and Dittany.
Fennel and Parsley also do well. I have two different kinds of thyme.

Mint needs a lot of water. I have Catnip growing out of it's mind in the
back yard in a raised garden bed. It's in with the Asparagus. :-) That
is on the North side of the house so is protected from the South
sunlight, but gets plenty in the morning and evening from the East and
West. Dad also has comfrey planted, as well as Mullien and Lambs Ear.
The Lambs ear is on it's second season and I can't believe it's growth
rate! It's on the west fence and gets plenty of sun all day.

Hope this helps???

K. (who usually has culinary herbs on hand most of the year for
cooking.... except for Basil. :-( )

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

In article ,
escapee wrote:

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 21:58:03 -0500, Steve Wertz
opined:

On Wed, 2 Jun 2004 20:36:44 -0500, "Elizabeth"
wrote:

You have to keep them watered - also, mix some sand with the soil. I have
greek and Sicilian oregano, sweet basil, African blue basil, thyme, lemon
thyme, rosemary, lavender, chives, marjoram, sage, peppermint, lemon balm,
dill, and lots of others, and they're thriving, but you have to water them
daily when the temperatures get above 90.

They get watered daily. The soil was pretty well treated as well.
It was original Texas dirt mixed with a bunch of Supersoil and
mulch and aerated pretty well. They get about 4-5 hours of direct
sun a day. The oregano in a completely different part of the
yard, in the shade all day, is doing just fine (year after year).

This is the second year the stuff just dies as soon as it gets
hot, despite all the water they get.

-sw

You are the culprit. These plants will wilt the same way when overwatered as
they will when they are in dire need of water. Stop watering so much.



Could be...
Mine do fine in well drained soil, and I water twice per week or just
when I see them begin to wilt. I use a flat soaker hose.

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

,,Cat's Haven Hobby Farm,,Katraatcenturyteldotnet,,

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

"Steve Wertz" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 03 Jun 2004 03:30:39 GMT, escapee
wrote:

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 21:58:03 -0500, Steve Wertz
opined:

On Wed, 2 Jun 2004 20:36:44 -0500, "Elizabeth"
wrote:

You have to keep them watered - also, mix some sand with the soil. I
have
greek and Sicilian oregano, sweet basil, African blue basil, thyme,
lemon
thyme, rosemary, lavender, chives, marjoram, sage, peppermint, lemon
balm,
dill, and lots of others, and they're thriving, but you have to water
them
daily when the temperatures get above 90.

They get watered daily. The soil was pretty well treated as well.
It was original Texas dirt mixed with a bunch of Supersoil and
mulch and aerated pretty well. They get about 4-5 hours of direct
sun a day. The oregano in a completely different part of the
yard, in the shade all day, is doing just fine (year after year).

This is the second year the stuff just dies as soon as it gets
hot, despite all the water they get.

-sw

You are the culprit. These plants will wilt the same way when overwatered
as
they will when they are in dire need of water. Stop watering so much.

OK. Back to square one.

So I should just ask them "Are you thirsty? How thirsty?"

I give them each about a quart of water a day - and the soil is
practically dry when I water them again (in the early evening).

-sw

Put a layer of mulch *on top* of the soil. Your plants aren't using that
much water, you're losing it to evaporation from the soil. Mulch keeps the
roots cool and cuts way down on evaporation. Mulch really is the key to
gardening around here.

Also try to water out past the drip line (the perimeter of the plant) to
make the roots grow outward. Watering at the stem can cause root rot and
gives the roots no 'desire' to expand.

Finally, plant early, in the fall preferably. Give the roots time to spread
out when the part of the plant above the dirt isn't doing much.

On Wed, 02 Jun 2004 23:26:27 -0500, Steve Wertz
opined:

OK. Back to square one.

So I should just ask them "Are you thirsty? How thirsty?"

I give them each about a quart of water a day - and the soil is
practically dry when I water them again (in the early evening).

-sw

If these plants are in the ground, the roots can travel for water in a way they
cannot while in a container. The water in the ground is capillary, and root
hairs can easily use that water. The soil does not need to be saturated. If it
is, this leads to inefficient roots, could be causing some root rots which
hampers the plants' ability to uptake water.

Watering is the number one killer of houseplants, and the number one cause of
thatch problems in turf because people water incorrectly.

You water when the soil is dry and the plants wilt. If they wilt the day you
water them, you are watering them too much. I can say it in different
languages, but I assure you, herbs grow perfectly in central Texas.

You may want to buy a book by Barclay and Hill called "Southern Herb Gardening."
They used to have a herb farm in Texas and know their stuff.




Need a good, cheap, knowledge expanding present for a friend?
http://www.animaux.net/stern/present.html

Steve Wertz wrote:

Is there a list of herbs that can be safely grown outdoors during
this season?

Mine ain't doing too well (Purple basil, basil, a couple mints,
thyme, oregano, and something I don't even remember what it is).

-sw

OK, this is from a guy with an acre and a half in herbs. I only water
after transplanting for about a week. With all the rain we have had this
spring we have only watered selectively a few times. Otherwise we do not
water!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You are killing them with small waterings. IF you are to water you do a
deeper heavier watering with a drip hose or water several times with the
hose till the ground is well soaked. Mulch is important when the weather
is gonna be dry. Otherwise when you water daily and only a quart per
day, you are teaching the plant to not grow roots out into the soil.
They expect that delivery of water. Also root rot gets worse if there is
not a drying of the soil between waterings. You may need to start over.

Another culprit of what you may be doing, is if you planted your plants
from small transplants, did you break up the root ball before
planting??? If not often the roots will not extend beyond the existing
root ball. Pull up one of those suckers and look at the roots. Probably
they are just in the same shape that you put them in the ground. ie they
have not grown into the soil and they are only collecting water from
the peat moss dirt they were planted with. Maybe your soil needs more
amending time and biological organisms to maintain soil moisture and
porousity to allow the roots to expand. IF you soil is very hard and
clay like add sulfur or gypsum or cotton burr hulls and granite sand.

Good Luck
Feel free to come out and check out our gardens and I will give you some
pointers

Dave
Gardens of the Ancients Herb Emporium and Nursery
www.gardensoftheancients.com
512-272-9062