Storing Dried Herbs

I finally got around to stripping down and storing my variety of dried herbs today.  I put them in old, washed glass jars to store in the shade.

Top row: lovage and sage
Bottom row: oregano, cilantro, and nettle


Lovage and cilantro aren't the greatest to dry, but it's better than throwing it out, i figure! Just add more than you would fresh.

A Beautiful Day

I spent the day today planting a bunch more of my garden–so revitalizing!

I planted a few herb seedlings: basil, rosemary, and lemon thyme (soooooo tasty!)

I also planted a bunch from seed: calendula, korean mint, callaloo, more radishes, a few mammoth sunflowers, basil, feverfew and sorrel, more spinach, more kale, more swiss chard, and more romaine lettuce. Phew!












The day was beautiful, the sun was shining, and I had 3 friends helping me–it worked out so that as one friend left, the next came!  I shared a meal with each one and we planted and dug together!  I'm realizing how tied together community, food growing, bartering, and questioning our current economic model are...  Work doesn't seem like work when I'm with friends, things go faster, and there is something so soul nourishing about being helped and helping in return at another time. The knowledge that we can give when we have the capacity and will be supported in times of need. What a beautiful day it was indeed!

Re-growing and Sprouting Fails...

So it seems that my regrowing cilantro attempt didn't work....

I wasn't sure what happened... It was very happy in the water but once it got into soil, no dice... After researching I learned that cilantro hates to be re-potted...  Oops!  I'm sure this could work with other herbs though.  Or maybe just keeping it in water.  Trial 2 at some point, I'm sure!

Luckily my lettuces are doing well!

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Also, my chickpea sprouting didn't work.  I realized after my attempt that I had initially put the beans in boiling water and then let it sit to soak as per the instructions on the bad.  I wasn't thinking of sprouting at the time so didn't think that I was "killing" the beans.  Next time I will just let them soak and then see if they sprout.

On the plus side, this was the first time I had used dried chickpeas to make hummus and WOW!!  The texture and flavour are INCREDIBLE!
I will never again buy canned chickpeas.  The soaking and cooking process is totally worth the extra little bit of work.  Nevermind how much cheaper it is to buy beans in bulk...

Lots of good learning happening!

Regrowing Store-Bought Cilantro

My roommate had some cilantro that was going mouldy in the fridge.
To my delight, it still had the roots attached!

1). I separated out the mouldy bits and fed them to my worms (I should start documenting that too--soon!).
2). I took the fresh bits and hung them to dry so no more food would be wasted.
3). I cut off the roots with about an inch of greenery still attached. I put them in some water in my windowsill to make the roots happy again and help grow out some new shoots.  Every morning I've been replacing the water. Here they are after 3 days:

Looking ready to replant with new happy little shoots appearing!

4). I planted them in some potting soil to keep feeding us until they can go outside in the spring! More free food!

TIPS
--Buy herbs with roots still attached when you can. Make the roots happy in water for a few days before you replant them.  But REPLANT THEM!  Stop spending money when you don't need to!
--Keep cleaned plastic yoghurt, sour cream, and cheese containers as you eat throughout the year.  These make great planters if you punch holes in the bottoms with a knife or scissors.  They're also great when you start transplanting newly started seedlings from their initial trays (more on that soon!)  If you're not a fan of their look, get crafty and paint/collage them! 
--Keep plastic pots that you may have bought seedlings in in the past. 
--Keep toilet paper or paper towel rolls. These have the benefit of being plantable! They decompose right in the soil! How freaking cool?