Attempting to bring order........

I am all painted out.

I never used to mind decorating back in our UK days,

but here I find myself getting impatient and wanting to do other things.

But the room is getting done,

and it does look nice,

but for today I needed to be outside.

No rain today, nor chilly winds,



just sunshine.

 

So off outside I went,

with scythe in hand and dogs following on behind,

the project being to sort out this jungle....

 

....which used to look like this,

 

 

but now does not.

Why?

Because we moved on to the larger vegetable paddocks,

and left this one to go its own way,

which it most surely has.

And in amongst the jungle of rampant growth are several young fruit trees,

which need to be got to so they can be watered.

So instructions were given by Himself,

that if I had time, would I go and clear the space.

 

Of course I had time.

The sun was shining,

so ******* the paint brushes!

 

Instructions had also been given from Himself,

that the spearmint needed harvesting,

so perhaps to do that as well.

Lester used to be a tea drinker,

but a few days ago he became converted to herbal tea,

spearmint in particular,

and enthuses endlessly about what a great drink it is.

For myself, I find it too strong for my stomach,

but he has developed a passion equivalent to the passion he once had for red wine.

(He still does love red wine but it does not like him)

 

But the dehydrated store of spearmint (harvested 2014)  has now come to an end,

and now more needs to be cut and dried.

I am now on my way to doing just that.

I did find some spearmint....

 

 

.......not as much as there used to be because the stronger growing grass is threatening to overwhelm the mint,

but I did fill the dehydrator trays with leaves to dry,

except that Himself was already raiding those leaves so he could have his cup of spearmint tea.

Normally the incoming harvest, once prepped for storage,

is then put away until the winter.

I don't think that is going to be happening with this harvest.

I did try him on the other type of mint growing here,

but definitely not, he said, it has to be spearmint.

 

Journeying on through the tangle,

and I came across a patch of yarrow.

I already knew it was there, and had planned to use it as a plant dye.

To confirm that it could be used as a dye,

I did a quick internet search only to find that it is a superb herb as well,

and that it could also be used as a herbal tea.

With this thought held in my mind,

and thinking that Lester might be coaxed into converting to yarrow tea to slow down his rate of consumption with the spearmint,

I scythed through the patch of yarrow.

 

 

I hope it grows again, but this time I shall look after it.

I so wanted to dehydrate it, but the spearmint took up all the room in the dehydrator,

and since the stems were wilting badly I had to put aside my thoughts of using it as a herbal tea.

It is now chopped up and soaking in water ready to be cooked tomorrow,

the destiny of this particular harvest being to dye our spun wool yarn.

There is another patch of yarrow in the first vegetable paddock,

but I shall leave that to make more of itself,

and perhaps  'borrow' snippets to dehydrate for future herbal use.

 

Continuing on with the scything,

and I arrived at a large patch of fennel.

 

This could not be cut down and harvested yet, so I will have to work my way round it.

 

...and a patch of borage, unusually tall.

I shall try and work round that as well.

Borage is a herb as well, but I have as yet investigated its uses.

 

Meanwhile, the mallow is just about to burst into flower,

and we have left that to grow wherever it wants to,

which is everywhere.

Soon we shall be gloriously swamped with purple flowers as it launches into bloom.

 

Alack and alas though,

I missed the nettle harvest....

 

I wanted to dehydrate the leaves, but things (bad weather, painting, etc) got in the way,

and before I knew it the nettles were up and away and are now flowering.

Nettles have to be harvested before they reach knee height,

and these are nearly head height.

Apparently, once they get past knee height,
 the leaves get bitter but also have a chemical
(calcium something or other I think) which is not good for us.

They nettles could still be used as fertiliser, but we have not got round to making a brew of that horrendously smelly liquid yet this year.

 

We have lots of nettles around, and I shall be cutting most of them down to ground level soon.

Hopefully they will continue on with growing by sending up some new shoots,

and these I shall definitely harvest for use as a herbal medicine and herbal tea.

I might even be able to convert Lester to nettle tea!

 

Bye for now,

 

Vx