Salty Sam’s Fun Blog for Children
Number 569
Magic Herbs
Hello Everyone
Around this time of year, gardeners very often start planning what they want to do in their gardens in the forthcoming seasons.
During dark winter days, it is really nice to think about lovely, summer days.
Looking at seed catalogues and websites helps us think of them.
Both Henry and Emily are interested in growing herbs, and they decided to buy some herb seeds and share the costs. Then they would split the packets – well have half the seeds from each, is what l mean.
Neither of them wanted to grow a whole packet; even though you can stagger your harvests by using succession sowing – l have told you all about this before.
Some seeds don’t keep too well for years on end.
This way, they could have a wider variety of seeds for their pocket money; and so they decided to try to grow some types of herbs they had never tried before.
Herbs are good plants for children to grow. They grow quickly and easily and the plants last a long time. They can be grown on a balcony or window sill, if you do not have a garden.
We know that herbs flavour dishes like soups and stews, but they are marvellous added to salads too in the way you would add lettuce or salad leaves.
They can be put in water bottles to flavour water.
They can be frozen to preserve them through the winter.
Chives can be tied into bunches and wrapped up in silver foil. You can snip off as much as you want while they are frozen. Soft-leaved herbs like parsley can be chopped up and put into ice cube trays to divide them into portions or pressed into pats of butter and then frozen.
A lot of people think of herbs as garnishes – that is to say decoration; but they are nutritious and powerful – in a good way – or a bad way if they are very poisonous, but of course you wouldn’t want to grow them.
Herbs are also medicinal and can really help the body to heal from ailments.
They have been used in home remedies for centuries.
For example, lavender helps calm us and helps us to sleep and can also lift our mood, and some people use hot, thyme tea to reduce coughing fits (or cloves put in water, but they are a spice).
Emily likes to grow herbs to stir up in a cooking pot and ‘make spells’.
Her mum calls it cooking.
Bill and Bob like growing vegetables; and if they have a glut of them, they give them away, and Henry and Emily will be able to give some herbs to them to return the favour, once their crops get going this growing season.
They already have some basil plants growing on the kitchen windowsill. The smell of basil is supposed to lift your spirits and promote brain focus. lt is said to reduce stress and promote prosperity – who wouldn’t want that!
lt also goes very well with tomatoes in a salad.
So what are they going to add to the range of herbs that they usually grow each year?
Well, they thought they might grow some dill and some golden sage because they have such pretty leaves.
They also thought it might be interesting to grow some pineapple mint.
And they plan on planting lemon balm, which is supposed to make a lovely tea with mint to help aid digestion.
And they want to add thyme to their collection as well.
You can put whole bunches of herbs tied together into dishes, but you will need to fish them out at the end of the cooking time – otherwise someone will get a bunch of stiff sticks in their dinner!
But now there are little gadgets available to aid chefs strip the leaves off the stalks of herbs like thyme. The gadget is a small, hand-held board with different-size holes in it. You just pull a stalk through the hole and the leaves become detached. Then you can put all the leaves in your cooking and not have to worry about the stiff, woody stalks at all.
They can go onto the compost heap.
Remember that different herb plants like different growing conditions.
Some like more drainage than others, and some like more sunshine on them than others. Some do well in shade, and some do not.
Different growing conditions can be created simply by growing plants in separate pots with different compost mixes and then placing them in different positions in the garden.
Growing instructions can be seen on packets.
Then Emily and Henry had a lovely surprise when Auntie Alice gave them a rosemary plant each that she had grown from cuttings.
Rosemary for centuries has been associated with memory and remembrance.
Funnily enough, scientists have now discovered that it does actually improve brain concentration and focus.
Rosemary grows all year round, and has lovely, little, blue flowers on it, even in winter.
There is an old wives’ tale that whoever rosemary will grow for in the family, will be the head of the household.
Hmmm… interesting!
Bye bye everyone – don’t forget to subscribe to my blog!
Love and kisses
Salty Sam
www.christina-sinclair.com
Bill and Bob’s Joke of the Week
Bob: l think l might make a belt out of herbs.
Bill: Oh no! That is just a waist of thyme!
Salty Sam © Christina Sinclair 2015
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material from this blog without express and written permission from this blog’s author and owner is strictly prohibited.
Links may be used to www.christina-sinclair.com
Picture Gallery
Parsley, dill,
rosemary, sage
Basil goes well with tomatoes
Cilantro is also called coriander
Don’t forget to label your seeds
Herbs can be preserved
to be used long after herbs have been harvested
THE SALTY SAM NEWS DESK
This week, we have another of Bill and Bob’s gap-fill word quizzes for you.
These are all good foods to eat when you are choosing to release weight.
They are said to help burn fat!
A – f – – f a
B l – – b – r r – – s
B – – c c – – i
C – y – n n – p – p p – r
C – n n – m – n
G – – g – r
G – e – n – p p – – s
G – – – n t – –
G r – p – f – – – t
L – m – n
R – d g – – – – s
S p – r – – – – a
*********************
*********************
Quick Quiz
Do you know what these words mean?
- transcending
- sanctuary
- transmutation
- manifesting
- expansion
lt’s the Weekend!
HOW TO MAKE A MEMORY GAME
Take a tray and put 10 -20 items on it.
Get your friend to do the same. The number of items must be the same of course.
Cover both trays with a cloth.
Show your tray to your friend and you look at theirs by removing the cloth for one minute.
Put the cloths back.
Write down as many items as you can remember.
Who can remember more items?
It does not have to be food!
Please note that the material on this blog is for personal use and for use in classrooms only.
It is a copyright infringement and, therefore, illegal under international law to sell items made with these patterns.
Use of the toys and projects is at your own risk. Medical disclaimer: I am not a qualified physician, you need to see a qualified doctor to diagnose ailments and prescribe medicine for them.
©Christina Sinclair Designs 2015
Answers to the News Desk Quiz
Alfalfa
Blueberries
Broccoli
Cayenne pepper
Cinnamon
Ginger
Green apples
Green tea
Grapefruit
Lemon
Red grapes
Spirulina
Quick Quiz Answers
- transcending – rising above
- sanctuary – a place of safety
- transmutation – changing or converting
- manifesting – bringing a plan of creation into reality
- expansion – growing bigger
