A Child's Herb Garden...

[Eruannlass]

Suilad everyone,
I found this idea in a post from a message board I used to be on, and thought it had a place here -

An Herb Garden For Children~

Planting Tips and Gardening Ideas For Children~

There is no better way to introduce young children to the healing properties of herbs than by giving them their very own herb garden to tend. Pharmacist/herbalist, Linda Volin-Robbins, suggests a circular garden surrounded by tall sunflowers with a twig stake tipi in the center as a place for the kiddies to crawl into and sit among the crawly critters while escaping from the world of grownups. This simple idea makes me want to be a kid again. If you like you could enlarge the garden scale for us bigger kids (adults).

Make a 15 by 15 foot circle in an open sunny space. Full sun is wonderful for the sunflowers planted around the perimeter of the garden. It will be fun as well as educational for the children to watch the faces of the sunflowers reaching in the direction of the sunlight, also the towering sunflowers will create patches of shade within the circle.
Plant a vining plant that will creep up and cover the framed tipi, green peas is an excellent choice. Section off eight to ten segments in the mid section of the circle for various herb plantings. You may want to leave a couple of the sections bare or covered with mulch as crawl-ways to enter through to the center tipi.

Don't forget, children also like to put things in their mouths, dirt included. Be sure to select herbs that are completely safe for children. Whereas raspberries are a wonderful herb source, this prickly plant is not suitable for a child's garden.

Plant suggestions
Lavender  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavendar

Lemon Balm(Melissa)  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemon_balm_(herb)

Catnip  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catnip

Mint  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mint_plant

Rosemary  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosemary

Coriander(Cilantro)  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coriander

Parsley  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parsley

Thyme  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thyme

Basil  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basil_(herb)

Chamomile  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chamomile_flower

Marjoram  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Majoram

Anise-Hyssop  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anise

Sage  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_sage

Lemon verbena  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemon_verbena

Skullcap  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scutellaria_galericulata

A note about mint - it is a fast-spreading plant, so much so that it's called invasive.  It's best kept either in pots, or in a raised bed that has enough of a below ground barrier that the plant won't spread.

                                                                                      Eruannlass

[Llefyn Mallwen]

Is anyone here currently growing their own herbs right now? 

[Eruannlass]

I've got some basil seedlings that I started about in June.  I live in an apartment, so I don't do a lot of gardening.  However, about 3 blocks from where I live, a lady - who've I've yet to meet - planted a 20' section of her curbside lawn with herbs, and anyone from the neighborhood is welcome to come and pick what they want.  She has lavender, sage, oregano, mint, echinacea, and basil.  My favorite is the lavender, and the plants have been well-established, so 'over-picking' them is practically impossible.  It's been raining here for about 16 hours, and I bet that going to this garden in about a week will prove to be rewarding.  Sometimes I just stop there and run my hands over the plants - to enjoy the scents of all the different herbs. 

                                                      Eruannlass