~ Taking Time Out ~

Dh and I took some time-out yesterday , we went shopping. He needed concrete mix for a gate and I wanted to checkout the garden center and netting to put over the chicken coop.

The garden center was full of wonderful plants , I had a hard time deciding on what I really needed. I got 3 potted herbs and some herb seed. I was thrilled to find stevia , hope I'll have better luck with it this year. Last year I purchased stevia and set it out to soon , the frost killed it. I also bought lemon balm and lemon basil. I love citrus flavored foods and drinks , looking forward to trying recipes with these herbs. We also purchased cilantro , dill , garlic chives , lavender lady , lime basil , oregano , parsley , radish and sweet basil seeds. I saved seed from my cilantro last year , but bought a packet just in case it doesn't sprout.

After we left the The Home Depot , we went to Target. I bought all the Grands a outfit , a new hobo bag for myself and a few food items. We left Target and went to TGIF 's for supper. It was nice to have some time-out , we haven't been out in long time. Hope you were Blessed with some time-out this weekend.

~ Spring Blessings ~

JoyceAnn

~ Permaculture at Work ~

A couple of weeks ago , my herbs looked awful. Bugs were eating the basil and sages , everything except the rosemary. I've had a couple of spiders move in and rescue my herbs. The bottom photos shows a garden spider near the basil , you can barely see the other spider that's near the sages ( top photo ) , but it is casting a shadow you can see. You can click on photos to enlarge for a better view.

I thought this was a great example of nature doing what it's suppose to do aka permaculture , if we allow it to happen. My herbs look great again , the rain and the insect eating spiders have done a great job. Wish I had a before and after photo of how bad the basil and sage looked , the difference is amazing. Spiders get a bad rap , because they're really beneficial. I'm not a spider or snake lover , but I respect the job they do for us.

I think rosemary would probably make a great insect repellent , may try an infusion to experiment with. Anyone ever tried rosemary for insect repellent , the bugs don't seem to like it ?

~ Green Blessings ~

JoyceAnn