Another busy weekend at the Patch!  We are now gearing up for Strathmore's Annual Spring Fest.  This will be the fourth year that we have participated in Spring Fest, and look forward to seeing everyone out!  This runs Saturday, May 31 10 am - 4 pm.

People have been asking about the herbs that we carry, so here is a list with information and some pictures, (All available in a 4" pot):

Lemon Balm - Is used in teas and essential oils - I love to plant it where it will get brushed against near walkways, it is marginally hardy (zone 4) so it may overwinter if you have a sheltered spot for it

Cilantro - is used in Mexican and Asian cooking, I love it's fresh flavour added in salads, soups and tacos.

Basil - who doesn't already love basil?

Chives - perennial from the onion family, great chopped up in salad, or on potatoes

Thai Basil - spicier basil, can be used in place of regular basil

Lemon Basil - lemon scented basil - a fresh change in your pesto!

Parsley - great for everyday cooking and salads

Oregano - we have had a fantastic crop of Oregano this year, we are excited to dry some ourselves this summer!

Catnip - anyone with a cat will be popular with your furry friend with this herb!  Mine like it right off the plant, dry it and save for the winter months.

Sage - mmm, sage always reminds me of turkey soup.  Great in full sun!

Thyme - a creeping plant, great along walkways and sunny areas.

Rosemary - great for barbecued meats, needs hot sun to really do well.

Mint - I love mint!  It has so many uses (mojitos anyone?)  I dry my extra leaves for tea in the winter.  This one is invasive - I plant in a pot so I don't have to fight with it staying in it's allotted space.

Chocolate Mint - NOT YET AVAILABLE - coming soon

Lavender - NOT YET AVAILABLE - coming soon

Stevia - popular as a sweetener/sugar replacement

I am hoping to get my Sweet Grass plant going - the plan is to offer smudge sticks mixed with lavender or sage down the road when it gets large enough.

That's it for now, I will end this post with a slideshow of herbs :)  Have a great week and we hope to see you at the greenhouse or at Spring Fest soon!

Wow!  It's got to be a record, two posts in the same week!

It was another busy weekend at Pea Patch Gardens and Greenhouse.  Joe and Dad got a good majority of the garden planted (Yay!) and the farm got a nice rain shower after they were done planting. (Yay!)

We weren't sure how the strawberries fared with the super cold winter, but it is looking good!  I think we made it through with minimal winter kill - I can't wait for July!

So now we wait...I thought I would be so smart and plant some spinach behind the greenhouse a few weeks ago to tie me over while waiting for the rest of the greens to come up.  We have something digging holes and eating all my baby spinach plants, (and cucumbers).  I think it may be a vole, but we haven't seen it.  Not one singular spinach leaf, and it makes me mad.  Watch out Mr. Plant Nabber, we may sick Tiggy the weasel killer on you!!  (Tigger is the farm calico, and if I was a good farm blogger, I would have a picture of her.)

I still have a few things that need to be planted, cut flowers, a few greenhouse tomatoes to be transplanted, my mushrooms.  YES, mushrooms!  It will be my "See if I can grow it" crop of 2014.  

We have a busy few weeks ahead of us, if you need us, msg us on Facebook, call or text.  We will be gearing up for Spring Fest in Strathmore on May 31.  If you around - come check out our booth.  We are aiming to have a selection of everything including veggies, herbs, bedding out plants, planters and hanging baskets.

What can I say?  General busy-ness has gotten in the way of blogging.  I could promise to be a more prolific blogger, but I think that would be a losing battle.

We have been VERY busy out at the greenhouse since March 10.  We are now open to the public for bedding plants, veggie transplants, herbs and herb baskets, hanging baskets and planters.  Our greenhouse is FULL of colour right now - come visit us!

We have had a lot of inquiries about the Veggie Box program!  More info will be posted soon, we are definitely a go with the program, with some minor tweeks for the 2014 season.  Sign up for our newsletter below for our weekly newsletter!

I'm off to do some work at the greenhouse, I will post more information about the Veggie Box program soon - I promise!  Until next time - Mel