Finally ... My Herbs Are Back

Living in Florida has its pros and cons, as any state does I'm sure.  I love having fresh herbs at my fingertips so when we moved into our home I had my (soon-to-be) handy brother in-law build me a raised herb garden.  We had this perfect little spot on the side of our deck and I couldn't picture anything else going there.  Its right by the side door for easy access and it is on the side of the house that gets morning light.  Did you know herbs prefer morning light?

Back to that con of living in Florida, during the summer it rains ... a lot.  Every afternoon you can pretty much bet your life that there will be a thunder storm.  While herbs should be able to grow year round, mine drown in the summer months.  So after fighting soggy basil and cilantro soup I decided to scrap the whole thing mid July.

Now that we've approached mid September I think that I am ready to start replenishing my stock.  I cleaned out all the left over weeds and leaves and turned all the soil.  I did leave my rosemary though, it was hardy enough to make it through the weather, and on the right you'll see my pot of Aloe Vera.  Aloe seems to grow abundantly anywhere I put it, and it has come to the rescue many times for our visitors that forget how important sunblock is down here. (Its also great for breakouts, especially ones you couldn't keep your hands off.  Rub some aloe on the trouble area, let sit for an hour, and wash off.  Great healing power.)

I was planning to go to Home Depot to see what they had in stock, I just hadn't made it there quite yet.  Which I'm glad I didn't because last weekend my fiance and I decided to go to our local farmers market (Sarasota Farmers Market).  I honestly was going to see if the prices were better on the fruits and veggies than our local grocery store - they seemed about the same on most items.  When much to my surprise there was a tent there selling herbs! They even had their basil (my favorite) on sale for $2 a plant.  These plants looked much healthier and fuller than what I usually find at Home Depot.  I bought three Basil and two Cilantro (the herbs I use the most) for only $12!

I'm so excited to see the herb garden taking shape, I do need to get a few more plants, perhaps some parsley or chives would be good.  We also love jalapenos, which I usually start as small plants in the herb box and then move them to larger containers.  The guy at the farmers market said he should have some in a couple weeks.  So I will be checking back for sure!

What do you have in your herb garden?