Octopus's Garden

I've been wanting to plant some herbs. For a long time. Every time I moved into a new apartment in college, my mom would encourage me to get a plant for it, that it would look homier, etc. I was always hesitant about that because well, I've always associated the buying of plants with something only adults do, maybe that's dumb. Every time I chatted with my mom about wanting a plant one day, she always told me that I could buy one anytime, but I usually responded with something like, You'll know I've become an adult when I get a plant. Well, I'm happy to say that I have planted 4 of my own plants, and in March, I helped H. plant some as well. So we've got more than 8 herbs going between the two of us! And there's also a humongo rosemary plant on the side of the house that I live in, so fresh rosemary anytime! H. hearts pesto, so he planted 3 varieties of basil, some spearmint and yesterday, he added thyme and sage to his collection. I love fresh mint in tea, so yesterday I planted some spearmint for myself, Mediterranean oregano, cilantro and allegedly, Italian parsley. I say allegedly because I'm a dim-wit that didn't read the seed packet instructions prior to sowing; apparently you have to soak parsley seeds in warm water overnight. I will be sowing the parsley post-work today.

Here's the pink dogwood bloom's view of the operation:

I painted the pots to increase their cuteness value outside my door, but more importantly, I'm really bad at the look-at-a-plant-and-know-exactly-what-type-of-plant-it-is phenomenon. I would like to be better at that. I think the labels will help, although, I think a few plants are pretty obvious.

Sorry, parsley, you'll be a day behind the others. It's ironic because you take the longest amount of time to germinate. Dangit.

I have a little tip to impart as far as potting plants goes; I read it in a magazine once. When you're planting in a pot with a drain hole, put a piece of sponge over the hole before adding the potting soil, as the pot won't drain water as quickly, thus making less of a mess and eliminating the need to add tons of additional water to a dried-out plant. Also according to the seed packets, spearmint and oregano should be kept moist. When I read that little facto, I remembered finding wild spearmint growing next to a creek as a kid and bringing it to the house, so that makes sense to me. I shall have to be wary of keeping these babies moist, as I used terra cotta pots, which dry out very quickly. There's something so wonderful about planting something and watching it grow, so I think these herbs will bring me much joy (as well as much flavor to my table)!