How does your garden grow?

There is nothing like fresh pesto made in your own kitchen from basil that has just been picked from your own plants! Having given my herbs a loving home with our mates, Hannah and Tim Hupfield, before we went to the US, I needed to start my windowsill garden over again. I was looking at the herb plants in Sainsbury's when I realized, "I have pots. I have dirt. Basil roots in water. I can just buy a package of the cut stuff and get several plants for the price of one."

The only problem with rooting basil in water is that since the cuttings tend to be top heavy, it is tricky to keep the stems in the water. So, as I was filling small jars up with water, I was thinking, "I wish I had some chicken wire or something to get these stems to cooperate."

And then, "Aha!" Oranges, lemons, garlic, and some other fruit and veg often come in a mesh bag. It being my regular practice to evaluate the packaging of almost everything before sending it to its doom in the bin, I keep these mesh bags. They are generally subsequently used as "fibers" in craft projects. Here are a couple examples.













But, in this case, stretched over the mouth of a jar and secured with a rubber band we have a better way of keeping those stems in the water!