The Real Chia Herb Garden: A Great Idea
Thursday, March 25th, 2010 Subscribe To Our Feed
Chis isn’t the name of a cute terra cotta animal with growing herbs on its “skin” or does it need be any such variety to be called a chia herb garden.It doesn’t even have to be on any animal pottery.What make it Chia is first of all that it is planted within a container, which can be any kind virtually, but more on that later.
Second, it is started by using a special sponge medium (available on the web with all other gardening tools), seeds and a glass or plastic cover of some kind to keep the seedlings humid while allowing some light to get in. This material can be placed within any kind of manageable enclosure, moistened, the seeds added and the entire container placed within the covering, a clear plastic bag or a clear protector to keep it humid.
While the seeds are germinating (before they are strong shoots) it is not that critical to have a lot of light, but once they start looking like little plants it will be much more so. At that time, if they are not in a sunny place, you need to move them.
Now that we understand that a chia herb garden has to do primarily with the planting medium and size of the containers, we can understand why they are so popular in places at home and at work where there isn’t a lot of room or space to set up a growing garden. In facat, they are limited only by your imagination and you can come up with dozens of interesting ideas how to add special quality to each room in your house, for example.
If you plan to use your herbs in food or drink (herbal teas, for one idea), then you must consider not using any containers which might, themselves, contain dies, pigments or other chemicals which can be harmful. These harmful materials can leach into the growing medium and then the roots, affecting the plants.. Obviously, this is not a healthy scenario. These containers must be food safe. Typically if one is harmful, it should be labeled, but this isn’t always the case. Colorful containers should not be considered since they frequently contain iron and other materials in the coloring that can be dangerous.
But this shouldn’t stop you from having bright and beautiful containers to raise your plants in. You can have some fun with chemical free ones and paint them yourself, any way you like.There are some great acrylics out there and even some glazes which could work just fine.
You have many different options when starting your own chia herb garden.Like any other garden, you can start with the seeds and watch them germinate into seedlings and miraculously become recognizable plants, or you could purchase a herb kit which has already been started and will allow you to begin harvesting almost right away.Remember if you go this route that even though these “pre-started” plants are already growing, they will need your continued care and attention.You need to pay attention to their watering and fertilizing, as recommended in the instructions you should be getting.
Once the plants have reached maturity, you have the option of transplanting them into a traditional medium such as soil or pellets. When planting “up,” that is to say onto a larger container than the one presently being used, don’t increase the diameter more than about an inch, especially when they are small. The new pot will allow room for additional growth, but must also provide the plant with some familiar containment. As plants grow larger, you can increase pot sizes a little more aggressively.
A wonderful characteristic of chia herb gardens is that the plants themselves aren’t the whole show; their containers can be just as attractive and delightful. It’s totally up to your creative juices to decide. One idea is to create a custom theme for each room in your house, and use specific plants that will add color or fragrance to that particular room.
And keeping to basics, please remember that your chia herb garden will need some good light, at least occasionally and regularly, so if there is not any or enough where you want to display them, just remember to bring them outside or to a bright window for “meal time” and so they can enjoy the beautiful light, just as you might yourself.
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