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​Salad Burnet is hands down one of my most favorite plants. I mean, I actually sorta like it better than Basil, and Thyme. I know, I know huge statement! One of the reasons why I love this little plant is because it is one hardy bugger! It's a beautiful fern like herb with a nutty cucumber flavor that shines when sautéed with veggies, in summer salads, or vinegar!  

Salad Burnet, Sanguisorba minor is a perennial that tends to be drought-tolerant and lucky for us it grows year round. The young leaves can also be used as a substitute in some recipes for mint. You can plant this attractive plant in containers or the ground. It will reseed itself, but is certainly not invasive. Are you looking for a unique houseplant? Salad Burnet is a fantastic as it never grows too big or tall.

I think one of my favorite stories is how we had a tomato patch where the Herbary is planted. We grew over 300 tomato plants, and sold them picked and U-picked. The key to our successful tomato crop was that each plant had a tire around it! The tire warmed the ground, and supported the cage. The plants were planted deep so the stalks were always huge and strong. With the money we took a trip to Disneyland. I think we went the summer of 1975, I was 4. Everyday, when my father returned home from work, I would run out the door to meet him. Clutched in my hands was a beer, salt shaker and one of those tiny A&W mugs. Dad and I would patrol the tomato patch looking for a red tomatoes to sample. We would sit on the tires, dad would pour some of his beer into my mug and we would salt our 'mators. 

We used the top part of our property in lots of different ways .... More stories another day.

Continuing on the bird kick, here is a list of some perennials that attract birds and especially hummingbirds. Hummingbirds are always a favorite in the garden. We tend to plant a lot of nectar plants at the Herbary, especially bee friendly plants. Among our favorite are Bee Balm, Foxgloves, Columbines, Echinacea and of course Lavender! 


Bee Balm (Monarda didyma) 
Hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies adore the bright wild blossoms of bee balm. We carry an array of of blooms in pinks, purples, raspberry and occasionally white. Remember to deadhead often so you can keep the blooming season longer. We love to put bee balm in pots, as well as planting large stands. Thankfully many of our varieties are mildew resistant. Bee balm does best in full sun. 








Foxglove (Digitalis spp.)
A country garden classic, foxgloves produce spotted, tubular flowers that are very attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies. Foxglove stands are also known as Fairy Condos. Here is a perfect plant to brighten up those shady sections of your garden. Foxgloves range from white to pink to purples, there seems to be new variations springing up. The blooming season is spring to summer. 











Columbines (Aquilegia spp.)
An easy to grow perennial that can strive in full to part shade. Hummingbirds love the deep, bell shaped flowers of these little beauties. There are many different varieties to choose from, with colors ranging from yellows, pinks, scarlett and purples. Expect blooms from late spring through midsummer. 






Echinacea 
Coneflowers come in all sorts of crazy colors now day! The classic coneflower is purple or white, but there are yellows, oranges, reds and more! They are excellent in beds and containers. This hardy perennial attracts seed eaters, and insects as well as butterflies. Remember to deadhead to continue the blooming season, but make sure leave some for the birds to enjoy in the fall and winter. 


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A incomplete list of perennials to enhance your bird garden! 

• Ajuga 
• Asters
• Balsa root
• Beard-tongue
• Bee balm 
• Begonia 
• Black-eyed Susans
• Blanket Flowers
• Bleeding heart 
• Butterfly weed 
• Canna 
• Cardinal flower 
• Century plant 
• Columbine 
• Coral bells (heuchera)
• Coreopsis
• Cleome 
• Crapemyrtle 
• Dahlia 
• Dame's rocket 
• Daylilies
• Delphinium 
• Echinacea 
• Eupatoriums 
• Fire pink 
• Four o' clocks 
• Foxglove 
• Fuchsia 
• Gilia 
• Geranium 
• Gladiolus 
• Globe Thistles
• Glossy abelia 
• Goldenrods
• Hollyhocks 
• Impatiens 
• Iris 
• Ironweed 
• Lantana 
• Liatris 
• Lily 
• Lupine 
• Milkweeds
• Nasturtium 
• Nicotiana 
• Paintbrush 
• Penstemon 
• Petunia 
• Phlox 
• Pincushion Flower
• Sage 
• Salvia 
• Scabiosa 
• Scarlet sage 
• Stonecrops
• Sweet William 
• Verbena 
• Violets
• Yarrows
• Yucca 
• Zinnia

​I am still on a wild bird kick.. This spring, I am going to make an extra effort to ramp up my bird attracting plants. Here are a few of the annuals I am going to incorporate into the Herbary. I recently tore apart the front yard beds to build a deck off the front porch. I will be adding pots to the deck, and will prune the Flowering Cherry a bit to allow more sun in that back bed. Last year I had a huge stand of Calendula and loved it, hopefully they will be even thicker this next spring!  

Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus and C. sulphureus.)
One of my all time favorite flowers. I love their simple look and ease of growing. They are a sun loving plant, yet can also handle some shade. Don't worry if you don't have the best soil in the world, these babies can grow in just about any soil condition. The Cosmos are attractive to seed eaters and insects. The classic color are pink, but you can them in pinks, reds, orange, yellow and white.  They have a long bloom season, summer to fall. 

Hollyhocks (Alcea roses) 
Hollyhocks come in an array of co,ore; Whites, Scarlett's, purples pinky and yellows. They are  
tall and have a long season of color blooming mid summer to early fall. The large bright showy flowers are a fan favorite of hummingbirds and other nectar feeders. Planting in well drained soil, and remember Hollyhocks self sow readily. 

Nasturtium (Tropaeolum manus) 
Nasties the best addition to just about any garden! They are beneficial in gardens, pots, or as a screen. So many different colors to choose from; whites, yellows, oranges, reds, purples and even black! The trumpet shaped blossoms attract hummingbirds. Nasturtiums have a long blooming season, summer until frost. Sow directly in the garden after the last frost. 

Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis) 
So called because colonists used to toss it's marigold like flowers into cooking pots to add the blooms deep orange color to rice and other dishes. Calendula also can be found in yellows, creams and red blooms. Remember to deadhead this plant and you will get blooms from summer to frost. Don't forget to let some plants to go to seed to provide food through the fall. 

Sunflowers (Helianthus spp.) 
Sunflowers attract Jay's, chickadees, and other seed eating birds. There are many different types of sunflowers both annual and perennial sunflowers. We have both in our garden, and really like to add the annual sunflowers to our pots. Sunflowers have large showy daisy like flowers of yellow, orange, and cream with very large, flat eyes on a thick stalk. Sow after the last frost, or plant in trays and get a quick start on the season. Sunflowers bloom from Midsummer to mid autumn.

And my last favorite annual is Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus) 
These make the best cut flower! It's fragrant pink, purple, red white or bicolored flowers make it a favorite amongst gardeners. The tufted deep green foliage contrasts nicely with its bright blooms. Sweet William self sows readily and provides food for many seed eaters. It's not a tall plant, 10-18 inches and blooms from late spring to summer. 

​First snow of 2016! 
I love the snow, one of the biggest thing I miss about not living in Jackson, Wyoming. This past fall, I build a deck off the front porch. My main idea was to create space when entering the house, but instead I created yet another perfect perch to watch the day go by. 

I hung up some bird feeders and have enjoyed spoiling them. I have a posse of goldfinches that are eating me out of house and home. There are also the other typical backyard Tweetie birds.

​Of course, on the snow day I have run out of Niger seed, and the birds are swarming the deck looking for some love. The bird baths are defrosted, extra food is scattered about and I am working on a new suet feeder. 

So, if you haven't checked your feeder, or bird baths take a minute and help out your little feathered friends! 

Our friend Krissy has a very popular hummingbird feeder happening right now. I am off to locate my hummingbirds feeders and see if I have any hummers lurking around.

​i am going to have to research some better plants to keep my birds happy during the winter.  
 

Enjoy the blanket of snow!