Mar 13

Mar 13 FLORACOTTA~

PLANTING YOUR OWN HERB GARDEN + THE BENEFITS OF THYME

IN THE GARDEN WITH FLORACOTTA

My beautiful friend Faith started her own little gardening company during the pandemic and I really couldn’t be more proud to share her story here. It’s becoming quite clear that I love supporting women + women in business + women who quit their day jobs and follow their dreams~❥

In the garden with Faith ~

1. FLORACOTTA lifestyle~
Floracotta came from the idea that I wanted to share the joy and beauty of the garden and help others grow herbs, vegetables and fruits near their home for culinary use. The problem most people have when wanting to grow an edible garden is they don’t know where and how to start. It can be overwhelming so I started Floracotta to remove the difficulty of becoming a gardener and help create a beautiful garden space you’ll want to visit every day.

2. ZEN ZONE?
You really can’t deny the calming effects of plants on us; our intuition knows. It would be amazing if we could just trust our intuition more and not rely on scientific studies to tell us we need more nature. Finding the way that you interact with nature is a personal journey. One of my favorite routines is grabbing a familiar mug, filling it with my favorite coffee and strolling out the back door to check on my plants. I call this my morning putz - that's my meditation.

3. BEAUTY HACKS?
I love a good DIY at home beauty treatment. Thyme has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antiseptic properties & Rosemary is great for hair growth~
How To Make Honey Thyme Tea~
Ingredients: fresh thyme, water & honey

Loosely fill a glass jar with fresh thyme
Boil water
Pour hot water over the thyme
Place the lid on the jar
Let sit for 5-7minutes
Mix in a generous amount of honey

Enjoy immediately! Or cool and store in the refrigerator for iced tea. Wonderful for colds or just a nice to connect with nature and relax.

Rosemary Tea Hair tonic For thicker Hair~
Items needed: Glass spray bottle, Ball Mason Glass Jar, lid, water & rosemary sprigs.

Boil 1-2 cups of water in a kettle.
Place a few sprigs of Rosemary in a Ball Mason Glass Jar.
Pour boiling water over the sprigs of Rosemary and tighten the lid.
Let the Rosemary tea cool to room temp.
Transfer the tonic to a glass spray bottle.
Store in the refrigerator.

USE: Spritz the Rosemary Tea Hair tonic onto your scalp and strands and let your hair air dry. If you want a more potent treatment, mix a few drops of rosemary essential oil and massage it onto your scalp before bed. Rosemary helps promote thickness! Enjoy!

4. ESSENTIALS for the garden?
Wide brim hat, gloves, long sleeves and my favorite sunscreen ~Kiehl’s Super Fluid UV Defense Daily Facial Unscented Sunscreen SPF 50+. The texture is so light, I can’t tell I’m wearing sunscreen. @kiehls

5. WORDS OF WISDOM?
Know what you want and where you want to go (not what outside forces think you should do or be) and act with intention. Whatever that is, align it with your values and start incorporating your idea into your daily life, with a hobby or even volunteering, something that will ispire your future goals.

6. MUSE?
Anna Greenland is a vegetable gardener in England; She spent three years running double Michelin-starred chef Raymond Blancs vegetable garden at Le Manoir Aux Quat’saisons.

https://www.annagreenland.co.uk/about

7. SCENT MEMORY?
A sun-warmed fresh tomato picked off the vine and eaten in the garden like an apple. That’s what a good, proper tomato should taste like.

8. SPRING FLING? It’s SPRING ~What tips do you have for a beginner?
If you’ve never grown anything, start with garlic greens! Place a full head of organic garlic in a jar where the garlic bulb can rest on top of the vessel and the garlic roots are submerged in water. An empty spice jar or a tall shot glass are all excellent options. Place your garlic and jar on a windowsill and keep the jar full of water. In a few days, you'll notice green shoots out of the top of the garlic. Trim the garlic greens at any point and use it in sautés or fresh like chives! The greens will continue to grow after a trim; when the garlic bulb feels empty, you'll know it's finished.

Knowing when and where to plant is the main part of having a successful garden. If you’re ready to grow outside, keep it simple and choose one thing to grow (if you’re bad at following directions, choose no more than five!) Here in Los Angeles, we will start to enter the warm season in March, when we can plant tomatoes, peppers, basil and all the warm-loving crops. On the floracotta website, you can grab a free Los Angeles growing guide to learn to garden.

9. LOCAL GUIDE ~ LA

Potted in Atwater - https://pottedstore.com

Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens

Olive Ateliers https://www.oliveateliers.com

SRF Lake Shrine Pacific Palisades, CA

SRF Garden, Mt. Washington, CA

10. QUOTE TO LIVE BY?

“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity”. - Simone Weil~

11. HAPPY HOUR~
I like to make cocktails with homemade infused herb vodkas. One of my favorites is rosemary and grapefruit. You can also make a beautiful Oleo-Saccharum simple syrup with grapefruit citrus peel.

12. CURRENTLY DAYDREAMING?
Looking forward to creating beautiful gardens for people who want to learn to grow their own herbs, food & flowers~