Smells play a significant role in the life of any person. If you do not like the natural aroma of other people, then they will never be with you, because it is impossible to persuade yourself to constantly inhale what is unpleasant to you. The easiest way to fill your life with positive energy is to grow spicy herbs. What could be more beautiful than a whole symphony of aromas that will surround you in the morning. An additional advantage of aromatic herbs is that they often make various medicinal potions and balms. And spices are eaten. We will tell you how to create a garden of aromas with your own hands, and which plants to choose for this.
Brief historical summary
In the monasteries of Western Europe in the old days they created square courtyards. Paths in such courtyards were located crosswise, and the landing had strict geometric shapes.
Herbs were often bred here, from which various potions were prepared. Later, plants with wonderful aromas began to be planted to create incense.
Monastic gardens with aromatic and medicinal plants can still be seen in Europe. They keep their beautiful traditions
Landings were divided to the cardinal points, which corresponded to the sectors of the courtyard. Sometimes herbs were planted according to the principle of their properties and subsequent use: medicinal, beautiful, fragrant, and so on. Thanks to the traditions of the monastery gardens, rabatka arose, and later the idea of a closed fragrant courtyard.
Medicinal plants in the flower beds are grown to this day: //diz-cafe.com/ideas/klumba-aptechka-na-dachnom-uchastke.html
Today, the practice of creating secluded fragrant corners is not forgotten. They are still organized in a well-lit, but usually enclosed part of the garden. Plants are carefully selected for them, guided either by the principle of continuous flowering, or by the rule of supplementing and enhancing one aroma with the help of another.
Why do we need such a garden?
The sense of smell is one of the most important channels through which we obtain information about the world around us. During the day, we inhale and exhale the air many times, getting the information we need.
Smell gives a sense of freedom to man. We have a wonderful opportunity, following the familiar smell, immerse ourselves in memories and dreams
The magical power of odors lies in their ability to act on certain parts of the brain that shape our mood. Unbeknownst to ourselves, we associate the aromas obtained with those emotions and events that we have associated with them.
Using this ability, you can influence the mood, stimulate the emotions we need. Even the most gloomy and gloomy day under the influence of the right aroma may not interfere with a surge of vigor and positive.
Advantages and disadvantages of such a solution
Fragrant garden - the original idea of landscape design. It usually takes the form of several flower beds that exude sweet or refreshing odors.
The advantages of aromatic corners are as follows:
- such a relaxation area on your site can provide the necessary therapeutic effect: to invigorate or relax, relieve stress;
- your suburban area will acquire a special originality, it will become different from others;
- smells not only form a mood, but also have therapeutic effects;
- if you choose flowers as carriers, you can experience not only aromatic, but also visual pleasure.
Since we list the advantages, we will not forget to mention the disadvantages. Rather, about what you should pay attention to, creating your own fragrant corner.
The disadvantages of this idea are not so many:
- Everyone has their own ideas about the beautiful. For example, men may not share female love in an intoxicatingly sweet perfume. And the woman will transfer her addictions to the garden, serious problems can arise in the family. To avoid this, the decision to create a fragrant site should be taken by everyone together. You do not buy yourself a perfume that deliberately annoys your "other half"? One of the options for compromise may be the division of the site into male and female zones. Let the woman sniff her favorite lilies and roses, and the man enjoy mint, spruce and pine.
- The fragrance zone should not be made too closed. This will increase the concentration of odor to critical values, which, in turn, can spoil the rest and negatively affect health. Let the wind help you spread the aromas, making them pleasant.
- You must very carefully choose plants for planting. Not only do some of them provoke an allergic reaction, they can also affect individual functions of your body. For example, jasmine, cloves and lovage increase general excitability. Think about whether it will negatively affect your health.
As you can see, the composition of the shortcomings is not insurmountable. It is enough to take into account all of the nuances and disadvantages of this idea that simply disappear.
There are practically no obstacles to creating a garden of aromas, except for the individual intolerance of a particular smell, but you can always exclude it
Determine the type of dominant odor
Before you think about what plants we will plant on our own site, you need to know what we want to get as a result. Decide on the type of aroma that these or those cultures create:
- Gentle: rosemary, sage, lavender, mint.
- Spicy: fennel, nasturtium, azalea, cloves.
- Sweet: elderberry, clover, heliotrope, honeysuckle.
- Honey: musk rose, hawthorn, barberry.
- Fruit: geranium, hyacinth, magnolia.
- Pink: individual varieties of honeysuckle, peony, rose.
- Exquisite: iris, sweet peas, lilac, wisteria.
Of course, you understand that the proposed gradation is rather conditional, however, it is considered traditional and therefore is given here.
The pink fragrance forms the basis of many perfumes, but it is worth discussing with other family members whether they would mind making it dominant in the garden.
Selection of plants for aromatic gardens
Now that you have chosen a particular aroma, you can discuss specific herbs, more often than others forming fragrant flower beds.
Thyme, thyme, Bogorodskaya grass
Thyme is often called the Mother of God grass, because it is a discreet, but very fragrant plant used in Russia to decorate the icon painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary. However, thyme was valued even in pagan times, when it was considered capable of not only healing people, but also reviving it.
Fragrant thyme was valued in ancient Greece and Rome: its dry twigs were set on fire and fumigated with smoke, expelling ailments and all evil spirits. Its strong spirit can really overcome unpleasant odors and has healing properties and a balsamic effect.
Psychotherapists recommend sensitive and insecure people thyme as a source of energy and positive emotions. In addition, thyme contains substances that restore male health.
The ancient Romans bathed in the thyme broth, believing that in this way they are charged with energy. In addition, it was added to food as a flavoring agent. The scientist Theophrastus, who founded botany, devoted a whole treatise to thyme. In Europe, this spice has spread thanks to Benedictine monks who grew it in their gardens.
Today, thyme is used in cooking, medicine. It is used in the production of alcoholic beverages and for canning products. Thyme is rich in essential oils, and therefore has such a pronounced smell. Thyme oil is used in cosmetology and pharmaceuticals.
Of the variety of species and varieties of thyme for the site, it is best to choose a covering thyme. It grows very well, and in June-July it blooms with purple flowers. Thyme is often decorated with alpine slides and the space along the track.
Sage - bright and contrast
A rare aromatic garden dispenses with sage. It has many varieties, blooms for a long time and is often used to create contrasting transitions in design. This plant reached its greatest popularity in the Renaissance. However, it is still popular as a spice and as part of medicines.
It is also used in cooking, and it is used both in dried and in fresh form. It is a frequent participant in all kinds of culinary mixtures precisely because of its bright and pleasant smell.
Of course, like any other drug, preparations with sage are not shown to everyone. This should be remembered and never self-medicate.
The ether contained in sage, glorified it in cosmetology and perfumery. As a flavoring agent, it may be present in some types of tobacco, in sausages, tea or in certain types of cheese. It is added in the preparation of pickled herring.
Sage has healing properties: astringent and hemostatic. With its help, a wide range of diseases of internal organs is healed. Outwardly, it helps in the treatment of purulent wounds and bruises. Inhalations are done with it, since it has bactericidal properties.
Lavender - a guest from the Mediterranean
Sky blue or lilac lavender flowers are well known to us from the numerous images of this plant. In Russia, it fell from the Mediterranean. Even the ancient Romans, taking baths, used it as a flavoring.
Lavender will fit perfectly into the Mediterranean-style garden. Along with mint and sage, other herbs can grow in such a garden: //diz-cafe.com/plan/sredizemnomorskij-stil-sada.html
Lavender is an excellent disinfectant, it can relieve cramps and soothe. A bath with her, taken before bedtime, will relieve fatigue and stress. Moreover, it is actively used in perfumery and cosmetology, it is used in soap making, and lavender oil helps with burns, abrasions and minor scratches.
Bunches of fragrant lavender were also used in ancient Greece: with their help, dwellings were given a fresh floral spirit
It is lavender that Spanish, Italian and French chefs like to add to various dishes. It perfectly complements sauces, lamb dishes and fish specialties. When dried and crushed, lavender is used as a spice and a pleasant addition to tea.
Growing lavender in the central part of Russia is not so easy. You need to know some tricks. In particular, only frost-resistant varieties should be selected for planting. For winter, lavender needs to be covered, but this should be done especially carefully so that the tender grass does not soprel. Lavender loves good lighting and favors a dry climate. But the excess moisture is fatal for her.
Unpretentious and charming mint
Probably, mint is the oldest plant, the properties of which were appreciated by man. This weed is mentioned in the cuneiform tablets of Assyria and Egypt. Avicenna and Hippocrates spoke of her. Its essential oils are used in medicine, and in perfumery, and in the food industry.
Mint is added to various alcoholic drinks. They also use it as a fragrant seasoning for various dishes. In cooking, it is used in dried and fresh form. Peppermint is widely used in official medicine. Not only cough lozenges are made from it.
It is part of ointments, drops and tablets, because it has analgesic and vasodilating properties. Mint is used in the form of decoctions and essences; it relieves severe headaches and digestive problems.
Mint is perfect in salads and sauces, in marinades and in pastries. Wonderful mint drinks have a very special flavor.
It is not too difficult to grow mint: it grows quickly and is unpretentious. If you want to avoid the excessive spread of this grass, you can plant it directly in pots. In this case, the rhizome will not be able to spread.
In addition to the pleasant aroma, mint also has another pleasant effect: it scares off the mice. Read more about this and other helper plants in the discussion: //diz-cafe.com/vopros-otvet/parazity/kak-izbavitsya-ot-myshej.html
Rosemary - Sea Freshness
Thin leaflets, which are so similar to needles, and a pleasant spicy aroma - it is difficult not to recognize rosemary in this description. Its homeland is also the Mediterranean. Its Latin name means "sea freshness." Today he is known not only in Europe.
The smell of rosemary is like a mixture of essences of lemon, eucalyptus, camphor and pine. It is part of a wide variety of mixtures popular in cooking. This, for example, French seasonings "herbs of Provence." Based on it, vinegar and various sauces are prepared with which meat dishes are flavored.
At the same time, rosemary retains its resinous aroma even with prolonged cooking. There are many ways to prepare fragrant and delicious dishes by simply adding a little olive oil and a couple of “sea freshness” leaves. It is important not to overdo it, because fragrant leaves are able to interrupt the bouquet of the dish itself, which is usually undesirable.
Rosemary - this spice is recognized and widespread. In the wild, it can still be found today in southern Europe.
In spring and early summer, rosemary is covered with delicate blue flowers. The problem of its cultivation is that it is not able to transfer Russian winters even in a sheltered form. He needs a plus temperature. But in a balcony or insulated veranda, rosemary will survive. And in the summer it can be safely transferred to the ground. Read more about planting and care.
Honey plant hyssop officinalis
In Europe, Asia, and even in North Africa, hyssop officinalis can still be found in the wild today. In Russia, it grows in the steppe and forest-steppe zone. Back in the days of Avicenna and Hippocrates, he was described as an excellent expectorant. Today hyssop is infused with figs and honey and used as a medicine for colds.
Essential oils emitted by hyssop can cleanse the room of infection, they are also used as an effective means to combat pediculosis. In July - August, this honey plant is covered with flowers. At this time, its collection begins. Well-dried hyssop can be used for two months.
During the time of early Christianity, hyssop was used as a seasoning during the fasting period. They flavored bread with salt
Hyssop can be planted in light fertile soil in the form of seeds or cuttings. In the northwestern part of Russia and in the Non-Chernozem region it is better to use seedlings grown for this purpose from seeds at a temperature of 18-20 ° C, in the dark and in conditions of constant humidity. Seed germination is observed two weeks from the date of sowing.
Before transplanting seedlings, 1 tablespoon of fertilizers of the "Effect" type and up to 2 kg of dung humus must be added per meter of soil area. The beds should be dug up on the bayonet of a shovel, leveled and slightly trampled. Seedlings are planted in rows, leaving 30 cm between them, and between rows - 60 cm.
Marjoram is called winter marjoram because of its resistance to winters and frosts. This is a honey plant that grows in Russia everywhere, except, perhaps, in the Far North. Oregano prefers to grow in open rocky terrain, in floodplain meadows, on the edges of the forest and in open glades. It is quite widely used in medicine.
Most often, oregano is used as a spice. In cooking, its leaves are added to meat dishes, vegetables and potatoes. The presence of oregano in tea or sauce makes its taste richer, more fully revealing the possibilities of a dish or drink.
Very good oregano in the composition of home baking. If it is used in the preparation of marinades, then all home preservation is better preserved.
Oregano prefers rich soils of neutral acidity. We cultivate as a honey plant and source of ether. Oregano breeds with seedlings. Her plantations require replacement after 3-5 years. This herb has a pleasant smell and tart, slightly astringent taste.
How to care for a “fragrant garden”?
No special care is required. Everything is as usual: plants require care, fertilizing and watering. If you are only planning on planting, be sure to dig the site carefully, say goodbye to all the weeds and fertilize the soil with complex fertilizers that will benefit all herbs intended for planting.
If you plan to build a flower bed that will smell good, you can also make it long-flowering. To do this, pick flowers with different flowering periods. At the beginning of the season, lilies of the valley, hyacinths and daffodils can please you. Then the baton will pick up the tobacco, peas and mirabilis. And the season ends with phlox, meadowsweet and carnations.
It’s a pity that the video is unable to transmit the smell, but you can appreciate the appearance of the garden:
