Thursday, June 29, 2006

Dill Flower

More About Trees and Plants...



Dill

This is the flower of the culinary herb, dill (or dillweed, as it's also called). Some dill pickle recipes call for a small dill flower to be canned in the jar with the pickles. This one would be too large.

Late in the summer when the heads are seedy, I always see goldfinches feeding on them.

I planted dill about a dozen years ago, and since then it has reseeded itself. I haven't made any dill pickles for a few years, but I still enjoy the dill plants. They grow where I can brush against them coming and going from the garden. Their fragrance reminds me of my Grandma Barb's garden.

Dill surely must be the easiest of all herbs to grow. Toss the seeds on bare ground and they will grow. Actually, that's what happens every year in my garden. The seeds fall to the ground, lie there through the winter, and sprout in the spring.

My dill plants often grow 4 to 5 feet tall and they're top-heavy, so they blow over easily in strong winds. (There may be dwarf varieties that don't have this problem.) A clump of dill can be supported with a few tomato cages, or just put 3 stakes in the ground around the clump and run some twine around the stakes.

3 comments:

Trixie said...

That's pretty -- almost like pop art.

Genevieve Netz said...

They make a nice floral statement in the garden -- a tall, somewhat airy, yellow clump of flowers with fern-like foliage. I think they're pretty too. I noticed this morning that they are crawling with bees!

Unknown said...

Hey Gene:
That photo is quite a surprise straight up and enlarged. I like it!

Something just came in over night and tour up & gone, my three nylon finch feeder bags... raccoons?

Your on a roll with extra fine photos?
Who is realy behind that old camera?

thanks much, kennethF

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

CONTENTMENT: Keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry, live simply, expect little, give much, sing often, pray always, forget self, think of others and their feelings, fill your heart with love, scatter sunshine. These are the tried links in the golden chain of contentment.
(Author unknown)

IT IS STILL BEST to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasure; and to be cheerful and have courage when things go wrong.
(Laura Ingalls Wilder, 1867-1957)

Thanks for reading.