my herb spiral and the bees - part 2

I finalized my very own herb spiral! In a previous post, I mentioned the ideas and steps on how to build one. I had to adapt my initial plans a bit, but all in all, I am quite happy with the result. My first concession, was the location: due to many reasons, I could not build one just next to the kitchen door. The current location is still reachable "without making your slippers wet from the morning dew when you pick your herbs” (freely adapted from Bill Mollison). 

The current location of the spiral, will provide me with an indirect advantage: an extra shelter from the wind (and view) at my future private spot. It will create a little protected area between herb spiral,  the flower beds, and the garden shed. A partly hidden place where I can be on my own, between the butterflies and bees and surrounded by different scents floating to me from the herb and flowers nearby.

Strawberry runner inserted in outer wall

The second concession I made were the choice of stones. I inherited some old stones found in our garden and from my neighbour. I decided to use these as a base for the herb spiral and then to buy some of the same kind to be able to finalize the construction before the autumn. There was no room for a big spiral so the stones were piled up with rather big crevices between them and it all looked a bit too square to me. The result is not exactly what I had dreamed of, but with some luck the matured plants will make the difference. In permaculture, one is encouraged to turn the problems into solutions. I really like that way of thinking! The many crevices between the stones turned out to be excellent spots to squeeze in a lot of  strawberry runners! I added wild strawberries on the shady side and regular ones on the sunny side.

Solitary bee shelter protected from rain

Here and there, I left some bigger spaces between the stones to insert my solitary bee shelters. My son selected a mixture of plant stems found in the garden with a soft or hollow core for the bees to use as nesting places. These stems were then cut in pieces of about 20cm long and inserted as bundles on the South-Eastern side to provide them with as much sun as possible. Little pieces of broken plastic pots served as a roof to protect them from rain and wind. In the coming months, solitary bees of all sizes should find their way into these little caves, lay their eggs inside, and then close the entrances with chewed plant material to leave them to develop into baby bees by next spring.

Bumble bee nest integrated

The inner parts of the bumble bee nest

The bumble bee nest was made of bits and pieces found in the shed and the garden: a flower pot, a piece of chicken wire, a piece of flexible tube, some pebble stones for drainage and aeration, and some soft nesting material, like dried moss. With the entrance turning South-East, all of it was then covered with the soil and plants. Unfortunately, I did not find any mouse droppings to add to the nesting material, which should be a bonus to attract the bumble bees to start nesting there. Hopefully, this will do the trick.

Drainage layer inside the spiral

The sandy layer inside the spiral

Let us return to the construction process. With the help of my son, we figured out the precise shape and the number of stones needed. I added a lot of stones for drainage at the bottom, then sandy soil from an old sandpit, my own harvest of organic humus, some extra humus coming from a garden center, and some extra sand mixed in at the very top for the rosemary and thyme.

Rosemary, sage, oregano, and thyme

Thyme, oregano,and savory

I just loved to do the final bit: adding the plants. I took some shoots of lemon balm, some mature thyme and chives from the old herb patch. The other plants I bought at an organic farm: several species of oregano, summer savory, garlic chives, sage, rosemary, spearmint, and of course the strawberries. All the plants have their own specific niche: in the shade or sun, dry or wet, sandy or soil with humus. This should be the base of a self-supporting ecosystem with very little maintenance.

Grass clippings added as a mulch layer

Just before we left, I added some grass clippings on top of the bare soil between the plants. This should prevent too much weed from popping up and protect the soil from sun, wind, heavy rain fall, or drought. To make up for the square look of the brick stones, I added some round shaped pebble stones collected on our beach to decorate the spiral. The two water collecting devices are also important to me: to provide some drinking and bathing water for birds, who will then leave their droppings as fertilizing presents for the plants, but also to provide water for bees and butterflies and other useful insects. The dish at the bottom  is meant for the little hedgehogs (and other small mammals) which we are hoping to see in our garden. 

An herb spiral like this, gives an excellent opportunity to combine several permaculture principles, like edging, creating micro climates, gardening for wildlife and people, stacking functions, recycling material, low maintenance gardening, etc. 

The final result: my own herb spiral ready to go!

I look very much forward to follow the life in and around this little wildlife hotel the coming seasons!

time to reflect

The only advantage of having a garden abroad is that one is forced to leave it and then can look at it from a distance and reflect on it. It was very hard for me to leave our garden in Denmark at the end of the summer and I admit my heart and soul are still there. I hope this blog will help me to get some peace inside of me and to digest, to assess, and to plan all the next moves.

What a wonderful spring and summer! The weather in Denmark has been amazingly warm and some records have been beaten. It also was surprisingly dry (except for August). While I had expected only to have to deal with humidity issues, I now had to make plans for drought spells as well! Being in our summerhouse only part of the year, this changed weather pattern turned out to become quite an extra challenge. It made me investigate expected climate change in the area and adapt some plans accordingly.

Vanessa atalanta, Atalantavlinder, Red Admiral, Admiral sommerfugl (c) Ilke Bee

After the first “stones” of the new garden were laid in April this year, I managed to come back briefly at the end of June and then a second period from end of July to end of August. Both returns after a long absence were an interesting experience with lots of surprises. I learned a lot by observing the changes, but also to let go all control and my expectations. A very positive learning curve in many ways.

I truly enjoyed taking time to observe the garden and its inhabitants. My aim is to learn to identify all the different types of butterflies, solitary bees, bumble bees, and other insects like dragonflies visiting my plants and flowers. In between, I would like to learn more about all the different wild plants present and how to encourage some of them to flourish and how to contain invasive ones. Armed with my camera, I took a lot of photos which I will analyse the coming months. While I was there, I rather spent my time outside than in books or behind a screen. Now, being back home, I will have more time to look up things and still feel a connection with my garden.   

Gonepteryx rhamni, Citroenvlinder, Common Brimstone, Citronsommerfugl

(c) Ilke Bee

It is funny to read some of my previous posts now and see how much has changed for the better or worse since I wrote them. I have such a big pile of extra information, questions, photos, and notes to process that I feel a bit lost on where to begin... One post at a time? I hope some of you are willing to exchange some ideas with me on this learning curve and enjoy it as much as I do.