...into India and Sri Lanka. It’s a small branching shrub, growing two to three feet tall and producing small red fruits surrounded by a lantern-like calyx (think tiny Chinese lanterns...
...fresh in salads and herb platters, where its bold flavor adds complexity and contrast. In Japan, where it is known as dokudami, the plant often grows wild and is more...
March 30, 2026 | By Susan Belsinger and Tina Marie Wilcox
...days and warm nights. They need warmth and light for germination and early growth, and they flower and set fruit best when days are 8 to 12 hours long and...
...create a calming botanical toner perfect for refreshing the skin after a day outdoors. Another beloved native is Texas sage (Leucophyllum frutescens), sometimes called “cenizo.” Its silvery leaves are not...
January 19, 2026 | By Tina Marie Wilcox & Susan Belsinger
Bright orange turmeric rhizomes ready to cook with—or plant. Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a member of the Zingiberaceae family and an exotic tropical herb that we love to grow and...
Interestingly enough, I found myself gazing at an adorable little mushroom-covered tree skirt in November, of all months. Not even a jingle bell in the air yet. It made me...
...lemon or orange juice and their zests. Go beyond the traditional pairing, think about the molecular level of what makes great combinations. The dominant chemical compounds found in lavender’s aroma...
...the fruit, these results were later called into question, as the fruits tested may have been from species other than L. barbarum (Qian, Zhao, Yang, and Huan, 2017). Further investigation...
Honoring the Herbs, Flavors, and Fires of the Season “The scent of rosemary, the smoke of sage, the whisper of bay — the old language of the earth still speaks...
