Garden herbs and medicinal plants

While being ill (flu) all week, first I turned to natural cures as I usually do. Normally, it works, and I do not have to go and see a doctor.

Teas and herbal infusions have been a long-standing tradition to fight the flu in Hungary. In pharmacies, it is possible to buy all kinds of herbs and medicinal plants (the loose package works much better than the filtered versions). Hungary is a major producer and exporter of these plants and many people make an extra living by picking the leaves and flowers.

In Kishegy, we also have some of the most common plants which have medicinal values, such as elderberry, rosehip, sage, dandelion, linden, thyme, lemongrass, peppermint, rosemary and acacia flowers (the latter bees turn into honey).

The flower of the linden tree can be dried and crushed and used for making tea. It is a natural healer of cough and cold. 

Lemongrass is great for making teas or use in desserts (on top of ice cream...). It is often mixed with chamomile and/or mint to make a refreshing tea. I use lemongrass for making ice tea during the summer, it is truly much better than the store-bought ice teas. It is a natural healer during the flu season, and children accept its flavor easily as well.

Elderberry is abundantly available in our area. It grows wild and the bushes surround the garden. Its beautiful whitish-yellowish flowers perfume the air during spring, and early autumn, its deep-purple berries add an amazing color to the garden palette. I can hardly wait to make elderberry syrup when the flowers are in bloom. Until then, I turn to the dried flowers to fight the flu. They are great against bad coughs. 

    

Sage is a plant that we've had in the garden for years. It somehow endures harsh winter frosts and no matter what, it starts to revive in the spring. It is a strong flavored plant, I usually use it for making "saltimbocca", (I will write about food in the garden during the spring-summer season) one of my favourite dishes. Its tea is also great for lessening cough and alleviate sore throat. It has beautiful flowers.

        

All flowers and leaves described above need to be infused using hot water while rosehips would lose their vitamins and valuable substances if we poured hot water over the berries. They need to be clean, and cut in halves. I normally pour cold tap water over the berries and let it stand for hours. The outcome is a reddish-browish coloured water that I normally dring with honey and some lemon juice. Rosehips are highly concentrated with vitamin C. They have much more than citruses. If only picking the berries was easier!

I can hardly wait to get better, and to have spring again when I can go back and work more on the herb garden "boxes" we have had for many years in Kishegy. More boxes to build, more plants to try...

"30 years of work and joy - Kishegy (SmallHill) - 1983-2013

Remembering spring

2013 = THIRTY YEARS OF JOY

KISHEGY HAS BEEN WITH US SINCE 1983

There is always something calm and peaceful about a winter garden, full of snow...

I realized I did not write much during these past few weeks. The reason is that we have not been back to the garden much. Mom says that right now, there is half a meter of snow in the garden. This means that the one right now is probably one of the thickest snow blankets the garden has ever had. Calm and peaceful it is - there is nothing one can do about it, and that is the way it should be. Nature took over, asking for a little time. 

Mom also says that we have many birds who come to feed on the seeds they put out for them in the feeders.

Two days ago even a cardinal appeared (my favourite). We have never had them in the garden. (I hope that this is a good sign - less disturbance, less pesticides? I hope so.)

I can only imagine how the cardinal's bright red color shows against the crystalline white of the snow...

People often think it is boring to be in a garden during wintertime. Nothing is farther from the truth. It is far from boring: it is a time for being inside, resting, contemplating and ... working. Re-arrange drawers, look at book collections, invite friends from Kishegy to watch a film together and have dinner, play cards with family members, create a new tablecloth one always wanted to do, but during gardening time there was just never enough time. Let the cats inside to feel their furry coat for a while, look into their eyes trying to figure them out... especially "my friend, Dzsidzsó" (Jinx), our very first one.

And under the heavy blanket of snow, somehow, there is life. It is just there, waiting. I hope the yellow tulips are getting their strength together for the time when Easter comes (very early this year) we will enjoy their brilliant yellow after entering the gate. I can only hope that as the experienced vegetable gardeners at Kishegy told me, the 63 lettuce plants that are now resting peacefully under the snow will somehow make it in the spring and do not freeze to death. 

I never succeeded with lettuce so far. I told this to the neighbor ladies, they looked at me and just laughed (they normally give THEIR lettuces in the spring as presents, probably feeling sorry for the us, city folk (we have had the garden for 30 years.) They nevertheless look very appreciative when we do succeed in having some vegetables - last year it was green beans, the year before tomatoes. I also just had a funny feeling that they gave me the plants not only because they are nice people, but also because they wanted to see whether I make it through the back-breaking job of planting all 63 of them... I did! (It almost did break my back. And thinking that the ladies are minimum 25-30 years older than me... and they have minimum a hundred or more lettuce plants planted in their garden, for sure).

Any gardener's nightmare is another plant, the dandelion. Nevertheless, kids love them as they first turn bright yellow then into white mini clouds they can blow away, transforming them into tiny parachutists. I am just wondering how many we will have this year. Last year, no matter how hard we cut the grass and the dandelions' heads off (sorry, plant protecters, but grass is important, too) we had extensive fields of bright yellow in the spring. 

They look absolutely stunning and then not-so-amazing once they start to turn into white puffs. But that is a different story. Right now, while remembering the snowy landscape of Kishegy, the dandelions seem almost unreal....

Older countrymen say that there is a time for everything. And this is really comforting to know, waiting for spring in Budapest's winter.

Budapest, thinking about Kishegy (SmallHill)

Wintry scene

Amazing picture from Csaba Lóki, this photo was selected as one of the best at the Hungarian Nature Photographers’ Annual Prize competition. A thrush is munching on rosehips. I wish I could take a picture like this! Somehow I have a wonderful feel of winter, of cold (which I otherwise do not like much) and the coming holidays…

Rosehips are an amazing source of vitamin C. In Hungary, entire regions have wild rosebushes where people pick rosehips that are later dried and chopped and available in drugstores and pharmacies. Pour cold water over them and let them soak for a while and your "ice tea" is ready. Making a marmalade is another way of using them although it is a very tedious and long process (you have to remove the seeds from the tiny "fruit") and I heard that pálinka is made of rosehips as well.

We also have some  wild rose bushes in the garden, they are beautiful when flowers come some time early summer, but they are at their splendor at this time of the year, until, of course, birds feed on them during harsh winter days. I would not be able to take a picture like this, but a similar scene is possible in the garden.

We have started feeding the birds already as we had some really cold days in December.

Now the waiting is on, and after spending the prep days in Budapest, I cannot wait to see the Abbey from the far field of the garden. Hope some snow will come along...

SmallHill (Kishegy), Hungary

On the hill again

Dashing through the snow.... use no. 55555 of the hill....
No need to go elsewhere for winter fun!

What a nice morning it was.....

Winterland

Today, most part of Hungary is under heavy snow. 
This made me remember one particular winter (two years ago?) when the garden received an incredible blanket of snow, and we were there, enjoying the view and did some sledging as well.

I hope we will have a chance this year, and that winter wonders will not keep from us.
The garden is like a different world here, not the same we are used to so much...

SmallHill (Kishegy), Hungary

Getting ready for the Christmas Bazaar.

All natural, all home-grown, all hand-made

COME AND ENJOY NATURE'S GREAT GIFTS!

PLEASE VISIT OUR STAND (SMALLHILL PRODUCTS) 

ON DEC 7TH 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

in MPR

Great gift ideas for children and adults

This year it'll be a lavender-walnut year as we have prepared like products and home-made delicacies for the Xmas fair at the school.

Our products without making a complete list:

Giant Santa honeycakes
Lavender sachets
Walnut brittle
Sweet and salty chili walnuts
Walnuts in acacia honey
Traditional Hungarian honeycakes
Walnut-lavender muffins
Lavender essence for your home and health


and, of course, our Xmas Angels:


 

COME AND ENJOY NATURE'S GREAT GIFTS!

PLEASE VISIT OUR STAND (SMALLHILL PRODUCTS) 

ON DEC 7TH 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

in MPR

SmallHill (Kishegy), Hungary

Silent Joy

Waiting has started. We just had the first Advent Sunday of 2012.

This year I finally made it. I could, among the many hours of preparation for the upcoming Xmas Bazaar and all the things we had to do to get ready for it, I said to myself 'the day will not go by without making a few rounds in the garden.' I have not been outside for long when I decided to take a look to see some trees. Earlier, my father told us that this year will be a special one. 

We've had this garden for so many years, but I still remember when we spent weeks thinking about where to plant pine trees we wanted to have in the garden. Some were well placed, some did not have such good luck, but one thing is certain. After all these years, last year was the first that two of the silver pine trees (ezüstfenyő) grew so tall and big that they were actually blocking the view from my parents' room. 

So, one tree was cut and 'shipped' (it did not have a long journey though as it basically took about 10 minutes to get to the village church). It was our Christmas present for the village, which was the best place for our tree. It had spent the last 30 years with us, and the village it was still near.

 The other Christmas tree charmed us through last year's holiday season, and it stood beautifully through all warm days inside the house.

As I said, this year yet again, will be special. We have two more Xmas trees coming, and this time we can have one as well. We are thrilled, this never happened before. They will stand in the garden as long as it is possible. Ours is a very tall, 'skinny' tree, just about perfect (I do not care much for symmetry). I do not think that it is going to be a tradition to have our Xmas trees cut from our garden though. We just do not have the heart to cut down the really huge trees. And spring coming, of course, we will plant new ones again for my daughter and hopefully her kids. Perhaps I still will be able to see them enjoy a tree from the garden. Hopefully or as Spanish speakers say it so humbly and beautifully, fitting this holiday season: "Si Dios quiere"...

SmallHill (Kishegy), Hungary