http://www.care2.com/greenliving/crafty-garden-grow-your-own-crafting-supplies.html
Crafty Garden: Grow Your Own Crafting Supplies
By Julie Finn, Green Options
I like my garden to be pretty, sure. But as busy as I am, I also need it to multitask for me.
My recently-planted, multitasking garden has speckled cranberry, kale, and carrots (to eat), sunflowers (to hold up the cranberry and look nice), and lilac (to look pretty and smell nice). It also has many of the natural materials I’d like to craft with in the coming year. Here’s a list of what I’m growing, and some other ideas for what you could put in your own crafty garden:
1. Gourds: We’re growing birdhouse gourds to make birdhouses, rhythm instruments, and bushel basket gourds for making baskets and drums.
2. Herbs for Soapmaking: We’re growing lavender (check out DIY lavender soap balls); spearmint and rosemary would also be nice to use in soaps.
3. Flowers for Scenting: Check out this recipe for rosewater. I’m guessing you could also experiment with this method using violets, lilacs, or any other heavily scented flower.
4. Herbs for Scenting: Any of the soapmaking herbs we’re growing could also be dried and used for their scent in crafting; we’re also growing catnip for stuffing cat toys.
5. Fruit Pits for Carving: Woodworking is a craft I have yet to explore, but my Papa has a fine hobby of carving out tiny little baskets and other figures from peach pits; you could also do this, I imagine, with apricots or avocados, or any other fruit with a good-sized pit.
6. Flowers for Drying: Dried flower arrangements and potpourri can seem a little dated these days, but heck, macrame and hook-and-latch are coming back into style, and everything’s cyclical.
7. Fall Harvest Decorations: I’m thinking decorative gourds, miniature pumpkins, and Indian corn here. Cornhusk dolls would also be pretty awesome, in a retro way.
How do I keep all these plants organized? Check out my vinyl blind plant marker.
What would you grow in your crafty garden?
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6 comments
add your comment »you just gave me some great ideas I'll have to try out. Thanks :)
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teresa r -- i would recommend any of the roses that are from the damascene family of roses. they have a very heady and wonderful smell to them.
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I like to make mosaics out of pumpkin seeds from my Jack o Lantern pumpkins!
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Me again , forgot to add what I use the loofah for ? I make dish rags and bath exfoliates , they are great scrubbers!
I also press the flowers and tendrils for my art . I may try to save some of the skin from it for art too. if you'd like to see what kind of art i am talking about go to www.wwpfg.org
or my blog spot http://flowersbyterica.blogspot.com/
To Teresa R , you can also make tea and jelly from the rose hips!
happy gardening ,terica
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These are great ideas to share , thanks. I have a couple to add.
I am a Pressed Flower artist so I grow lots of things for my craft. along with flowers and herbs of all kinds , I also grow gourds . this year is has been Loofah gourds .
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That reminds me that I was going to look into a good rose bush for our growing zone because I want to grow one to make rose water (and make some recipes using the Better Basics for the Home book). :)
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