How to make comfrey compost tea

Here is a video explanation of making Compost Tea from Comfrey plants.  You can put the leaves in a bucket to ferment for up to 2 weeks, then dilute the mixture 1 part fert to 4 parts water (you can guess). I just dip my watering can in and scoop some up then add water to the top of the can. It does get quite funky, and you want to use it quickly so mosquitoes don't hatch in the standing water. If they are unwieldy and you have more than you need for the fertilizer, you can cut the leaves and use them as mulch (just put the leaves on the ground to dry). Be careful not to let them root at the joining stems or you will have extra plants soon enough.
I know the quality of the video is not the best and I need to speak louder; I was using a tripod and since I cut the plant down to talk about it, I couldn't do a re-take!
I hope to make more videos about growing and making products from herbs soon, so subscribe to my channel on youtube if you would like to learn more. Enjoy!

Create Health Right In Your Yard!

If you want me to come give you a quote, call soon, my Spring is starting to fill in! I can offer a free quote, or a 1/2 price consultation if you book before April 1st- get to it Gardening Fool!

I create edible gardens and use herbs to create a living medicine chest in your yard. You decide what you want to eat this year, and I will plan your menus to come from the garden. Kale, chard, spinach, and other greens can live and be harvested from in the winter, and you can be the first on your block with peas for dinner! I once planned a solstice dinner backwards- deciding what we would need for the dinner and counting the days it would take for each vegetable to be harvested.

I can tend the plants for you, weekly-as much as harvesting, washing and putting them in your fridge, or as little as once a month to help with the more difficult gardening tasks. I even have one client who leaves me piles to clean up in the garden- she can weed, but not lift much. Each garden is custom to the location, and the time is variable and controlled by how much time you and your family can spend in your garden.  I will leave you with a garden map of your new plants and how to care for them. I use organic seeds and plant starts, and use heirloom varieties of vegetables almost exclusively.  I can even give you recipes on how to process the herbs into medicines, teas, and refreshing beverages through the year.

I have an herb farm on Vashon Island and own a natural remedies company (sistersageherbs.com). I am a former board member of Seattle Tilth, a non-profit teaching people to grow food sustainably, and WA Tilth Producers, the state farmers association.

Vegetable List to ponder - Yum!

Spring/Summer Planting
Vegetable List
Arugula, Beets, Broccoli, Bush Beans, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Chard, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Kale, Many kinds of Lettuce, Lettuce mix for cut & come again, Leeks, Mustard Greens Mix, Braising Greens Mix, Onions, Peas- Snow,Sugar & Shelling; Peppers- Hot, sweet, red, orange, yellow, green & mini; Pole Beans (and trellis), Potatoes ( red/new, yellow & fingerling), Spinach, Sorrel, Summer Squash- crook neck, pattipan, and raven; Tomatillo, Tomatoes- Paste, Cherries and slicers; Pumpkins-Racer—the perfect jack’o’lantern pumpkin, Rouge Vif d’Etampes— the “Cinderella” pumpkin for our favorite princesses, & Sugar Pie yum! Radishes, Winter Squash- Zeppelin Delicata, Butternut, Acorn, & Spaghetti.
Herb and Edible Flower List (annuals)
Basil- Genovese, Red Rubin, Mammoth, Thai; Borage, Cilantro/Coriander, Dill, Parsley, Calendula, Nasturtium, Sunflower.

And for returning farms - in addition to a cover crop of clover and other soil building plants- collards, Brussels sprouts, garlic, leeks and more.

Announcing: Good Food Gardens

We create a beautiful vegetable garden in your yard, and help you learn to grow nutritious food and herbs while building the soil fertility and conserving our resources.
In our great grandparents time, every household had a kitchen garden that was planted with hearty greens, salad fixings, and herbs. They were usually situated in the backyard, near the kitchen so the cook could quickly step outside to pick fresh food and herbs to liven up the meal. Our aim is to recreate those kitchen gardens and help you eat healthy vibrant food from your own yard, and eventually get you growing on your own.

Join Good Food Gardens and keep it real local- your backyard!

What do you get from Good Food Gardens?

You enjoy fresh, vibrant veggies and herbs weekly.
Your farmer comes to you.
You receive recipes weekly.
You know your food source intimately.
Your household can learn as we go.
You get a cool, back yard retreat.

What Good Food Gardens provides:

We use crop rotation and improve soil nutrition.
We provide the appropriate plants and seeds through the season.
We provide the expertise & hard work.
We tend and harvest the farms weekly.

We do all the work, you enjoy your Good Food!

We have different plans to choose from:

The Full Meal Deal- Installation & Weekly or Monthly Maintenance:
Once a week (or month) we tend your yard, harvest your veggies and healing herbs, and leave them in a basket on your doorstep ready to eat. You and your family are encouraged to harvest from the garden the rest of the week, picking the freshest possible vegetables for every meal. At the end of the season, we will leave your yard in a cover crop to enhance next year's soil.

Help Yourself! Consulting: Maintaining a garden takes skills, time, and organization. Many people have the time and energy to maintain a garden, but don't know when to start and how to plan for the full season. This is the service for you! You do the work, and learn different aspects of farming in your unique ecosystem each month. We will provide the plant starts, or we will help you start them yourselves! Everyone in the household can join in the consultation. Eventually, our goal is to teach you how to plan for and create a system that works in your garden, and for your household.

Who are You Farmers?

Jayne Simmons wants you to grow your own vegetables and make your own home remedies, and generally become more self sufficient. She has been an avid gardener and cook for over 20 years, served on the Board of Directors for Seattle Tilth from 2002 until 2005, and helped to re-create The Longfellow Creek Community Garden in 2008. Jayne lives in West Seattle and owns Sister Sage Herbs, an herb farm and natural remedies company on Vashon Island, and is working towards her own self sufficiency.

Jen Coe envisions a world in which everyone has access to fresh, organic produce. She has worked with farmers in West Africa, volunteered as a WSU Master Gardener, and served on the board of the Vashon Island Growers Association. For five years Jen managed a 16 acre school farm, where she both gardened with children and grew produce for Seattle restaurants. She is currently working hard to establish a vegetable garden for the Vashon Food Bank. Jen lives, farms and raises honey bees on Vashon Island.

To sign up contact Jayne Simmons @ 206-898-2101 - tilthjayne@yahoo.com OR Jennifer Coe @ 206-384-0973- jenntree@gmail.com

* We can even maintain your chicken coop! Daily chicken care will be the responsibility of the home owner, but we will change the bedding and add chips to their yard (extra fee).