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How to prune your herbs for the best results

Pruning is good for your plants. For most plants, you want to prune early, and prune often. By pruning early, this means when your plants are still in their infant stages.

Not only will you be able to ensure optimal growth, good plant health and but also make a fuller, nicer shape when you prune often.

You can use your fingers and pinch off leaves and stems for most plants, and scissors for others. Fingers should be used for delicate plants, and make sure to pinch tightly and cleanly, right through the stem of the leaf. Heavy-duty garden clippers are generally not needed for herbs.

The most important thing is to not tear or rip off stems of plants, as it may lead to some terrible diseases.

Leafier plants like basil can die quickly after blossoming, so pruning is particularly important for such plants. When pruning these types of plants, cut them right where the leaf meets the stem.

Woodier herbs, like rosemary and thyme, should be trimmed so that they don’t become too woody (as they generally do with age), as no new leaves will grow. As soon as you start to see new growth, pinch some of the leaves back.

but the best thing to do is to prune the leaves at the top, not the bottom. The big leaves on the bottom act as a sturdy base.

If you prune properly, your plant will grow into an abundant, bushy plant. One useful technique called “tipping” helps you achieve that.

Remove the end 1-2 inches of your plant’s stem. That exposed end will split and grow into two separate branches. Once you get into the habit of doing that, your plant will become bushier, creating more foliage.

{ by Urban Cultivator }

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'Goddess of the Crossroads (Hekate/Hecate)' by Daria Klushina.

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Prayer to Hekate

I call to you, kind Hecate, watchful daughter of far-seeing Asteria,

Torch-bearing goddess, night-wanderer, pale and fair as the moonflower.

Hekate of the three ways, goddess of the crossroads, keen-eyed one, you see clearly what others overlook.

Hekate of the three realms, goddess who holds a stake in all the worlds, all within are yours to stir.

Gentle of touch and firm of hand, Hekate, leader of the ghostly train, the barking of dogs marks your passage, the shining of stars lights your path.

Hekate who is the companion of those who walk the bounds of light and dark, I praise and honour you.

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My new statue for Hekate

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Priestess of Hekate by jo freyr on Deviantart

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Hekate Statue

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Amber applique of Dionysus. Roman Period

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Statuette of juniper wood from Ptolemaic Egypt, representing the triplicate goddess Hecate. Now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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Hekate Dadouchos Torchbearer

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Adeia: Modern Festival to Demeter

On a global scale, we’re dealing with a climate crisis that is putting food sources at risk. On a more local level, conflicts and abnormal weather are creating risks of bad harvests, resources shortages and/or inflations. We are aware that not everyone is impacted directly by the current ongoing issues, but we hope that this festival (or at least the idea) can be useful beyond these and be seen through a wider scope of praying for food security at large.  We named the festival Adeia, from the ancient Greek ἄδεια, which conveniently can signify both “abundance”/”plenty” and “freedom from fear”/”security”. All things the festival aims for. - @thegrapeandthefig’s original post

The gods I am propitiating for my Adeia are Demeter Soteira (saviour), Herakles Alexikakos (averter of evil), Zeus Hyetios (moist/fertilising rain), Hermes Nomios (protector of pastures and shepherds), Olea (nymph of my garden), and Djarlgarra (local river god).

My menu includes:

Dolmas on a bed of oats

Honey and oranges with dried figs

Pork loin and roast veg

Blueberry crumble

Milo and oat milk

We call upon you in our time of need Benevolent gods, givers of good

Crises threaten world-over and hardships befall many, and now again we raise our voices in plea

If these smoky offerings please you, and these sweet drinks warm you, look well upon us. Kindly gods, bless our coffers and larders again, and see abundance flow to our house. And should strife visit our doors, grant us the fortitude to endure

May Zeus meter his life-giving rains, so dry or soggy fields remain moist year-through

May Hermes keep a watchful eye on the flocks and farm-hands, that flystrike and heatstroke never hinder them

With outstretched arms I sing praises to you, bold Djarlgarra, he who holds moisture for our sun-stricken land

And to sweet Olea I gift equally sweet fruits, that you may keep my rain barrels at bursting and my garden fertile

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Blessed Adeia! May the gifts and bounty of dear Lady Demeter Soteira and kind Lord Ares Karpodotes keep your larder stocked, bellies full, and land bountiful.

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Adeia - modern festival to Demeter

I made offerings to Demeter Soteira and Herakles Alexikakos, following the original post about Adeia.

I'm already giving offerings to Demeter on a regular basis and have an altar for her but it was my first time with Herakles.

My celebration was pretty simple, but I still wanted to make it special so I cooked dolmas for the first time (and they are delicious!).

I also offered local beer, Greek honey, dried pig meat and tomatoes from my parents garden, as well as the incense I made for her earlier this week.

Then I prayed for a little while and the typical way I do it is pretty informal (hopefully still respectful) amd I put an emphasis on the blessings I already have and prayed for the months to come.

Tomorrow I'll see if the weather is good enough I'll go to the forest, I feel like that would close this festival quite nicely.

Overall I'm really glad I got to celebrate Adeia, it warms my heart to know that other people I have never seen are doing this in various places of the world 💜

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Happy Adeia!

(Missed the post explaining what this new festival is about? Catch up here.)

Before I start talking about my own contribution, I wanted to express how encouraging and uplifting it has been to see so many people posting about the festival, hyping it or even just praising the idea behind it. Thank you so, so much for the support and we (@iliosflower and myself) hope that an initiative like this one not only raises awareness but inspires others.

Sappy discourse aside, I offered some olive bread with a bit of ham, crisps, and a wheel of dry grain that consist of couscous (wheat), barley, oats and rice. I didn't have corn, but I hoped to include as many of the most widespread and important cereals worldwide. Then the feast itself consisted of pepper pork cooked with some beer with veggies and rice. And then I gave some more beer as a libation.

I invoked Demeter Soteira, Herakles Alexikakos (who also happens to be the patron deity of Thasos, so particularly relevant for me), the Horai and Zeus. Zeus was a last minute addition, but considering how the current inflation is, in part, caused by the war in Ukraine, it felt right to invoke him as a bringer of divine justice.

For reference, I've been tagging all the Adeia posts #adeiafestival so feel free to use this tag as well. And whoever is reading this from the future, feel free to browse this tag to see what the others have done.

Until next year, Happy Adeia. I hope that by then things will be... brighter.

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Adeia: Modern Festival to Demeter

The idea of this festival really spoke to me when I came across it, so here’s what I did:

I decided to invoke Demeter, Herakles, Zeus, Hermes, and Poseidon. I also focused my prayer partially on asking for support for those who try to solve these problems.

Due to my own personal circumstances I didn’t have very much available to offer, but I did what I could:

Mixed oats and rice. These are two of the main staples of my extremely limited diet, as well as what I had on hand. I’d have liked to offer bread or something cooked, but I couldn’t find anything I could eat.

Oat milk. Another staple of my diet.

Chai tea. As I’ve mentioned before, I live in one of the most polluted states in the country. My water is currently contaminated with a theoretically harmless but foul tasting algae, which is partially why this felt so timely for me to do. Chai is a way of still incorporating fresh water into my offerings without it feeling wrong for being contaminated, and I like that I could include one element that took a bit of effort from me.

I also decided to focus on my homework on the UN Sustainable Development Goals tonight, instead of my research, because those goals are very closely related to issues of scarcity, food and water access, and managing crises. If you aren’t familiar with them, here’s a link to their homepage.

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A Prayer for Social Justice

Mighty Hekate, Queen of Land, Sky, and Sea,

In all realms where you reign, grant us favor.

Hekate Soteira, Saving Goddess,

Strengthen us as we fight for justice.

Hekate Apotropaia, Averter of Evil,

Ward us against those who would inflict harm.

Hekate Trioditis, Goddess of the Crossroads,

We have traveled far through the yawning dark;

May you bless what remains of this long journey.

I wanted to share the prayer above. I wrote it many years ago. Injustice of every kind is running rampant. The anti-abortion ruling. The Miranda rights ruling. Lack of gun control. Violence against BIPOC. Violence against the LGBTQIA community, especially my trans sibs. The list goes on. I engage in political action for justice AND I pray to my deities. I hope my prayer brings people some comfort & the energy to keep fighting for justice.

Image Source: Wikipedia

Prayer Credit: Mine

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Jessica Allison - Bourne

Hekate