Questions about Dill, Cumin, and Catnip

[PunkRotten]

Hi,


So I have some Dill, cumin, and Catnip seeds. I have never grown them before. The Cumin I can plant now but the others say to plant in fall. Could anyone give me info about how big they get and how to harvest them, how easy/hard they are to care for etc. I plan to plant only a few in and around my garden. The rest I am gonna plant around my house in various spots and let grow wild. They may not even sprout, but I am just gonna see what happens. I am in southern California, could anyone tell me why I have to wait till fall to plant the others? Is it be cause the sun is too hot in spring/summer? Thx

[PunkRotten]

Hi,

I don't have the seeds in front of me but I remember one said mammoth and the other is dukat I think. I also hear Dill attracts beneficial insects as well? Maybe I am mistaken.

[applestar]

I sowed black cumin seeds a while ago -- maybe one week ago in the same flat as 4 kinds of basils. The Basils have sprouted as expected -- have been up for 3 days now. I think I saw the soil in the cumin row starting to push up so maybe I'll see some sprouting today.

I've never tried sowing catnip seeds -- I have plants outside and new ones spring up in odd places far from the "mother" plant so I suppose they are spreading by seed. I've seen people posting about starting catnip from seed so it seems like a pretty common practice. Cooler season seeds can sometimes sprout better in cooler parts of the house during the summer. Do you have a basement? Also, close to an A/C vent on the floor should be nearly 10° cooler than the thermostat setting.

I have dill sprouting everywhere in the garden right now. I think maybe I was a little too enthusiastic about scattering the fresh harvested seeds last summer.... Yes, dill flowers attract beneficial insects. Syrphid/hover flies, braconid wasps, sweat bees, soldier bugs, aphid mummy makers, etc.

[soil]

im with marlingardener. we just toss our dill seed out where we want dill in the spring. it grows itself, if you leave it, it will self seed like crazy.

same goes for the catnip, it knows when best to start growing.

having trouble with my cumin seeds, they seem to be doing nothing.

[Des_WA]

I haven't yet tried growing dill; however I do have cumin sprouts. I just sprouted them with the rest of my herbs in a starter tray with a heat mat and it came up just fine in about a week or two. I'm not quite sure where to put them now or when I should put them out full time (still in the 30s-40s at night where I live, and mostly in the 50s with clouds/rain during the day).

I'm definitely going to try some dill soon though, I'd love to attract more beneficials to my yard!

[PunkRotten]

I scattered about 20 or so Cumin seeds today and will see what happens. I may try and grow some of these in pots. What size pots are ideal for dill and catnip? So you think I should try planting them now instead of autumn?

[PunkRotten]

Where I am at it's warm. It's in the 70s and 80s now. Summer will be 90s and low 100s. I will give it a shot though and see what happens.

[applestar]

My cumin are up. They are on the heating pad and in an indoor tented shelf (one of those "patio green house" thingies), so I think it likes the heat.

[Green Mantis]

Marlingardener------How do you make Dill Butter??? That sounds Soooo good!!

[treysmom]

I am in central MS. Due to extreme weather this year, my dill did not make. I have cucumbers ready to make dill pickles, but I have no dill heads. I have been unable to find any in any of the stores. Our local Walmart carried it last year, but they don't have any this year. Does anyone know where I might be able to find some? The recipe calls for 2 dill heads for each quart, and I plan to make about 25 quarts so I would need about 50 dill heads. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[digitS']

I don't know if this will be any help but I certainly understand how the timing of the dill and the pickling cukes often, just don't come together! Would using dill seed work for you?

The problem here is that usually the dill comes first and is fairly well spent by the time the cukes show up. The way we can have both at the same time is to cut and dry the dill. Dill is really as suitable dry as fresh for such things, IMO.

Since the flowers tend to mature at different times on the same plant you can have seed scattering about at the same time some of the flowers might even be a little too immature. Long ago, I planted "bouquet dill" to have a more manageable variety. I don't really know if it is or ever was more manageable. We must be on about the 15th generation in the garden these days, LOL!

Dill runs out of its life-cycle fairly quickly in hot weather. Bouquet dill doesn't get very tall but in cool weather, I've seen dill that gets quite a ways beyond 3' in height. Since I'm mostly relying on the volunteers and have to allow some of them to grow each year, it is especially nice that the bouquet dill doesn't start smothering the tomatoes, blocking paths and wrestling me to the ground when I try to squeeze past .

Curious to know how things are working out for the original poster. BTW, catnip can be started in containers and set out fairly easily but I don't know how well it would do during the summer heat. Also, here it isn't a reliable perennial because of winter cold, I suppose. Better to let catnip do-its-own-thing and just self-sow merrily and grow pretty much wherever there can be room allowed for it.

Steve

[PunkRotten]

I planted cumin, thyme, dill, and chives in small pots. I got lots dill and thyme sprouts, and a few cumin sprouts. The chives have not sprouted yet, though I planted them later than the others and that was like a week ago. I still don't know if I am gonna plant catnip, maybe I will. I'll put some in my front yard. And the crazy thing my cat is not attracted to catnip.


I tried to give my cat catnip once, and the cat smelled it then ignored it since. I heard about 1/3 of cats don't respond to catnip.

[rainbowgardener]

I do grow dill in pots. I like having lots of herbs on my deck, right outside the door for ease in going out and snipping some to cook with. Between the smallish pots and the fact that my deck does not get full sun, the dill does not get nearly as big that way, but it still grows and makes dill weed and dill seed.

[PunkRotten]

The Dill I am growing is growing really good so far. The cumin all died. I may try it again when it is cooler.