| Author |
A Farm of My Own:  comfrey?  |
|
|
paulas party flowers
True Blue Farmgirl
191 Posts
paula
golden valley
az
USA
191 Posts |
 Posted - Apr 30 2011 : 12:59:14 PM
|
does anyone grow it..is it easy to grow....i would like to..i have alot of herbal recipes I would like to use for. Thanks...paula
the best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.they must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller |
|
|
Tall Holly
True Blue Farmgirl
2305 Posts
Holly
Worcester
Vermont
USA
2305 Posts |
Posted - Apr 30 2011 : 1:48:30 PM
|
I have grown comfrey and it continues to grow and grow and grow. It is easy to grow. Make sure you put it somewhere that it can grow forever. It will move itself along and you will find it somewhere you did not remember transplanting it too. The only way I have found to get rid of it is to let the pigs root where it is growing. but, seriously, put something around it so that the root systems will not spread where you do not want it to go.
Holly
|
 |
|
|
paulas party flowers
True Blue Farmgirl
191 Posts
paula
golden valley
az
USA
191 Posts |
Posted - Apr 30 2011 : 3:04:13 PM
|
thanks holly, I see ur in vermont...its probley cooler and rains more there than it does here in arizona..would it tolerate the heat and wind. Does it die off and come back from root or is it seed? So it's kinda like mint?...goes every where.. Can chickens eat it.
thanks so much...paula
the best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.they must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller |
|
|
|
MaggieMB
True Blue Farmgirl
217 Posts
Mary
western
Pa
217 Posts |
Posted - May 01 2011 : 1:55:23 PM
|
| I live in PA and my comfrey dies down and comes back. It can get pretty big and bushy at times, in an attractive way. My only problem is that I've found it impossible to get rid of- too bad I don't have any pigs, lol! When I tried to dig up and relocate some, I just ended up with two plants! Now, I have a couple of volunteers, too. MaggieMB |
|
|
|
Tall Holly
True Blue Farmgirl
2305 Posts
Holly
Worcester
Vermont
USA
2305 Posts |
Posted - May 01 2011 : 5:10:23 PM
|
I would guess chickens can eat it. Cows certainly do and our chickens free range so they probably will not die if they do eat it. Ours do not peck the plants to death by any means. I have read of people planting it in a field and growing it for forage for the cows. I do not know about long periods of heat and wind, we have maybe two weeks int he summer that are in the nineties and it certainly survives that. I think our original two leaved plant was a gift from someone who brought it up from Texas. I have always cut ours before it went to seed. the flowers are pretty.
Holly
|
|
|
|
paulas party flowers
True Blue Farmgirl
191 Posts
paula
golden valley
az
USA
191 Posts |
Posted - May 01 2011 : 7:21:55 PM
|
thanks. i think i will definitely give it a try.
the best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.they must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller |
|
|
|
JojoNH
True Blue Farmgirl
1984 Posts
Joanna
Dunbarton
New Hampshire
USA
1984 Posts |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 03:41:53 AM
|
 Humming birds love there flowers, so that is a plus in my book! I agree with the others, it does spread so choose wisely where you plant it. It also grows tall, so it really looks nice as a back drop to your garden and would look lovely along a fence. As far as feed for the chickens, I am not sure on that one. One thing I know, chickens will not eat something they are not suppose to!
I trim my comfrey twice during the growing season and then it dies back in the fall. Re-emerges in the spring and I live in a very cold area here in the mountains of NH. . . -40 temps in the winter, so I know it's a hardy plant. Mine grows in direct sunlight and it gets watered every other day during the real heat of the summer. Also, mine was started from a single root. . . never tried from seed.
Hope this helps.
Joanna #566
JojoNH
www.countrycents.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/CountryCents
http://CountryCents.Blogspot.com
www.JoannasHomeStudio.com "Keeping traditions alive a stitch at a time"
http://twitter.com/NHJoanna |
|
|
|
BalancingAct
True Blue Farmgirl
297 Posts
Jackie
Hoosierville
USA
297 Posts |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 07:08:06 AM
|
Sounds like a great container plant!
Farmgirl Sister #2851 -"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson |
|
|
|
paulas party flowers
True Blue Farmgirl
191 Posts
paula
golden valley
az
USA
191 Posts |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 12:38:22 PM
|
thanks again, don't think I would mind a good size area. If it would choke out my half acres of weeds I would be beyond thrilled.
the best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.they must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller |
|
|
|
MaggieMB
True Blue Farmgirl
217 Posts
Mary
western
Pa
217 Posts |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 1:20:45 PM
|
| I never thought of comfrey in a container. That's a great idea, Jackie! |
|
|
|
emsmommy5
True Blue Farmgirl
1547 Posts
Angie
Buckley
WA
USA
1547 Posts |
Posted - May 02 2011 : 6:07:10 PM
|
My comfrey escaped it's well planned root containment system! You have to be really zealous about the roots because it takes off! Mine dies back in the winter and is prolific all the other times of the year. If we don't have a very cold winter, it will often last year round. Anyone who wants any.... let me know I am always willing to share!!
It's definitely one of my FAV herbs!!! Plus it's great for compost tea for the garden.
Do what you love, love what you do. |
|
|
|
Columbine
Farmgirl in Training
45 Posts
Pat
Plainwell
Michigan
USA
45 Posts |
Posted - May 15 2011 : 1:09:50 PM
|
Ye I live in Michigan and my comfrey gets huge and bushy. Definitely put it somewhere by itself and it will flourish. I put some in with glycerin in a bottle and let it set for awhile and use it for cuts and scrapes on myself as well as my animals.
Nature thrives on patience; man on impatience.
- Paul Boese
|
|
|
| |
A Farm of My Own: comfrey? |
|
comfrey?
