Tropical Black Sage - In my Creative Garden

Welcome to the garden! I am wearing my creative gardener hat today and we are going to look at my Tropical Black Sage - also known as Varronia curassavica. Its journey developed from a simple plant cutting to a full-grown tree.  I have it growing within a tyre in the garden and whilst I wasn't going to let it grow into a tree by regular pruning - I am glad I did as it has got a really lovely shape to it. 

As the tropical black sage was growing, it encountered various pests that I have had to deal with. One such pest was a small moth with a lilac color that liked to feed on the tip of the shoots and lay its eggs on the undersides of the leaves. At first, I thought they were cute, but soon I realized they were a real problem and have drifted on to other plants.  Over time I tried different natural solutions, such as spraying soapy water and oil, and even made my own neem oil, and the ladybirds also help when they can.    

In addition to dealing with the pests, I have allowed the tropical black sage to grow in different areas of my garden and it seems to love it, I keep them trimmed regularly to reduce their size. The birds are the ones that have dropped the seeds in different areas and depending on where they are growing some of the leaves have been really large in size.  I use the leaves in tea and for cooking and also create smudging sticks.

Check out the video of the Tropical Black Sage Plant above

Another interesting aspect of the tropical black sage is the wood. It's a fairly strong and semi-hardwood that I'm still experimenting with in terms of creative use. I will keep you updated on what I come up with.  

Also check out some of these gardening resources:

The Backyard Homestead 

Medicinal Garden Kit 

Garden Freedom Micro Course

Agrofest - Yearly Agricultural Event in Barbados

Agrofest is an annual agricultural event held in Barbados

Join me in the video below and check out some of the other videos available if you would like to start 'Growing Your Own on a Budget.

I only got a snippet of Agrofest as my main focus was getting some plants which I did.  Namely - Breadnut, Pommerac, Red Ginger Lilly and Sea Grapes.  All apart the breadnut is doing well - (those pesky slugs)

Recycling initiative taking place

Lots of different animals and plants on display and it is definitely well worth visiting over the 3 days of events.

Come and check out some of the other videos that I have available HERE

Happy New Year - New 31 Days challenges!

 Happy New Year 

to You and your family!!!. 

I hope that your dreams and desires for this year are realized.  As you break all the tasks down and take small steps every day before you know it you will have achieved what ever it is you are striving for.

This month I will be working on a new YouTube channel called - The Creative Gardener, which looks at all the plants that I love growing in my garden and the tropical environment (which means that everything grows so much bigger).  

I want to share my journey of starting from scratch in the garden to developing a tropical paradise, and I am also keen to learn about the medicinal and nutritional properties of plants.  The artist in me has to come out as well and I will and will also be sharing a few outdoor creative projects.

The other thing I will be doing for this month is sharing with you my 31 Art Studio Essentials for creativity.  

It can be hard to find time for some creative play and over the next 31 days I will be sharing with you some of the ways in which I manage to find time, and they are very easy things that you can incorporate into your day as well.

Look forward to seeing you on this journey.  I will be sharing the first posts later on today!

Blessings await for 2018!!