Woo hoo, another first time veggie wintersower...me too! I've had flower beds for several years, am new to wintersowing this season, and am really looking forwards to seeing all of my babies come up. So far of my wintersown plants I only have lettuce coming up here in PA. I have some of the same kinds of seeds as you...radishes, carrots, green beans, tomatoes, and peppers. I'm not wintersowing my carrots because it says on the packet of seeds, "Do not transplant, as crooked roots may result." I got my radish seeds in a trade so don't know what the packet of them would say if I'd have a packet. Ha. I'm kind of guessing that maybe they'd advise against transplanting any root crop like those two, red beets, and such, but that's just a guess. I've wintersown some tomatoes and peppers and have also started some inside. I didn't want to take the chance of not having any to plant come May and wasn't ready to take the plunge until I see that mine will come up outside in the containers. The ones I have inside are just starting to get their first regular set of leaves. If my wintersown plants also come up, I might just have enough to give the whole neighborhood! lol I love lima beans and also wanted to plant them but darn they hurt my fingers to pod them. They are one of my favorite veggies though. I actually don't know if I'll have any room left anyway after I get everything planted that I plan on planting in my new garden. I can't extend it any further because I already have it so that the mower will barely be to get through. :-O

Thanks tempusflits, for the suggested amounts of herbs. Apparently you can use any number of combinations if herbs. This what P Allen Smith had to say about herbes de Provence: "Herbes de Provence is an essential ingredient in my summer kitchen. The flavor is a natural fit with so many of the dishes of the season. Mixed with olive oil, Herbes de Provence is perfect for roasted chicken or potatoes. I love to sprinkle it over homegrown tomatoes with salt, pepper and a little feta cheese. This herb blend originates in Provence, France, down in the southwest near Italy. It is an assortment of herbs that reflect the traditional, native herbs commonly used by cooks from this region. Common herbs are thyme, fennel, sage, summer savory, rosemary, coriander, basil, anise, mint and tarragon. Lavender is sometimes added to the blend, especially here in the U.S. Traditional cooks in the region don't have a "mix". Instead they use the herbs as needed to suit their tastes. Spice wholesalers are responsible for the dried blends commonly found in stores. You can easily prepare Herbes de Provence with the herbs growing in your garden. During the summer months use them fresh as a bouquet garni for soup or stew. The traditional French bouquet garni is a small "bundle" of herbs tied together with cotton string or put into a sachet or tea strainer and added to the recipe. This method makes the removal of the herbs much easier before serving the dish. It is usually comprised of parsley, thyme and a bay leaf but you won't stray from tradition if you just use what you prefer. Herbes de Provence are also delicious chopped and sprinkled over any number of fresh veggies. Be sure to prepare a dried blend at the end of the growing season to use during fall and winter. My Herbes de Provence recipe includes sweet marjoram, thyme, sweet basil, rosemary and lavender. In addition to tasting great, these herbs are some of the easiest to grow." I hope this information is helpful to those who have not used herbes de Provence. jude

The info from NCHFP was very interesting. Rosemary, I'm sorry you felt as if you were being singled out. The responses were not intended as rude, especially from those specific people who replied to that post. They were merely pointing out that altering approved recipes changes the equation, which is also what Dave was referring to when he asked if the NCHFP reply also knew of your decision to double. I'm sure if you called and asked your extension office would tell you the same. Substitutions, additions, or assumptions based on a different recipe have the POSSIBILITY of having dire consequences, not an automatic death sentence. It's all dependent on what level of risk you're willing to assume. I'm sure the recipes are tested to be much safer than the absolute minimum, so as to not cause issues with inadvertent oopsies. People on this forum were right to correct a tip that could mislead other people in the future on something that might be a much bigger safety issue--who knows who might read that thread in two years. They do it to educate and help, not to put people down. Personally, I have learned so much from being a part of this forum and am grateful. Aside from safety issues, another reason to not increase herb/spice quantities is that they change flavor over time in the jar. Many herbs are really best with just a short (or no--basil) cook time, and longer just brings out bitter notes. I just opened a two-week old jar of apple butter that was amazing at canning time, but just that period has changed its flavor, causing the spice to become nearly overpowering.

Once either soil or air temperatures, or both, are around 75 degrees, cilantro starts getting ready to bolt. I used to work really hard to keep it going longer, but got tired of trying to fool Mother Nature (by mulching heavily, growing it in fairly heavy shade, keeping it very well watered, even using shade cloth to keep the ground around it cool). Nowadays I just grow cilantro during the cool season, and grow either Culantro or Papalo (similar flavor to cilantro but they thrive in the heat) in the warm season. It is relatively easy to grow indoors under lights, but I'd just as soon have Culantro or Papalo in the ground outdoors instead of growing it indoors. Rick, Other than the fact that it is a cool-season plant, the only other reason I can think of that might explain why growing it can be challenging for you is that maybe your soil is too acidic, or much too alkaline. Cilantro is happiest in soil with a pH of 6.2 to 6.8 so in soil that is strongly acidic or strongly alkaline, it might not do well. Cilantro reseeds in my compost pile, and none of the wildlife eat it, so I rarely have it in the garden proper any more---I just wait for it to pop up around the compost pile. I do think that dehydrating brings out a bitter quality in it. Sometimes I leave it out of the salsa when I make it and can it, and then I just chop up fresh cilantro and add it to a jar after we open that jar. I think it tastes better than way, so probably the heat of the canning process also impacts the flavor.