Herb companion planting

Everyone always talks about companion planting of this and that vegetable or edible flowers but what about the under discussed herbs.  Without that tarragon, garlic sage or basil were would the flavors that make food savory, spicy and delicious be?

Partnering herbs with those vegetables that always steal the limelight will provide that the highest honor of supporting herb bestowed upon it.  Here is our list of herb companion plantings of some of the most common and some of the less common.

Let us know if there is others that can be added!

Basil
In the garden: Plant with tomatoes. Repels flies and mosquitoes.

Rosemary
In the garden: Plant near cabbage, beans, carrots, and sage. Deters cabbage moth, bean beetles, and carrot fly.

Parsley
In the garden: Plant near asparagus, corn, and tomatoes.

Oregano
In the garden: Good companion to all vegetables.




Mint
In the garden: Plant near cabbage and tomatoes. Deters white cabbage moth.

Marjoram
In the garden: Good companion to all vegetables.

Dill
In the garden: Plant with cabbages. Keep away from carrots.

Chives
In the garden: Plant with carrots.

Tarragon
In the garden: Good companion to most vegetables.

Thyme
In the garden: Plant near cabbage. Deters cabbage worm.

Sage

Sage
In the garden: Plant near rosemary, cabbage, and carrots; away from cucumbers. Deters cabbage moth and carrot fly.

Borage

Borage
In the garden: Plant with tomatoes, squash, and strawberries. Deters tomato worm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lovage
In the garden: Plant here and there to improve the health and flavor of other plants.

Anise
In the garden: Plant with coriander, which promotes its germination and growth.

Caraway
In the garden: Plant here and there. Loosens soil.

Chervil
In the garden: Plant with radishes.

Fennel
In the garden: Plant away from other herbs and vegetables.

Garlic
In the garden: Plant near roses and raspberries. Deters Japanese beetle.

Summer Savory
In the garden: Plant with beans and onions to improve growth and flavor.

As promised Braggot Recipes -

There have been reports of 2500 year old recipes of braggot found in celtic graves and village sites.  after a bit of digging what was found was spent grains that tested to have been malted, with other traces of honey, lavender chamomile and even goats milk.  Braggot?  No one really knows but there are several traditional recipes that are several hundred years old and below we have included some variations of those for your drinking enjoyment.

BRONZE AGE BRAGGOT BEER RECIPE From Radical Brewing

Specifications
Batch Size: 5 gallons
OG: 1.100
ABV: 12-13.5%
IBUs: none

Ingredients (Braggot Recipe All-Grain)
8 lbs. wheat malt
8 lbs. cranberry honey
1 lb. two-row malt
0.1 oz. bog myrtle
1 wintergreen Lifesaver and a few drops of liquid smoke (or a few ounces of smoked malt)
1 packet wine yeast (such as Lalvin D-47)

Ingredients (Braggot Extract Recipe) 
6 lbs. Wheat LME
8 lbs. cranberry honey
0.1 oz. bog myrtle
1 wintergreen Lifesaver and a few drops of liquid smoke (or a few ounces of smoked malt)
6 lbs. cranberries, frozen then thawed (or 1/2 gallon of pure cranberry juice)
1 packet wine yeast (such as Lalvin D-47)

Directions: For all-grain, mash the grains with 1.5 qts. of water and hold at 150°-154°F. for 60 minutes. Sparge to collect 3-4 gallons of wort and bring to a boil. (For extract, mix LME with 3 gallons water and bring to a boil.) Add the bog myrtle and boil for 60 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the Lifesaver and liquid smoke (if not using smoked malt). Mix in the honey. If needed, top off with enough clean water to make five gallons.

Cool to about 60°F., aerate, and pitch yeast. Towards the end of primary fermentation, transfer to a sanitized secondary fermenter containing the cranberries or cranberry juice. Allow to ferment for an additional 2-4 weeks, then transfer to a third fermenter and allow to clear. Traditionally, this type of braggot beer would be still, but you may carbonate if you wish.

A final word of advice: Whenever doing heavy homebrew experimentation, it’s a good idea to start with a small batch, as little as one gallon. Honey can be expensive, so it’s worth giving your braggot a few tries to get the braggot beer recipe right. You may wish to cut the above recipe in half the first time around

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English Braggot

This recipe is featured in Radical Brewing: Recipes, Tales & World-Altering Meditations in a Glass by Randy Mosher.

INGREDIENTS
For 5 gallons (19 l)
12 lb (5.4 kg) Amber/Biscuit malt
6 lb (2.7 kg) Pale malt
2 lb (0.9 kg) Honey
0.8 oz (23 g) Cinnamon
0.8 oz (23 g) Black or Long Pepper
0.8 oz (23 g) Chopped candied ginger
0.2 oz (6 g) Galingale
0.2 oz (6 g) Cloves
0.5 oz (14 g) Low-alpha English hop (optional)
Alcohol-tolerant English ale yeast
SPECIFICATIONS
Original Gravity: 1.104
ABV: 10.5-11.5%
DIRECTIONS
Mash grains for 60 minutes at 153-155* F. Collect wort and bring to boil. If using hops, add them to the boil kettle at the start of the 60 minute boil. Rack to primary and pitch your favorite alcohol-tolerant English ale yeast.

Add honey and spices to secondary fermenter. Mature for 8 to 12 months. This braggot can be served still or with a lower level of carbonation.

Ancient beverage that deserves the homestead attention

Braggot -Photo by Andrew Sturgis

Within the mantra of TUFI there is that deep seated desire to make all that we want, and enjoy all of
what we have and share with all that partake. In there is the tradition of producing your own tonics, wines, beers and other creative libations and teas. We often look at modern methods and try to coin a simpler method so that we can do it in our own homes, but where we fail is looking back at traditions.

When we need to consider traditional drinks we need to look at braggots, (braggets, bragot, bragaut, bracket and bragawd). A beverage that is estimated to be over 9000 years old and brings together mead and ale, along with other spices depending on the region.

Braggot is considered a medieval Europe beverage though historical notes have found a similar beverage in northern Africa and the Mediterranean areas of Spain, often featuring spices of the region in the mead wine, such as anise, cinnamon and allspice, all of which are still very common when making mead.  It is suspected that braggot is a Celtic or Norse concoction and traveled with the vikings as they ventured across Europe into Italy and Turkey, bringing with them their ale and mead.  Even Chaucer wrote of braggot in The Canterbury Tales.

Homebrewers association shares how to brew braggot

Braggot is a form of mead made with both honey and barley malt. It typically uses 1/3 or more malt and may have as much as 50% malt. It is a distinct flavor and is relatively easy to make though the addition of conflicting spices can throw it into a less than desirable beverage.

Various options are possible depending on the balance of malt and honey used, but in strict terms there should be more honey than malt to distinguish braggot from a honey beer. See honey. Braggots may be made by combining separately fermented beer and mead, or the combination may be made at the outset of brewing, with the honey added to the kettle. In addition hops and spices may be included to give the drink various flavor characteristics. Ideally hop character and bitterness should balance any residual sweetness of the honey. The source of honey also contributes to the specific character, which varies with different types of flowers frequented by the bees, and also during the year according to the seasonal nectar they gather.

Historically specific versions of braggot were also distinguished by the range of hops, herbs, and spices added, with some of these being selected by the customer in the bar. Today this is only possible if the braggot is brewed at home. Commercial braggot is now rarely seen in bars, although versions are available from adventurous craft brewers, most of them in the United States.

Like mead itself, braggot requires almost a year before it is ready to drink and typically only gets

Extract honey-ale from Home brewers talk

better with age.  Over the next few weeks we will be gathering various old age recipes for making braggot at home, and if all goes well we will brew some and include some spices from home.

In the theme of self-sufficiency we are also going to expand our overall topics to include homestead building (as we embark on building our cabin), home brewing and distillation for tonics and essential oils, more livestock topics and of course our growing, farming and canning topics.

So keep an eye on the Facebook and on the blog and as usual please share any topics of interest to you and your family on the homestead, urban or in the forest!