Useful non-food plants

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Okay guys,

I know a lot of us like to garden, but most of what I've seen here is food.

Does anyone grow plants for other uses (ie medicinal, nutritional)? Id like to get an apothecary garden of sorts going, as well as be able to make sure that our food is nutritionally complete.


So, I guess what I'm looking for is what you grow, what it takes to grow it in New England, and what need it serves.
 
There are quite a few plants that are good for medicinal/nutritional tea, most grow wild and are more thought of as weeds than as garden options. And many such plants (e.g. chamomile) have no scientific evidence of any health benefits. I could pretend I'm growing dandelions intentionally, but wouldn't even fool myself.

I mostly grow herbs rather than vegetables, saves the effort fight off pests and then harvest veggies at the optimal ripeness.
 
Roses for the hips (Vit C) is probably something to consider, though on land there are a lot of vitamin C sources.
Lavender grows well, smells good, useful for flavoring or tea, and helps support honey bee populations.
Foxglove is a classic New England medicinal but I'd not recommend trying to use it medicinally without a lab and a degree in Chemistry. [smile]
 
How about dual purpose?

I grow mint to use for upset stomach. I only use a fraction of what I grow, but the neighbors love it. I originally got it going because my daughter was getting some stomach aches every so often before bed that the doctor assured us were "nothing to worry about" and it seemed to help her.

Peppermint in particular is useful for menstrual cramps, headache, etc and is easily made into an oil that's simple to store and transport.

As for what it takes to grow in New England? Dirt. Water, sun, and food are optional - this stuff is nearly impossible to kill and is actually to be planted with caution, because it will compete with other plants and propagate by runner.
 
Hops. Can't have a nutritionally complete beverage without hops. A potted aloe plant is excellent for burns and insect bites, but you'll have to take it inside in the winter.
 
We grow a number of medicinal herbs. Comfrey, enchinecea, chamomile, feverfew and a bunch of others. Rosa rugosa for the rose hips and eventually a barrier. Beyond that I try to find wild plants and improve their conditions. Things like locust for fence posts, hickory for nuts and tool handles, sweet fern for poison ivy, elderberry etc. My biggest failure has been trying to establish ginseng and goldenseal. I try to use perennials as much as possible to make it easy.
 
Citronella Geranium, Mosquito Plant
citronella.jpg


Just break off a leaf fresh leaf and crush it on your cloths, it keeps the mosquito's away. and its easy to grow
 
this is the first thing I saw of when I saw this thread...

Paper, Rope (though it needs to be tared), Clothing if made into a fiber. Easy to grow, doesnt need much in terms of maintenance produces alot of material per acre. can grow two variety's one with the high thc content and the other with low thc content (Hemp). Just google hemp and look at the wiki page.
 
Cannabis......if only is wasn't illegal

Its valued for other things than just getting high.

i don't grow that stuff, but i think my ex has 12 pounds worth growing in her basement, someone should check that out.....


i plant marigolds in my garden, supposedly keeps bugs away from the other plants....
 
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