Over the summer, the plants in my garden were pretty dry, no matter how much I watered them, but it has rained several times this week and the garden has come back to life. I mostly planted things that are good for your health and also useful in the kitchen.
Right now, there are several hibiscus plants that are still small; I used seeds from last year’s harvest. People use these flowers to make drinks—I like them both hot and cold. They also offer many health benefits: they help control blood pressure, have antioxidant properties, act as a diuretic, and more. You can add lemon or orange to them. I hope to get a good harvest this season.
There are also two basil plants—it’s an aromatic herb that I love for seasoning my beans and sauces; it adds a delicious touch. Right now, I’m using it to make tea; my sister recommended it for my digestive issues, and it helps relieve my stomach discomfort, but it also offers other benefits. I’m waiting for it to grow more because it looks like one of them is purple basil.
I also have mint in my garden; it has a delicious aroma. This plant can be used to make refreshing drinks and hot herbal teas. Personally, I like it cold with lemon juice. It’s also used in cooking and offers health benefits for those of us with stomach problems. It can also be used as a repellent for pesky insects. This is a must-have in any garden.
To be honest, the rain we've had over the last few days has really helped—they've grown a lot this past week. You won't believe it, but I tried growing beets, and miraculously, they've adapted really well and are growing. This is my first time growing beets, and so far it seems to be working. I hope I can harvest them soon.
In my medicinal herb garden, there’s also wild anise. Its leaves are long and narrow, with small yellow flowers. If you rub the leaves, they give off an anise-like scent. Some people use it for cooking, but I’ve never done that—I only use it to make tea. I love its flavor and the aroma it fills the room with while it’s brewing. Some people let the leaves and flowers dry, then burn them once they’re dry, and it’s like incense.
One plant you definitely can't do without is the aloe vera plant—I only have two left, but they have plenty of leaves. You can use them to make face masks, hair masks, foot masks, and more. Aloe vera is one of the hardiest plants; in fact, when my garden got scorched, they were the ones that survived. My brother makes capsules with the gel, freezes them, and takes them like pills—of course, you have to remove the iodine first.
I used to have a lush malojillo plant, but a flu-like virus struck many of my neighbors. Some asked us for cuttings, while others took advantage of the night to steal them to make tea to combat the virus, thanks to the plant’s healing properties. Eventually, it dried up, so I had to transplant what was left so it could grow again; now you can barely see its branches.
In the garden, I also have other plants like sage, pennyroyal, and turmeric—I call it my natural pharmacy.