hist-brewing: Re: growing marsh rosemary

[Paloma Hill]

Steve - you seem very knowledgeable about this - and willing to do the
work to make a go.  Two questions: 
1) what climates/zones do you believe marsh rosemary requires?
2) have you (or anyone else) brewed with labrador tea &/or marsh rosemary
(decumbens)?  If so, what differences do you see?

opps - that's 3 questions!
Paloma
> 
> Today's Topics:
> 
>    1. Marsh rosemary plants (Steven Thomas)
> 
> --__--__--
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Sun, 13 Jul 2003 11:02:50 -0400
> To: hist-brewing at pbm.com
> From: Steven Thomas <fabricus at hvi.net>
> Subject: hist-brewing: Marsh rosemary plants
> 
> 
> Howdy--
>     The Marsh rosemary plants from Siskiyou arrive as miniature shrubs, 
> about 4 inches high, spreading about 8 inches.
>     I'm not surprised that the seeds collected from the wild didn't do 
> well.  It is little appreciated how much selection is involved in getting 
> seeds to come up reliably under cultivation.  Plants in the wild can be 
> very patient waiting for the optimal time to sprout, sometimes for 
> years.  A plant like marsh rosemary that does well spreading vegetatively 
> can afford to be quite patient.
>     For matching the desired growing conditions, I have made an
>     artificial 
> bog.  A steel tank buried flush with the yard, strrofoam flotation 
> supporting a peatmoss island, some goldfish to eat the mosquito larvae;
> the 
> marsh rosemary on the high points of the island, the bog myrtle with its 
> roots trailing in the water.  In the wild, bog myrtle is easiest
> collected 
> from a boat, as it grows right at the wet edge of the bog; marsh rosemary 
> (at least the labrador tea version) can be collected dryshod, as it grows 
> at the dryer rim of the bog against the woods.
>              --Steve Thomas
> 
> 
> >I had been looking for Marsh Rosemary as well - and eventually found seeds
> >on the Internet from Siberia - but alas, they did not germinate.  I looked
> >for Steve's source and found it with this link:
> >http://www.srpn.net/cgi-bin/srpncat/50335.html?id=mBjutSso
> >I wondered if it comes as a small scrub - or seeds?  Sounds like a little
> >scrub.
> >Paloma
> > > ----
> > >
> > >    In fulfillment of a quest of years, I have finally gotten some marsh
> > > rosemary plants, from Siskiyou Rare Plant Nursery.  It is listed under the
> > > old botanical name, Ledum palustre ssp. decumbens.  I don't know for sure,
> > > but I suspect the plants are descended from seeds brought back from
> > > northern China by a collecting expedition.  The plants are the true
> > > decumbent (sprawling) tundra form, as opposed ot the shrubby Labrador tea
> > > form.  The leaf margins are revolute (rolled under) though not so
> > > pronounced as in the european form that earns the 'rosemary' name.  They
> > > are apparently being sold as rock garden plants.
> > >
> > >             --Steve Thomas
> 
> 
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  Paloma Hill
  peeweenation at myfastmail.com