I am looking for either and it must be the wrong time of the year.
Lavina
Is :emon grann and Lemon Balm the same thing?
I am assuming you meant lemon grass. They are NOT the same thing.
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalisis) a relative of the mint family and can self seed everywhere. It is fairly common (you can get it at Home Depot, usually). It is hardy to zone 4
http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/292/
Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citrates) is harder to find and is only hardy to zone 9.
I was typing in the dark didn't realise my spelling was so bad. Wow thanks for knowing what I meant.
Lavina
I'm a terrible typist so I know what you mean.
I have been to 2 Home Depots and 4 Lowes the last 2 weeks, then last Saturday hit all the small Nurserys, which was a good idea as they were having some great sales. My pocket book got lighter. But no Lemon Grass or Balm. I think the Balm is really what I want as bug repellant.
Lavina
I think lemon balm is what you are looking for but it reseeds EVERYWHERE. I love the plant but it drives me crazy sometimes. Lowes and Home Depot usually sell it when they have their vegetables in, So it may be a little late in the season, but it's pretty common. You may even want to try looking in your grocery store where they sell flowers and plants.
If you want it as a bug repellent, seems to me I've heard good things about the citonella scented geraniums that way... not sure, as I hate citronella LOL (gives me a headache)...
You might even start a new thread asking what herbs people have tried as bug (mosquito?) repellents. I'll bet we'd get some unexpected answers!
LavinaMae ~ if you can't find l.balm, there are other herbs that work as a bug repellent... two that come to mind are pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) which smells delightful and catnip which smells terrible.
I have lemon balm and also have grown lemon grass as an annual. Might not be the right time of year to find plants of either. Lemon balm also makes a pleasant lemon-mint tea and lemon grass is used in Thai food and potpourri.
roybird I read a good article in my new Mother Earth News about making tea with it. And it said its the 2007 Herb of the year..
It had lots of other uses also..I am just learning about herbs but I do have the Spearmint and make tea with it and its good.
Lavina
I have praying mantises as bug repellents...they're fascinating. Their coloration seems to vary, chameleon-like, depending on which plant they're lurking on. Their dinner habits leave room for improvement, though:) I never ordered mantises; they appeared on their own, maybe because I don't use chemical fertilizers or pesticides, here.
I saw 2 babies a few weeks ago wish there were more here. I can't find where the misquitos are comming from.
Lavina
Podster; I think catnip smells wonderfull, both the plain and the lemon scented varieties...I give my cats fair competition for it, I like it in my tea blend, when I get in from work.
*That and a raspberry-white chocolate-scone, and I'm at peace w. the world:)
(* 'cause the tea puts me to sleep!)
LOL Your cats don't take you down for the tea? I have heard it acts as a relaxing sedative. But now the cone sounds more than wonderful!
One is being munched at the moment, accompanied by hibiscus/orange mint/catnip tea:)
And only two of our 5 resident felines favor the catnip, another tends to destroy my lemon grass, instead.