"Lavender didn't do much for me though...maybe my mosquitoes have fancy tastes or something, lol."
Interesting, lavender actually worked quite well around our porch—though it took a couple seasons to really establish. Mint, however, became invasive quickly; I'd recommend planting it in containers to keep it manageable.
Lavender was a total bust for me too, but mint...man, that stuff took over my entire herb garden in no time. Maybe mosquitoes just have regional preferences or something? Glad it's working out for you though—your porch sounds lovely!
"mint...man, that stuff took over my entire herb garden in no time."
Haha, mint is basically the garden equivalent of glitter—once it's there, good luck getting rid of it. I made the rookie mistake of planting mint directly into my raised bed last summer. Step one: admire cute little mint plant. Step two: blink twice. Step three: realize mint has declared war on every other herb and is now colonizing half your yard. Lesson learned: always keep mint contained in pots or separate planters.
Lavender was a bust for me too, sadly. I tried everything—different soil mixes, sunny spots, even whispered sweet nothings to it—but nope, still ended up with sad little twigs. Maybe mosquitoes around here just laugh at lavender? Anyway, glad your porch turned out cozy; I'm still working on mine...slowly but surely getting there.
Mint definitely has a mind of its own... learned that lesson the hard way myself. But don't give up on lavender yet—mine looked pathetic at first, then randomly perked up after ignoring it for a bit. Gardening is weird like that sometimes.
Totally agree about mint—mine took over half my herb bed before I realized what was happening. Had to transplant it into a pot to keep it contained. A few things I've noticed from my own trial-and-error gardening:
- Lavender really does seem to thrive on neglect. Mine looked sad and droopy until I stopped fussing over it. Now it's doing great.
- Rosemary is another one that's surprisingly hardy. I thought I'd killed mine after a harsh winter, but it bounced back stronger than ever.
- If you're looking for something easy and cozy-looking, thyme is fantastic. It spreads nicely without going wild like mint, and it smells amazing when you brush past it.
Gardening definitely has its quirks... sometimes the less you do, the better things turn out.
