HERB - Growing Patchouli

[Christine A Seelye-King]

>And I'd also love on tips on growing the patchouli. I've not had much 
>luck in the past - I've killed the previous two. Again, it'll be in a 
>container.
>
>Many thanks in advance,
>
>Katerine Rowley

Well, I notice you have gotten a lot of advice on the bay, but none on
the patchouli.  I will take a stab at this one.  Here is my advice, 
DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TRY TO GROW THIS INSIDE YOUR HOME!!!
	I brought home a plant from Florida, and put it beside my kitchen
window.  It is a pretty and unusual looking plant, and I like patchouli
as an essential oil, so I was excited.  After about a week or so, I
thought my dogs had developed a bladder control problem.  My house
smelled of stale urine so badly that we had to leave the windows open,
use various odor masks, controllers, neutralizers, all with little or no
effect.  When I finally realized that it was because of the plant, I
removed it outside, where it died because of lack of water and winter
coming on.  I could have cared less at that point, as the odor was still
in my house.  I scrubbed the kitchen, the window, the refrigerator next
to where the plant had been sitting, etc.  It would go away, until a
particularily hot and humid day, and then the stench would be back.  A
quick look up in Mrs. Grieve's Herbal detailed how the essential oil was
extracted, and was considered useless until it had aged for quite some
time, a couple of years at least as I recall, before it was deemed
valuable by perfumers.  Mind you, the plant didn't smell like that, it
was only after a certain time had passed and the essence of the plant had
a chance to get into the surfaces around it that it started to stink.  I
have since moved that refrigerator to the basement and replaced it with a
new one, and the odor is almost completely gone, it has to be really
humid (or one of the animals really does have an accident) for the
remnants of the smell to waft around.  (faintly)
	So, I know it likes warm weather, (grew great in Florida), and it
should under no circumstances be considered an indoor plant.  I would
plunk it down in the ground away from structures (sheds, fences, animal
enclosures, etc) and let it go.  Personally, I will buy the essential oil
in very small doses, and count myself lucky.  
	Yours, 	
	Mistress Christianna

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