15th Annual Herb & Craft Fair April 20, 2024

Details

Gardeners particularly enjoy the yearly bonanza of top-quality plants for spring planting, including perennial and annual herbs, heirloom tomato plants, native plants, and companion plants that provide organic support and protection to a garden.

Experienced gardeners are available in our Plant Sale area to offer information and expertise, making a visit to the Fair a potential learning experience for both beginners and experts.

Food and craft items reflect an interest in the homemade and homegrown. A bounty of fresh homemade sweet and yeast breads, spice mixes, jams, and jellies will be available for purchase. Crafts include knitted and sewn items, homes for birds, art, jewelry, and more made from pressed flowers.

The fair is held rain or shine at 

First Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashville

1808 Woodmont Blvd

Nashville, TN  37215

Admission is free.

Volunteer

Click for the dates, time commitments, and other information about the various volunteer opportunities associated with the Herb & Craft Fair. You don’t have to be a plant expert to help, so do join us!

Our Blog

2024’s Featured products:

2023’s Featured products:

2022’s Featured products:

Botanical Art, Cards, Calendars and more
  • Greeting cards: Mother’s Day, Birthday
  • Handmade original cards with pressed flowers
  • Sets of cards printed with pressed flowers
  • Tennessee Gardening Calendar
  • Handmade original framed art with pressed flowers
  • Bookmarks
  • NEW! Necklaces
  • Nightlights
  • Keychains with lobster clasp (sets of 2)
  • Pressed flower earrings
  • Mandalas
  • Trinket Dishes
  • Pendants
  • Post-It Book (Sets of 3)
  • Suncatchers
Food

Baked Goods

  • Cheddar Dill Yeast Bread
  • Chocolate Ribbon Biscotti
  • Chocolate Zucchini Bread
  • Cinnamon Walnuts
  • Lavender Sugar Cookies
  • Lemon Bread
  • Garlic Beer Bread
  • Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
  • Cinnamon Rolls

Food and Treats

    • UU Fig Jam
    • Blood Orange Marmalade
    • Blueberry Jam
    • Cara Cara Orange Marmalade
    • Concord Grape Jam
    • Cranberry Chutney
    • Habanero Hot Pepper Jelly
    • Hot Pepper Relish
      Matt’s Wild Cherry Tomato Jam
    • Meyer Lemon Marmalade
    • Peach Chutney
    • Peach Jam
    • Peach-Blueberry Jam
    • Peach-Raspberry Jam
    • Pineapple Chutney
    • Red Onion Chutney
    • Raspberry Jam
    • Tangy Barbeque Sauce
    • Apple Chipoltle Barbecue Sauce
    • Spiced Blueberry Jam
    • Strawberry Jam
    • Strawberry-Rhubarb Jam
    • Tomatillo Salsa
    • Blackberry Jam
    • Apple Pear Chutney
    • Ginger Peach Jam
    • Rose Geranium Jelly
    • Navel Orange Marmalade
    • South Carolina BBQ Sauce
    • Red Muscadine Grape Jelly

Spices and Blends

  • Favorite Dill Dip
  • Tomato Lover’s Blend
  • Jamaican Jerk Seasoning
  • Juniper Berries
  • Cinnamon Sticks
  • Za’atar (Middle East Blend)
  • Fennel Seed
  • Oregano
  • Basil
  • Thyme
  • Fresh Pesto

 

Preserved Foods

  • Jams and Jellies –  Apple-Ginger, Blackberry, Blueberry, Spiced Blueberry, Concord Grape, Fig, Habanero, Matt’s Wild Cherry Tomato (savory), Peach-Raspberry, Peach-Blueberry, Red Muscadine, Yellow Muscadine, Strawberry, Strawberry-Rhubarb, Apple Butter
  • Marmalades – Blood Orange, Cara Cara Orange, Seville Orange, Meyer Lemon
  • Chutneys – Cranberry, Peach, Pineapple
  • Barbecue Sauces – Apple-Chipotle, South Carolina and Tangy
  • Dill Pickle Slices, Sweet & Spicy Pickles, Hot Pepper Relish, Tomatillo Salsa
  • Fresh homemade basil pesto
  • Spice mixes – Tomato Lovers’ Blend, Favorite Dill Dip, Za’atar Middle East Blend, Jamaican Jerk
  • Herb and Spice Bargains
Plants for purchase

Plants to Buy

Plants are available for purchase on Saturday, April 23 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., or order online to be sure to get first pick. Online ordering runs from April 9-16. The link to order and pay will be posted here shortly. Pick up for online orders will be on Saturday, April 23, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., or Sunday, April 24, 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. We are offering a variety of herbs and bee- and butterfly-friendly perennials from Nature’s Best Nursery in Nolensville, TN, and tomatoes and peppers from Country Gardens Nursery in Vanleer, TN.  Look over this list and begin planning your garden now!

Tomatoes & Peppers:
PEPPERS:
Anaheim
Golden California Wonder
Cayenne Long Thin
Jalapeno
Sweet Banana
Shishito
Sweetie Pie
Trident Poblano
Thai hot

TOMATOES:
Amish Paste – heirloom
Celebrity
Cherokee Purple – heirloom
Patio
German Johnson– heirloom
Super Sweet Red Cherry
Matt’s Wild Cherry – heirloom
Brandywine Pink
Pineapple

Herbs
BASIL:
Genovese
Lettuce Leaf
Mrs. Burns Lemon
Red Rubin
Siam Queen Thai
Bay Trees

CHIVES:
Common
Cilantro – Pokey Joe
Curry – Dwarf

DILL:
Fernleaf
Fennel-Bronze

GERANIUM:
Attar of Rose
Scented Lemon
Nutmeg

LAVENDER:
English
Hidcote Blue
Provence
Grosso
Lemon Balm
Lemon Grass

MINT:
Kentucky Colonel
Peppermint

OREGANO:
Greek

PARSLEY:
Flat-leafed
Extra Triple Curly

ROSEMARY:
Arp
Boule
Hill Hardy

SAGE:
Berggarten
Purple
Mexican Bush
Pineapple
Russian

TARRAGON:
French
Mexican Mint Marigold

THYME:
Elfin
English
Lemon Varigated
Pink Chintz

Perennials:
Asclepias tuberoas – Butterfly Weed, orange
Asclepias – Butterfly Weed – Cinderella, pink
Coreopsis – Jethro Tull
Eupatoriun – Little Joe Pye Weed
Golden Baby Goldenrod
Gaura – Whirling Butterflies

HEUCHERA:
Purple Petticoats
Lobelia – Cardinal Flower

MONARDA:
Blue Stockings
Raspberry
Nepeta – Nepeta x fessinel
Penstemon – Husker Red

VERONICA:
Sunny Border Blue
Stevia, Sweetleaf

Annuals:
Marigold – Durango Yellow

    Sewn specialty items
    • Snack/Accessory Pouches (Sets of 3)
    • Roll-up Utensil and Snack Pouches (sets of 4,) Multi-color
    • Quilted Potholders
    • Full/Bib Grill Aprons
    • Garden Aprons
    • Half Aprons
    • Kitchen Boas
    Gardening Fun Facts

    ~brought to you by the Herb & Craft Fair committee

    Basil

    Q. What easy to grow garden herb is used to make delicious pesto?

    Basil-Ocimum basilicum-annual

    Uses-culinary [pesto, tomato dishes, chicken, fish]

    Growth-6-18″  high temperature at night to plant outside must be 50*F

    Location-sun to light shade

    Care- when plants are 6″ tall, pinch off growing tips to stimulate branching.

    Remove flowers from plant at all times.

    Pest control-aphids or mites-pinch off affected leaves or spray with an

    insecticidal soap, wash well before use

      Pesto recipe-yield-2 half pints

    1 cup pine nuts

    4 cups fresh basil leaves, firmly packed

    2 cloves garlic, crushed

    1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

    1 cup plus one tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

    Spread pine nuts on baking sheet and toast in an oven at 450*F until lightly browned. Puree toasted pine nuts, basil and garlic in a food processor or blender until smooth. Add Parmesan cheese, processing just to blend. In a steady stream, add 1 cup of olive oil through feed tube of food processor or lid of blender while machine is running. Pour pesto into can or freezer jars, leaving 1/2″ of head space. Drizzle 1T of olive oil over pesto and refrigerate or freeze. Seal and label jar or container.

    Chives

    Q. What is an easy to grow herb that comes in two delicious flavors?
    A. Chives!

    Common Chives– Allium schoenoprasum
    Garlic Chives -Allium tuberosum
    Both plants are perennials. Common Chives is onion flavored and gets from 12″ – 18″ tall. It dies back in the winter. This chive is used to flavor soups and stews. The flower heads are used in salad, omelets, and sauces and on baked potatoes with sour cream.
    Garlic chives have a garlic flavor and dies back in the winter. They are used mainly to flavor sour cream for baked potatoes. The white flower on the garlic chive should be cut off as it turns green and goes to seed. They spread very easily in the garden, growing 14″ – 18″ in a clump. Both chives prefer sunny locations but do tolerate some shade and can be grown in a pot. Both plants can be bothered by thrips. Insecticidal soap is the best treatment.

    Cilantro-Coriander- Coriandrum sativum

    This is an annual plant that has two stages. Cilantro leaves are used in salsa and in Mexican food. Coriander seeds are used in curries in East Indian food. Cilantro is best when the weather is cool and tends to bolt as the weather gets warmer. The coriander seeds can be left to drop to the ground and in early fall will reappear as cilantro. If you want to collect the coriander seeds, it is best to put the seed heads in a bag and collect after the seed head has dried.

    The plant grows 24″ tall and 18″ wide. It prefers sun. The most likely pests to attack your cilantro are mites. Treat with insecticidal soap and wash leaves when using.

    Lemon Balm

    Can you name two herbs that are lemony?

    Consider the following:
    Lemon BalmLemon Balm-Melissa officinalis

    Lemon Balm is a hardy perennial that spreads easily. Its leaves are used fresh in herbal vinegar, salads, teas, and soup. Lemon Balm needs to be groomed through the summer to keep plant in control and the new leaves tender. It attracts bees and butterflies. It has medicinal properties for nervous disorders and cold sores. It can grow as tall as 1/2 foot if not cut back.

    LEmon Grass

    Lemon Grass-Cymbopogon citrates

    Lemon grass is a tender perennial [will survive only to above 45 degrees]. It forms large clumps and can get as high as 5 feet. It needs a lot of room to grow. The stems are used in Indian and Thai cooking. Lemon oil is extracted and placed in soap, perfume, and cosmetics. Some people try to winter over the Lemon Grass in the garage. But it is simple to start a new plant each year. Architecturally it is a striking plant.

    Peppers

    Peppers, Capsium, can be sweet (Bell Peppers) or hot (chilies). The degree of heat is measured in Scoville units. Jalapenos are 3000 to 5000 units and the frighteningly hot habaneros are 285,000 units. Peppers were first described by Christopher Euland who was on a voyage with Christopher Columbus to the Americas. Peppers were introduced to Europe, Africa, and India by the Portuguese.

    Planting-Peppers should be placed in a sunny spot and temperatures should be above 50* at night. Do not move once planted. Apply 10-10-10 to the soil and mix in. When the plant first fruits, side dress with 10-10-10 again. Cut peppers with a knife or scissors. Branches break easily.
    Uses- culinary, medicinally, ornamental
    Disease-Fungus-use a fungicide
    Insects-aphids or mites-insecticidal soap
    Height-1-2 feet

    Recipes

    GREEN PEPPER JELLY
    7 sweet green peppers ! Package of powdered pectin
    1 jalapeno pepper 1/2 teaspoon salt
    1 1/2 cups cider vinegar,divided 5 cups sugar
    1 1/2 cups of apple juice Green food coloring-optional

    To prepare juice: Wash peppers. Remove stems and seeds. Cut peppers into 1/2-inch pieces. Puree 1/2 of peppers and 3/4 cup of vinegar in a food processor. Puree remaining peppers and vinegar. Combine puree and apple juice in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Strain the mixture through a jelly bag or through a cheese cloth. Measure 4 cups of the juice, add apple juice to make 4 cups if necessary.

    To make the jelly-Combine juice, powdered pectin and the salt in a large sauce pot. Bring to a boil over high heat stirring constantly. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Return to a rolling boil. Boil hard one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in a few drops of food coloring ,if desired. Skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jelly into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch head room. Adjust the two piece caps. Process in boiling water bath. Remove and cool. Caps may need to be tightened more. Cool and store in a cool dark place. Be sure to label. Remember to use plastic gloves when handling hot peppers and do not touch your eyes.

    JALAPENO JELLY
    Two things-please wear gloves when handling peppers and don’t touch your eyes. Also, I often color this with red food coloring because it is very hot.You can grind up the peppers minus the stem thus including seed and flesh of the pepper and make a jam which is even hotter!

    yields about 5 hchili-peppers-01alf pints

    • 3/4 pound jalapeno peppers
    • 2 pouches of liquid pectin
    • 2 cups cider vinegar,
    • divided Green or red food coloring
    • 6 cups sugar
      Wash peppers. Drain. Remove stems and seeds. Puree peppers and 1 cup of vinegar in a food processor. Combine puree and 1 cup of vinegar and sugar in a large sauce pan. Bring to a boil , boil 10 minutes, constantly stirring.. Stir in liquid pectin. Return to a full rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute constantly stirring. Remove from heat. Skim off foam and stir in food coloring. Ladle hot jelly into sterilized jars, seal and put in water bath and process for 10 minutes. Remove from the water bath, tighten lids and label after cooled. Store in a cool, dark place. This jelly can be used for appetizer spread on cream cheese and spread on crackers.