内容摘要：on a good day for Arrow McLaren, and Ryan Hunter-Reay was fifth.

on a good day for Arrow McLaren, and Ryan Hunter-Reay was fifth.

, why not grow your own?No, you’re not likely to grow the spirits -- although they do come from plants (vodka from potatoes, tequila from agave and so on). But you can grow other ingredients that make those spirits delicious.

. It’s so easy it may take over your garden if you aren’t careful, so plant it in a pot and keep the pot away from the soil. Place the pot in full sun and water it regularly. In a few short weeks, you’ll be able to pluck its leaves to liven up your lemonade or mint julep.If you want to get creative, experiment with a few different varieties. My favorite is spearmint, but peppermint is classic. Chocolate mint, pineapple mint and apple mint each have their charms, named for the scents and flavors they impart. There’s even a specialty variety called Cuban mint, an authentic choice for mojitos.is available in several cocktail-worthy varieties. Genovese, the Italian variety often paired with tomatoes, works equally well in beverages, as do lemon and cinnamon varieties. Plant them in full sun and provide water, but account for your climate and take care not to over- or underwater them. Remove flower stalks, if they appear, to prevent the leaves from turning bitter.

Lemon verbena smells heavenly and pairs as well with a gin and tonic as it does with sparkling water. Most herbs don’t usually require supplemental nutrients, but lemon verbena benefits from monthly applications of. Water plants when the soil begins to dry out; overwatering may lead to root rot.

When I have guests, I often muddle sage leaves with 1 ounce each of vodka and ginger liquor, then add to a glass with 4 ounces of ginger beer, and pineapple and lime juices to taste. It’s as simple as can be — and just as impressive.

For the most concentrated flavor,Select a stem roughly the width of a pencil, aiming for one that was a new shoot in the past growing season. Measure down about 8 inches (the length of a pencil) from its tip and make a straight cut below a small leaf node (a bump on the stem from where a new leaf will grow). Avoid large nodes, which are likely to be flower buds or leaf nodes from older stems and are more likely to rot.

Cut the top of the stem on the diagonal just above a node. Since plants remember their orientation, this will ensure you don’t confuse top from bottom, as well as allow rainwater to roll off your cutting easily.Repeat as necessary until you’ve acquired as many cuttings as you’d like. You can also remove one long stem from the plant and cut it into 8-inch sections, observing its nodes and cutting each top portion diagonally.

Lightly dipping stem bottoms into rooting hormone powder and/or scraping a bit of bark from the bottom inch of each stem will help promote rooting but isn’t necessary.Remove leaves, if any, from your cuttings, then stick the bottom thirds of each stem flat-cut side down into the mix about 2 inches apart around the perimeter of the pot. The risk of rot is lower near the container’s edge, as the soil there tends to dry out more quickly. It’s higher at the pot’s base, so don’t push cuttings all the way to the bottom.