Branching Out's Seeds and Sprouts

[Branching Out]

I found a bunch of red asparagus berries when I visited my friend's communal farm so I harvested them, mashed them up a bit, and then separated the small black seeds from the red pulp. After that it only took a few minutes to rinse the seeds, and to put them on a plate to dry. This was my first try at saving asparagus seed and it was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I'm not sure if or when I will grow them out, but I couldn't resist collecting them just the same.

 

[flowerbug]

I found a bunch of red asparagus berries when I visited my friend's communal farm so I harvested them, mashed them up a bit, and then separated the small black seeds from the red pulp. After that it only took a few minutes to rinse the seeds, and to put them on a plate to dry. This was my first try at saving asparagus seed and it was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I'm not sure if or when I will grow them out, but I couldn't resist collecting them just the same.

it grows wild along some ditches around us but on our own land here it's not suitable in any spot at all for it - the birdies must spread it around.

 

[Branching Out]

In between rain showers this week I have been focusing on outdoor tidying. At the end of the gardening season I was left with so much clutter around the perimeter of our house, mostly in the form of empty seedling pots and other miscellaneous plant containers. It was really getting me down to look at it. After many days of washing pots for storage I developed a system that works well for my situation, involving soaking the pots for a day or so to loosen the dirt, and then have a series of bins set up for washing and rinsing. The wash tubs are positioned nice and high, so my back and knees don't start to hurt from bending over. It seems that good quality plastic is easier to wash than cheap plastic, and round pots are easier to wash than square ones (the square shape is more efficient in a nursery tray though, so they are worth the extra effort that it takes to get the dirt out of the corners).

In the past I would focus on one section of the yard and clean up all of the containers in that area, but now instead I am running around the yard and gathering as many as I can of just one size of pot, washing them, and putting them away in tidy stacks. Way simpler, and easier to see progress. Any stray sizes that I only have a few of are going out with the recycling, along with any bulky items that will likely never be used. Having just a few sizes and styles of pots will be much easier to manage than trying to keep track of dozens of different sizes. There were so many empty odd-sized large pots and hanging baskets that we had to make a run with the truck to the transfer facility. This whole process was truly spirit lifting. It will take a few more afternoons of scrubbing to complete this task, but it feels great to make a dent in the garden clutter.

 

[Branching Out]

Our warm El Nino weather pattern has been very wet at times but consistently mild, and all of the cool season greens are loving it. The lettuce seedlings are fattening up nicely, along with some volunteer chervil in the background. They should be ready for light harvesting when we all start craving fresh salads after several days of rich and delicious holiday meals. The only protection these plants have is a thin layer of row cover, but it is enough to temper the wind and to limit soil compaction from the rain. It also keeps the foliage nice and clean, because no mud splatters on the leaves. It's a roll of the dice with December lettuce in our area. Last winter these would have been lettuce-sicles by now, and this year they are happy as can be. Fresh spinach and cilantro is coming along too, but at a much slower pace; they spend most of their time under the eaves close to the house, but get moved to the driveway on nice days.

 

[Branching Out]

This afternoon I was in the kitchen washing out my espresso pot when I spied something green coming out of the little crevice where the faucet rests on the sink. On closer inspection I was shocked to realize it was a slender, leggy seedling. The green that I noticed was the cotyledon leaves!! I was horrified to think that there was enough dirt to start seeds, hiding under my faucet. I had given the sink a good scrub with Comet and a toothbrush before Christmas, so it's not as though I never clean it. It's one of those tall faucets with one handle, and you push up on the handle to turn on the water. The motion of pushing up really torques the faucet assembly around, lifting it up off the sink and allowing gunk to get in there I guess.

I couldn't resist potting the seedling up and placing it under lights so I can see it grow. I wonder what kind of seed it is? And I am VERY tempted to poke a few basil seeds under there. Lol.

 

[heirloomgal]

My bet is lettuce...

 

[Branching Out]

My bet is lettuce...

Maybe I should set up a pool! I think it will be a tomato.

 

[Branching Out]

This morning I came across an idea that sparked my curiosity: forcing garlic bulbs in water indoors. In the past my mom would force hyacinth bulbs in winter so I had one of the glass forcing vases, as well as several other vases with 'waistlines' that could be used to suspend a bulb of garlic above water. Given that there is no shortage of garlic in our cellar, I decided to give it a try. I peeled off as much of the paper wrapper as possible; not sure if this is necessary or even helpful-- but they did that in the video that I was watching. Some of the cloves were already starting to show signs of sprouting, and a few had roots forming on the bottom. They are positioned so the basal plate of the garlic is just touching the surface of the water, and for now they are sitting on a table beside my lights. We have freezing cold weather coming tomorrow; once it passes in a few days I might place them outdoors, so they can feel the chill. I am not sure where this little experiment will take me. If I get green garlic that is good-- and I may try planting some of them out in a few weeks too, depending on which road the garlic takes me down.

 

[flowerbug]

This morning I came across an idea that sparked my curiosity: forcing garlic bulbs in water indoors. In the past my mom would force hyacinth bulbs in winter so I had one of the glass forcing vases, as well as several other vases with 'waistlines' that could be used to suspend a bulb of garlic above water. Given that there is no shortage of garlic in our cellar, I decided to give it a try. I peeled off as much of the paper wrapper as possible; not sure if this is necessary or even helpful-- but they did that in the video that I was watching. Some of the cloves were already starting to show signs of sprouting, and a few had roots forming on the bottom. They are positioned so the basal plate of the garlic is just touching the surface of the water, and for now they are sitting on a table beside my lights. We have freezing cold weather coming tomorrow; once it passes in a few days I might place them outdoors, so they can feel the chill. I am not sure where this little experiment will take me. If I get green garlic that is good-- and I may try planting some of them out in a few weeks too, depending on which road the garlic takes me down.

you can just take all the little bulbules leftover and put them in a pot of dirt and grow them for their greens until they give up. the water forcing method is a bit too much attention to detail for me to mess with, but i have mowed down containers of garlic and enjoyed those in almost any cooked dish. the more you cook them the less they taste of garlic, but i still like them since i also like about any form of onion.

 

[Branching Out]

you can just take all the little bulbules leftover and put them in a pot of dirt and grow them for their greens until they give up. the water forcing method is a bit too much attention to detail for me to mess with, but i have mowed down containers of garlic and enjoyed those in almost any cooked dish. the more you cook them the less they taste of garlic, but i still like them since i also like about any form of onion.

I think what appeals to me is the transparent vessel that will allow me to watch the roots grow. It could be better than T.V. !