Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day

Hey all, today is well, obviously October 15. But you may not of known is that today is "Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day,"This event was started by Carol who also has a blog. To find her blog just click "HERE." Basically the whole deal with this event is were you post your pics of ALL (or in this case some) of the pictures that I have taken this year. This is my first time I have ever done Garden's Bloggers' Bloom Day.

Here are some pictures of the zinnias that I grew this year. When I was mowing the grass my mower had grabbed one of the flowers and viciously pulled it off. I couldn't make myself throw this flower away, so I decided that I would do a photo shoot. I think I took 192 photos!
These photos turned out great!
I don't know about you all, but I know that my zinnias turned out GREAT this year. They were really beautiful this year.

I also grew a pie pumpkin this year. This was first that I have ever grown pumpkins, I actually grew it by accident. We had actually thrown some pumpin seeds into the compost bin, and there it grew. I saw that plant and left it there, sure enough all of my other squash plants died and this one plant survived and PRODUCED!

I also for the first time I grew Sun flowers, I planted 3 plants and had a great result. They filled up a whole 24oz jar plus one head that I grew for the birds and other animals. They got so BIG, I will be defiantly growing them again next year, and hopefully if I have room, some more too! Maybe later I will post some of the pictures that I have of the sunflowers when they weren't dried. The only thing that I had a problem with, was the spittle bugs that spat all over my sunflowers and basil. I thoroughly despise spittle bugs!

I also grew this year, along with last year, some pink prairie mallow that I bought from Jung's Nursery. That is one online nursery that I really enjoy shopping at! The mallow turned out so nicely this year, with lots of blooms, that just covered the plant. There was an added bonus as shown by the picture, Bees love it! So if you need help with pollination, you may want to consider planting some Pink Prairie Mallow , the leaves are also edible!

I hope you all enjoyed some of the pictures that I posted, I would have put up more (which I have plenty of,) but decided not to.

Oh but I forgot this one, and cannot leave it out. It was early in the morning when I was looking outside and saw at my feeder two finches. I couldn't help but take some pictures, as that my camera is always nearby. Here is one of them!

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Saving Seeds, Part V Cucumbers

Alright, don't lie, who doesn't like a good Cuke every once in a while...That is unless it gives you gas! UGH! To dedicate the who cucumber post I am going to be posting my very first video! *Round of Applause* The basic gist of this movie is about how organic foods are better for you in a commical way with a little Star Wars twist! I found this really funny when I saw it on "The Thoughtful Vegan" blog site! The quality of the movie is also great. So without further adue. . .




Now for the seriousness of the matter. Cucumbers are such a fun plant to grow! There are all different shapes, sizes, and colors! The most recent variety that I have grown is an heirloom variety called Lemon Cucumber Cucumis sativus. This is such a fun variety that has interest too, so if you have kids or grandkids, this is something you might want to try to get them interested in the art of gardening!
If you are going to start harvesting seeds from a cucumber you have to make one sacrifice, one that is very hard to do. . .
I don't know if I can say it. . .
No I must say it. . .
Ok here it goes. . .
You have to let it get WAY over ripe! I know it is hard to believe it but it is true. I know that each time I tried to harvest seeds any other way, they were always too unripe! So be sure that you have some really, really ripe cukes!
When you cut it, make sure you cut it horizontal to were the stem was, or if that was hard to understand, cut it like you would cut a grapefruit! Don't cut it the way I cut it in the picture. I must of got carried away, because I cut it the wrong way! This will insure that you do not cut any seeds in half. With a spoon scoop out all of the seeds in the same way you would with a melon.
or anything, the onlyNow cucumber are easy when it comes to seeds, as that you don't have to wash them thing you have to do is let them dry on a paper towel in a room full of air circulation.
Once the seeds are done they should be, plump and firm like the ones that you would plant.

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Saving Seeds, Part IV Snapdragons

Alright, so I know that it has been such a long time since I have posted. What is new! So I figured that I would continue the seed saving series that I started ALONG TIME AGO! I think I left off with the peppers...So that means I am doing a series on....Snapdragons! Hey, who doesn't like snapdragons. Snapdragons have been around since the Roman times, they used to use them around the ancient temples. The first cultivated variety of snapdragons was first recorded by Carl von Linne in 1753. So yeah, they have been around for a long while.
I can remember when I was really young (each time I say this, all the old people just look at me!) My mom used to grow snapdragons in all different colors; form yellow, red, orange, white, and pink. I use to always go up to them and start to pinch them at their joints to make them talk. Being so small, I could never get the silly things to open their mouths! I would get so frustrated, I would eventually bruise the poor plants and the flower would usually fall off from the shear torment of the thing! To this day I still find it a challenge to make the snapdragons open their mouths! So if you have any secret to doing this, let me know.
Obviously you will need to have some simple supplies; your fingers (duh,) plastic bags, and bowl to place seeds in.
I like to wait until my seed pods are completely dry before I harvest them, as this way I can be absolutely sure they are dry. Once I find that the seeds are dried, You will want to harvest them into a bowl. When all of the seed pods are in the bowl, you will want to crush the exterior shell, this will release all of the seeds and allow you to have easy access to them. When all of the seeds have been taken out of the seed pods, remove the remaining shells out the seeds, so that you are left with pure black seeds. The snapdragon seeds should look about the same size as poppy seeds or small and black. With the snapdragon plant, if the seed pods were dry when harvested, you will not need to worry about drying the seeds as that they are very dry already.
Once all of your seeds have been collected, all you need to do is label and date your seeds! This will probably be the easiest thing you have ever done in your whole life!
If you have any comment or question, just let me know on the blog site! By the way Happy fall everyone! I hope this fall is one of the bests!

~Zach

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In My Mind

Alright, I know I haven't posted in a while... I have been so busy! I know think this post I am going to break away from the Saving Seeds Series, and just do something different! So hold onto your pant, it is going to be a bumpy ride!
I don't know about where you live, but for me, this is the time of year where all of the local nurseries are having their fall plant sale! Yeah, I am so plant happy. I know it may seem like now the whole world is at peace with itself, but this is not true. You see I told my self that this year would be different, that this year I would not go on a shopping spree and buy every little thing that is out there. Let us enter my head, no matter how scary this will be, as I travel my local nursery!
"Look at all of these beautiful plants, I could just buy each and every one of them! But remember Zach, you just came to look. I wonder if I should grab a shopping cart? I guess I would look pretty odd if I was walking around the nursery without one; yeah, I guess I will grab one, I just won't buy anything! Oh, what a unique purple grass looking plant, it is just so nice looking...I think it needs a home. So in the shopping cart goes that purple grass looking thingy! But of course I will stop here and just go onto the check out place...Wow look at those red Cardinal Flowers, they are so gorgeous, just what I could use for that spot near the side of the house; you know give it a little color, (Justification!) I think I will pick one or two up for safe keeping, and I'll just put it back before I will check out!
As I look off in the distance to see if anyone had seen my spur of the moment shopping, there in the corner was the most beautiful looking lavender I had ever seen! I think I will just go over there and look at it. After all, I don't have to buy it! Look at those deep purple flowers, it would go perfect right next to my coreopsis, and the lavender I have now is not nearly as colorful as these! I think I might have to pick up a couple of these!
As I turned around to put the lavender plants into my cart... my jaw hit the ground! Someone must have come up behind me, while I was looking at lavender plants, and put a ton of plants in my cart! Oh well, there is no way I will be able to put them all back were they belong, so I will just have to buy them. Besides, I am not buying allot!"

~THE END~

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Saving Seeds, Part II Tomatoes

My last blog we talked about Zinnia, so if you need to be refreshed on the subject, just take a look at last weeks blog! I Don't think I know a single individual who doesn't like a good just picked tomato!, except maybe my sister! Although I can remember a time when I, like my sister, despised tomatoes. Just the thought of that red, seedy, fruit made shivers run up and down my spine. When I was younger my best friend, whose name was also Zack, use to love tomatoes; he would just pick one up and eat it like an apple! UGH! I would think, his mom use to grow little cherry tomatoes right next to the house. Zack and I would go over to them and I would watch him eat them. Now I never told him that the though of tomatoes made my stomach queasy and become woozy, and one day day he asked me if I wanted one. Being a man, there was no way possible that I was going to show him that I was a woos, so I swallowed my pride and basically swallowed the tomato whole! After a moment, or two, I thought about it, and those tomatoes didn't taste so bad! The rest of that day was spent in use eat nothing but cherry tomatoes, and form that day on I have been a avid tomato lover since!
Now that you have heard my little story of the day, lets get down to business! When to want to gather tomato seeds, the first step is to get your supplies ready. You will need...

• Knife, for opening the fruiting body
• Small Spoon, for scooping out seeds
• Strainer, for cleaning the seeds
• Paper towels, for drying the seeds
• Storage devises (jars or ziplock baggies), for storage.
  

You will also need to learn when to pick the tomato, and how to know when the seeds are ready. This is probably the easies of all, basically, when the tomato looks good to eat is when that seeds are ready! Any ripe tomato will do just fine! Your first step is to cut the tomato (DUH!,) there is no right or wrong way to cut it, just have fun!
Once the you have cut the tomato, you will want to scoop out the seeds, for this job you will want a spoon! This is all pretty self explanatory, once you have scooped out the seeds, put them in a fine mesh strainer, like the one shown int the picture. You want a fine mesh strainer so that the seeds don't go through the strainer and down the drain!
Now that the seeds are in the strainer, you may have noticed some jelly looking flesh around the seeds. If you wanted, you could stop right here, and just let the seeds dry as is. If you do decide to do this, you will end up with one great big lump of seeds that will be bane of your existence when you try to separate them! The way I like to do my seeds, is similar to the way professional companies do it, or at least I think it is! Any who, this method will give you clean looking seeds that will be able just like the store bought ones! This is what the stainer is for.
That jell stuff around the seeds is a growth inhibitor, so I like to remove it. The first thing you want to do is run it under cool water, room temperature will be fine. With your fingers start to rub the seeds around in the mesh, this will rub off the inhibitor jell, Do this until the seeds look clean. You may have to rinse them a couple of times to get them separated from the seeds, but this proses should not take long.
Once you have removed the seed jell, lay the seeds on a cloth or a paper towel, to get the excess water off. Once the seeds have dried off a little bit, transfer them to a clean dry paper towel or cloth. Fold the cloth up so that the seeds to not fall off and label the seeds with the name and date, this will ensure that the seeds do not get mixed up with other seeds! Be sure to check the seeds every now and then, to make sure that they don't mold. After a week or so, you can now take the seeds off the towel, and store in ziplock baggies, or click HERE to download some templates for seed packets!

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Saving Seeds, Part I Zinnias

Now is the time of year were everyone is all in a buzz for seed collecting! If you are like me, your whole purpose for collection these seeds is because you are cheap or you really want to save some of your seeds so that you can trade them online (because your CHEAP,) or you may be very saintly and are trying to keep that particular variety of seed alive! What ever reason you may have seed saving is well worth the time and effort that you put into it.
I can remember when I was younger, I had tried to collect some pepper seeds. I took every pepper in the house, all of which were from the store, and stuck them in a bottle which I stashed in my junk drawer. That following spring I proudly put my hand in my dresser drawer and pulled out that bottle of peppers. As I proudly pulled it out of my dresser I looked at seeds and shrieked in horror, instead of the beautiful peppers that I had stored away that fall, I had a bottle of whitish blue mold! You see I had made the common mistake of putting away my seeds before drying them. With all of the moisture in the seeds, it caused the whole batch to mold, and boy did it mold. Lets just say, that bottle didn't have a happy ending!
This will actually become a series of blogs that I will do. In this blog I will talk about: How to Harvest Seeds, and How to Store Seeds. I will start out by doing some of the most popular seeds, seeds that we all have grown, such as...Zinnias, Tomatoes, Peppers, Snap Dragons, Cucumbers, and Prairie Mallow. So look forward to a new edition each week, and will follow the order that I have written them above.
I will also Publish them online as we go along, so that you can have them all on one piece of paper and not have to look through all of the blogs...not that I mind!

There are some simple tools that will be a life saver when it comes to harvesting and cleaning seeds! These are are located in the picture above, but for the sake of your eyes I will list them for you.

• Knife, for opening the fruiting body
• Small Spoon, for scooping out seeds
• Strainer, for cleaning the seeds
• Paper towels, for drying the seeds
• Storage devises (jars or ziplock baggies), for storage.
  

Zinnia

Zinnias are a classic plant when it comes to the garden. I do not know of a single gardener who hasn't, at one time or another, had this plant in their garden. If you want to collect seeds form this lovely plant the best thing you will need to learn is...Patients! Yes, patients, and the reason I say this is because you really need to wait until the flower has completely died before you can start to harvest the seeds. A trick that I like to use is to tie a fine mesh bag around the flower head that I want to harvest seeds from, this little trick will keep the birds from eating all of the seeds and it will catch any seeds that fall out of the seed head!
When harvesting the seeds from the seed head you will have to have a hard surface underneath you, as it will help with the clean up. The first step is to grab the seed head...DUH! After that you will want take your fingers and pull off all of the petals so that you have one big pile. Once this is accomplished, sift through all of the debris to find the zinnia seeds. Zinnia seeds look like little arrow heads or like flat sunflowers. Once done sifting to find the seeds go ahead and compost the material left over. Be sure that when you put you seeds away, for storage, that you mark that container that they are in with the "seed name" and "date of harvesting". This way you will not
someday in the future, say..."What is this?" Trust me, I have done this many times! Here is another tip for you; if the zinnia flower was dry when you were collecting seeds from it, go ahead and store the seeds. If they were not, you will need to either let them set out to dry or wrap them in a paper towel. Be sure that if you put the seeds in a paper towel, that you check on the seeds every couple of days so as to prevent your seeds from molding. Learn from my experience with the peppers and don't ever put seeds away wet or fresh from a plant! This will only

As always, if you have any questions or if something was unclear, please contact me or leave me a comment so that I can help you out or maybe clarify something!
Also I will attach a link to all of the pictures of the zinnias and put a link out so that you can view the rest of the series on storing and collecting seeds!

This is the link for this article on seed saving, and the ones to follow!

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dhxcvps_48c6wkx7ds&hl=en

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Garlic

It is August and now is the time to start harvesting and planting garlic! If you have never planted garlic, now is the time to give it a try, and if you have then there is always something that you can learn!
Garlic (allium sativum,) just the sound of the word or the smell of it on some body's breath can send you running for your life in the opposite direction! What most people don't know is that garlic has a hugely long history. Garlic is believed to be first originated in central Asia and then brought around the world by traders. Now everyone knows what garlic is, even if they don't like it. However, if you are like my family and I, you know that the more garlic you use the better everything is.
I remember when I was really young, there was a next door neighbor girl who would come over all the time because she loved the way our house smelled. As she said, our house smelled like garlic. I tell you what, you will not meet very many people like her. Often she would leave her stuffed animals at our house for a week or more, so that the smell of our house would penetrate her toys, this way she could smell garlic at her house!
Now I am not saying that you have to leave your toys at my house, because if you do I will throw them away! What I am saying is that you too can have a house that will draw people from all around because of the pleasant aroma!
I was going to post the article that I wrote explaining when to plant garlic, how to care for it, and when to harvest it; but I found that the article is way too long to be published here. For your sake I will just leave the link for it, and if you want you can read it! Click HERE for the article about garlic or you can click on any of the garlic pictures
Hope you enjoy!



~Zach

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