Cottage Garden Seed Swap and Chat #41
LOl. You were good. Our Queen Suzy . LOL
Bows heads and asks strength from our Queen to make it through this Piggy swap. hehehehehe
I was thinkign about her the other day and how she was always so organized and mange d to know who had what down to the see dpacket. LOL I ain't quite that good. : )
We do have one survior right now and we may a coupel of communities that wil be needed help from all the latest floods, but wil let evrybody know later if they will be joining. With cleanup and such they may not have time.
:) I never saw that one last year... cute! Think I'll go check on some seeds. Fried for any actual work. Been building a little wall, mortared today... This unemployed thing is hard work! Seeds are the perfect relaxation...
Angie, I've got plenty, so you just be sure to note to yourself for right now about the sages, and be sure and mention it again to me (dmail or here on the thread) after we get the lists thread going and I've got my list up. That's where I edit, and put names by my offerings, and keep track that way. Right now I'm doing well to keep track of the seeds I'm cataloging, dividing and moving Lilies, planting and mailing Daffodil bulbs, and the fall chores in the garden, LOL! At that point I'll have my little tray holding my seeds in alphabetical order. I keep it right here by the puter, and when someone oinks, I pack and label their seeds, and stick them in their baggie, then I note it on my list when it's done.
That is WAY too organized!! (just kidding!) ^_^
Oh, that's so funny, I'm such an air head, it takes extra effort for me, LOL!
Hey I miss you guys too!
Yes, you can collect the gourd seeds. I'm disappointed that some of them didn't germinate for you. I usually let the gourd dry out completely, then cut it open and remove the seeds. That is all, except for storing them in a dry place. Usually in a baggy with a paper towel and open until I'm sure they are dry, then I remove the paper towel and bag 'em. Some of the ornamental gourds are temperamental and like it hot, soil temp that is.
I'm glad to hear some people had good luck growing the strawberry popcorn.
Hey listen, I do answer dmail on a daily basis. So if you have questions, dmail me.
I am trying really hard to get healthy and get my dog contained and my house cleaned. I have been working on the garden and in the greenhouse too.
Mom is up and walking and back in her own house. Her memory isn't so great, but it never was. We just try to take it one day at a time.
I can't remember who sent these guys to me, but the edible hibiscus are alive, if not well. I have to go give them another shot of insecticidal soap. Sigh! I planted some of them out in the yard, but between the bugs and DH none survived. Sigh! They sure are pretty! Understand they are tasty too! I'll have to try them but not until after the bugs are gone, gone, gone!
WIB!
SW
Yes, that is a pineapple growing to the bottom right of the photo. I felt sorry for it at the sale counter at the grocery store. It loves the gh. SW
SingingWolf!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Glad to see ya. : )
I have mroe of the edible Hibiscus you taking about. Hibiscus manihot. Once we get goign will send ya soem to replant.
Glad to hear ya feelign a ittle better. Knwo ya got alot on yoru plate , but remmebr ya oen of us so always we here for ya. : )
Good to hear from you all too. I miss all the chatter, I admit. I've been trying to stay positive and keep busy. Sometimes I just can't keep up with y'all. Doesn't mean I don't try! : - )
WIB,
SW
Oh Star you did a wonderful job! You are our new Queen Lol : )
I'll second the motion! : - )
WIB,
SW
Definitely!
... is it Nov 1st yet? ;-) I can't wait to start! Is anyone collecting Stevia seeds (if they grow from seed...) Just tasted it for the first time at a local science place. Very cool!
Welcome back, Singing Wolf. I remember your signature, WIB, which threw me for a loop at first trying to figure out what it was. Our church benediction is always "Go in peace, serve the Lord," but I couldn't figure yours out. Glad to hear you're feeling better and hope you get back to 100% real soon!
Didn't get much done yet in the way of organization, but I'll think about that tomorrow! Just call me Scarlett.
Angie
This message was edited Oct 18, 2009 6:29 PM
Ya don't knwo how bad I chaffing at the bit to start too. I keep thinking abotu gettign up at oen of my 3 int eh mornign coffee jaunts and starting everything early. heheheheheh Gonna be a long few weeks yet, but then the time will coem and we will be wodnering why we not ready. LOL
Kl... I went lookign for seed of the tevia too. Want some, but so far onyl foudn some place in Canada . Since it a big market commodity, gona be harder than blazes to get some orginal Stevia seeds of the plant ya cna eat.
All the seed aren't ready yet. My passionvine fruit still green as Grass.
Not ready to be seed.
Ella, I found this site full of information, http://prairieoakpublishing.com/index.php?pr=Stevia_Gardening and they sell the seeds too.... thinking about it if no one here is collecting them. Will also check my local nursery in case they have plants. They'd be on sale at this point, and could be overwintered under lights, and cuttings taken too...
Regarding Stevia- I grew some this year, no blooms or seed in my zone:(. But I'm going to see if I can overwinter at least one of them, and take cuttings.
Stevia has 2 seed colors. It has both black and tan seeds. If I remember right, it's the black seeds that are viable. White or tan are sterile. Look for black seeds when you harvest or if you are buying them.
This message was edited Oct 10, 2009 10:10 PM
Just popping in to say HI, I hope you are all doing well. I miss you, but I'm still here lurking. LOL!
So very pleased with some of the plants I was able to grow from the seed. Most especially I love the guppy plant, and one with little blue flowers. Can't read the tag anymore. You were right, it faded. Am sending a photo. It has self seeding in my window boxes, which I think it wonderful. Am also pleased about the edible hibiscus. While it was attacked, I have six plants in the gh I think will survive. Some are flowering. : - )
Hope to start planting some more of the seed soon. Can't wait to see what happens. : - )
My planting season for a lot of these things will start in December and January. They'll stay in the gh until it's time to harden them off to go out in the garden or in bigger pots.
BTW, I found a great use for an old playpen. Now it's corraling empty plastic pots to keep Spirit pup from "playing" with them.
Be well, I'll be lurking. Am leaving you all with this poem, which I also posted a while back on Dad's Memorial thread.
Navajo Prayer
In beauty may we dwell.
In beauty may we walk.
In beauty may our male kindred dwell.
In beauty may our female kindred dwell.
In beauty may it rain on us.
In beauty may our corn grow.
In beauty all around us may it rain.
In beauty may we walk.
The beauty is restored.
Hozho
(Hozho, means all that is good, favorable, desirable, beautiful, pleasant, peaceful and harmonious; it also refers to those qualities and conditions in which they exist, and our desire to attain that state .)
Walk In Beauty!
SingingWolf
that was Beautiful, Singing Wolf,
Thank you.
Charleen
SW -- every now and then I'll be in a particular forum... and i think of your dad. He truly is still missed!!
I loved his wildlife photography and stories.
Terese
I know, what you mean, tcs, and I miss the photos and his stories too. Someday, I hope to have a wildlife cam set up. He got so much joy, out of his set up. It really tickled him.
I'll never forget how surprised and tickled he was about the possum that gave birth in his seed feeder. He'd positively be beside himself lying in wait, in perfect comfort, inside the house viewing what was going on at the feeder on his computer monitor. Chuckling at the memory. : - )
My Dad is still greatly missed by so many people. I don't think he knew how many people he touched in his life. There is a huge community of people that lived near him that thought the world of him too.
Sometimes, I go through his old threads when I start get to missing him. It helps.
I can only hope to be as kind, caring, humorous and encouraging as he was. You know, he really was like that in person too, not just online.
He'd never put someone down to build himself up. He'd never brag about his expertise, but was always willing to share what he did know. I'm awfully proud of his accomplishments.
I do hope to share some of the family stories and some Native American Stories over the winter on my Blog thing here at DG.
Maybe even a funny story or two about my life on the farm here, too. When the time is right it will be.
WIB,
SW
I enjoy your posts, too, SW. Your father's delight over the possum giving birth reminds me of one Saturday morning many years ago. We were eating breakfast and enjoying the peace and bird song. All of a sudden, the young holly hedge began wildly shaking and rocking. We couldn't imagine what could exert such force on those young plants. We snuck up on the scene, and lo and behold, a pair of one of the quietest, shyest, most retiring animals was um procreating - lol!
I'm looking forward to more stories from you and Star and perhaps other story tellers among us will step forward? Looks like the piggy circle is taking shape again.
Karen
oops - meant to say possums
This message was edited Oct 12, 2009 2:42 AM
HerbSpirit, thank you for the heads up on the dark Stevia seeds being better than the light ones for germination. I think all the ones I harvested last fall were light grrr, so I won't be putting those into this swap.
On the stevia .... is it the leaves that are used as a sweetner? Do the plants have to be a certain age before you can use them? Just curious....
When I grew stevia, all plant parts were very sweet - both while green and afterward when dry. I didn't sample the roots, though. I just crumpled up a bit of leaf in our tea, but hopefully others have done more with this herb and I'll be interested to hear from more knowledgeable folks, too.
Maybe when cold and flu season comes around, I could try sweetening a tea of horehound with stevia. I used to make horehound candy in the summer, and then pour a cup of boiling water over a small piece in winter when any of us got a cough. It helped some, and made a pleasant winter reminder of another summer to come.
Would anyone happen to have any horehound seeds? I'd love to grow this one again.
I'm also wondering if anyone would know how to make an elderberry cordial with stevia?
Karen
What is horehound? Never heard of it....... well, actually i have heard of horehound candy - but never knew what it was ......
Just a quick mention, not that any of us are going to need more seeds ;) but I just noticed an interest thread for the Summerhill seed coop. Did this one last year, and it went SO well! Some of my seeds this year were plants started from that coop! I will have a hard time resisting... but will have to try!
Karen, seems most cordial are just liquor (typically Vodka), sugar and flavoring, so I think it would just be a matter of steeping Stevia and Elderberries in your chosen liquor. Here's a link to some cordial recipes:
http://www.angelfire.com/wy/DaBoozer/liqueurs.html
From looking at their plum liqueur recipe, looks like steeping the berries for about 3 months would do it. It would be a gorgeous, rich color.
Everytime I go into Angelfire, my computor shuts down. I do have elderberry plants growing outside my window. I didn't plant them, they have been here for years. It has been a very long time since I have made Elderberry jelly, but it was pretty jelly. I have just learned of a rootbeer plant, have anyone else. i am going to look up horehound to see what I can find. They still sell horehound at ''Cracker Barrell"
Charleen
Oh, I wonder if horehound would grow here I love horehound candy and get it all of the time at the Cracker Barrel when I'm around it! I never thought about it being a plant you could grow that's one I would have to have if it would grow here! I have fond memories of my grandmother giving me the horehound when I was growing up you could find it everywhere then.
Not to change the subject BUT lol It was pouring down rain and I noticed that my Lisianthus seeds were open so I picked them not having much hope for them, put them on a sponge on the window sill in the kitchen so I wouldn't forget about them and this morning seeds were spilling out behind the faucet! I'm soo happy! First time for me to collect them and just knew they wouldn't be any good with all of the rain ;-)) They seem to be bigger than the ones I purchase, one had a hole in it so a bug may have gotten those none were spilling from that one but I'm happy just to get one to put seeds out! Star since you lost yours I'll try and save some of these for you! I haven't opened it yet to see how many there are.
How exciting LeBug! I've never even managed to get them to grow :( Tried from seed a few times years ago. They're so beautiful!
With elderberry, you won't need stevia. Elderberry has it's own sweetness. It's actually the best medicinal tincture I've ever tasted, even in 100pf vodka!
Elderberry is typically used to make syrup, used for flu. It's a lot of work, but so worth it. I'm looking for elderberries (Sambucus nigra) at the moment to get ready for flu season. Anyone have some to spare, or that they won't be using- or better yet, any suckers?
I grow and use my own stevia. Stevia can have a bitter after taste. You can also use licorice root as a sweetener. Don't confuse the name with tasting like black licorice. Black licorice is flavored by Anise. Licorice rt (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is actually stronger than stevia, but stevia seems to be more popular right now.
Horehound- there are two types. White horehound (Marrubium vulgare) and Black (Ballota nigra). I have the white as that is most used in cough remedies, but no seeds this year.
Oh, I didn't know that stevia was bitter...... I thought it was supposed to be a great natural sweetner!! :( disappointing..... I will have to look that horehound up on the plant files!
Genna
I have grown stevia this year. Had one very pleasant experience with the leaves sweetening some tea and another experience (with dried leaves maybe) that wasn't so pleasant. Actually, I may have dried some cinnamon basil on the window sill and thought it was stevia, which would explain why it didn't sweeten the tea! (yes you can laugh at me, I'm laughing at myself!). I will give it another go after I do some more reading on it. I will also try to harvest some seeds if the weather dries out long enough! I had good luck with the seeds germinating when I wintersowed them, but the baby plants all died, not sure why. The two plants I have were plants that were shipped to me. One of them was a bit overshadowed by some monarda citriodora, so I probably need to move it. I think I should dig up one and put in a pot in the gh, since I am not sure if it will overwinter here. I, too am very interested in any education y'all can give us about stevia on this thread. I really want to kick my "pink packet" habit!
Tonya
This is the first year I ended up with enough plants to share with a couple of neighbors I still need to go to one neighbor's house and check her seed pod she had one too I really need to get up there and check it lol I try them every year! I'm still in my house coat lol This house is so cold this morning well this after noon now lol But I'm going up! lol
I checked the pod up there and it still looked a tad green but this was the first pod of the year so it has to be ready it was on a long time before mine were so I picked it and have it in the house for drying I must say this is the most exciting thing that has happened with my plants this year for me lol It doesn't take much to make me happy LOL
Kistuart, I have learned to keep mine on the dry side they are so susceptible to damp off, maybe you shoud try them again and just keep them a little dryer :) I'll put your name down for some and if I end up with enough I'll save you some to try again :)
Stevia is sweet, but a slightly bitter after taste. Some people can taste it, some can't. If you buy the stuff they sell in stores, that is a crystallized extract, so less bitterness. If you use the whole leaf you can taste the after taste. Using the leaves is kind of like using saccharin, as far as aftertaste, only all natural.
Hello, I am new to this, so ...here goes...I have quite a bit of Balsam seed and Pardancanda , a few sweet peas, Morning glories and Hollyhock seeds.
I got lost in the threads and not sure who has Stevia seeds, btu if somebody does, hide soem for me. I went to that site and while what I read looked good, when I went to see abotu purchasign some seeds, ther e site doe s haven't that what ya call it safe secure site and no way I giving info on an unsecure site. Ha d my idenity stolen oen time on lien and that wa s enough. Ain't no way I goign through that hassle again.
What is horehound candy. Is it somethign sweet? I don't get very often to Caracke r barrel , but don't remmebe r seeign somethign liek that or maybe I did and becaus e I didn't knwo what it was walke d right on by it. If it use din cough medicine s maybe it not so good to eat?
lebug. When ya open that Lisianthus seed pod make sur e ya over something cuz you wil find lot s of teeny tiny seeds that are almost mircoscopic.
Rides... I don't do Angelfire site s either. They giv e my puter viruses and worms and nto the worms that make yoru garden grow either.
SingingWolf.. I miss him too , but ya know we all were so lucky to have had him for a short while. So much beauty an dknowledge we would have lost without him. So we have to rejoice in the tiem we had. while maybe earth years was short, knowledge is evrlasting and filters from generation to genration so he wil always be aroudn in soem form or another. You are uyou. Your a warm and beautiful person inside and otu and don't need to be anybody but yoruself. You have yoru own gifts that you giv e and share and you wil leave yoru own trail for future generations.
Hello SandsnSeas. Ya must liv e by the ocean or something. neat nickname. : )