Afterthoughts of the Chinese Swap on 2-23

Oops, I did the misspelling thing too -- and I know better! I'm out of edits for the day, so it'll have to stand. Sorry, Noobs!

I thought Saturday worked out pretty well, with time split between lunch/visiting and "playing seeds." I know I did more socializing than swapping after the Bingo game, also... but I was hoping that anybody who wanted seeds from me would find them in the "free" baskets or in the little containers I brought along -- or would just ask me.

If there's anything you're still looking for, post about it on the post-swap seed/plant thread... sometimes some of the best trading happens after an event like this, once people discover some mutual gardening interests.

Noobie

I have to work tomorrow. I get home after 5:30, but I have dance class tomorrow with the oldest...

Jenn

docgipe-/Miatablu--
Ohhhh, I got the wonderful Herb book!! Herbs are my "bag," so of course, as it was lying there and I thought no one wanted it, I got it. I can give it to you, docgipe, at the next swap to be fair. The book is very descriptive in the plant section and covers a lot of stuff that a lot of new books don't. I have already combed through it. Thanks for surrendering it!! :-)

I also got your gourd seeds, doc, and I wanted to ask what happens when those gourds start to flower?? Do they need to be propped up or do they just lay on the ground like a pipe? I have never grown a gourd before Is this type carvable?

Foxy, I think you make a didgeridoo with it. LOL.

A dide-a-what?? LOL! I am stumped.

Sorry had to chime in here ; ^ )

http://www.didgeridoostore.com/

Hi, ladyg- your seeds went in the post office today. I tried to swipe something from everybody. I don't think i grabbed any blue poppy though. You wouldn't have believed how many seeds there were.

Sally, thank you so much for thinking of me and taking the time to do this I love getting mail. ♥ ♥ I'll have fun starting all my new seeds. I may have some seedlings to bring with me on the trip in May. Are you planning to go?

docgipe -- I'm also curious about the longpipe gourd seeds -- any growing tips? Do the plants need support? Can the gourd develop on the ground? Maybe straw mulch under them? How early to sow or start indoors?

What can you tell us?

Looking forward to trying them.

I hope I didn't tick him off with the digeridoo thing (smile) I am so baaaaaad.

This message was edited Feb 25, 2008 9:34 PM

LOL -- well, based on the picture, that's kind of what it looks like. I think it would be pretty cool to grow one -- or at least try it.

To my ears the music from a didgeridoo is specifically different than any other music. Yes indeed a didgeridoo from a gourd is quite possible but a whole world of crafting exists into and around itself.

To get the long gourd to be straight one must support the enormous growth some way. I use the honey hole about the size of a wheel barrow right at the drip line of an old apple tree. My mentor uses a piece of chicken wire as a support to lead it up into the tree. I have a water tower at the edge of the old apple tree. 124" is the present world record long gourd. My seed has produced many over a hundred inches and one 116".

Honey hole = dig a pit and work in a four foot diameter a serious application of compost. A half pound of any low number organic fertilizer like 4-2-4. Use any tea you can make once a week. Alternate foliar and drench applications of kelp and fish oil. Be ready to use Neem Oil early to mid season. Be aware that some years harsher fungicides may need to be used from middle August on to the end of the season. For best results get your PH as close to 7.0 as possible.

Germinate those seed all in 80 degree temperature and dry damp potting soil. They will germ and emerge in four to ten days. Start them all because they can be cranky. Soak them over night in water and 10% hydrogen peroxide. If you have kelp, yucca, or similar tea add a few drops to the soak. Use a half gallon ice cream box for a pot with two seeds in each pot. Move to light support for four days. Move to outdoor shaded and wind protected spot for a few days and then go to the garden plot you prepaired. Cut do not pull the weakest seedling. Plant two into your honey hole. Cut do not pull the weakest plant when the two plants are up and headed for the tree at about the three foot point. One will be stronger than the other. One plant will cover....fully cover a semi dwarf old apple tree.

Fruit management......Look into the tree untill you neck gets sore looking. Then when four to six just seem to appear from nowhere use a pole trimmer to do away with all but your three best ones.
They will keep appearing seemingly from nowhere. Keep them trimmed down to the three largest or the three that seem to be growing best. They can grow a foot or more a day. They come on quickly. When they are just one to two feet start your culling. When one of your three is your best grower by observation live dangerously and get culled down to one....no more than two fruit for the whole growing period. This whole act will happen in little more than thirty days once it begins.

Keep up the weekly feedings. Keep the plan to feed often less. If you do not cull you will get eight or ten thirtysix to fifty inch gourds. The vine that has covered your tree or built rack will be a bit messy but it will not hurt the tree to let the wind blow it out after the frost kills the vine.

Plan your trip to your garden from your house to be as early as is possible avoiding late frost dates and have some plastic to put in service for a surprise late frost event. Most of you are quite a bit South of me so you are on your own for when to get going. Remember you want to germinate and emerge in four to ten days at 80 degrees, upon emergence move immediately to supporting light close to the small plant and within another three or four days including two days of outside hardening off in the shade with wind protection you should be out of the pot and into your soil.

What happens if you grow them on the ground is the weirdest tangle and twisted fruit you will have ever witnessed. On occasion someone will do this just for the amusement.

Yes they can be crafted if you give them the full growing season to develop and let them harden off in the patch, followed by more hardening off after you remove them. A 48" one more or less would indeed make a reasonably good didgeridoo. That is just another thing I may do one day if I am given enough days to follow through. I love the didgeridoo music. I have talked with an insturctor in the state of Washington. He imports, sells and teaches the instrument to any willing to spend the bucks to learn. You may let Google educate you further if you wish. When you get to the didgeridoo web site the music you hear will be the person's music with whom I talked to. He comes East on occasion for the purpose of instructing professional players.

Hey, Jenn..

just let me know when you can bring them by. It's fine if it's not today. I am feeling pretty under the weather.

The BBQ thing would either be in late July or late August. It could be totally a social thing. I welcome everyone to bring a dish and I would make the ribs and a few other treats. It's still a little ways off. I'll be sure to let everyone know.

Thought I would c/p this here for all of you to read.
This was posted by "bettypauze" on the Best and Worst...etc. Forum.

There were so many Herbs flying around at the Swap--this seemed appropriate.
Gita

******************************************************

Did you know???

Herbs of the Bible

There are numerous references in the Bible to a wide variety of herbs. Obviously, most of these herbs are well-suited to dry, desert-like conditions as one would find in the Middle East.

When researching the herbs to include in the Bible-themed herb garden, one may find different herbs referenced for the same verse. This inconsistency is due to the many different translations of the same verse. One translation may attempt to specifically identify an herb while another translation may refer to it more simply, as in "bitter herb." The list below was compiled by Jane Dole of Indiana, Pennsylvania.

Historically, herbs like spices, are rich in legend, fact, lore, romance and business. Wars have been fought, trade routes established, lives sold and cultures, countries and businesses founded, all in the name of the plants we call herbs. Below is a listing of herbs mentioned in the Bible or associated with the Christian religion.

Aloe (Aquilari agalloche) is believed to be the only tree descended to man from the Garden of Eden.

(Numbers 24:6) Like valleys that stretch afar, like gardens beside a river, like aloes that the Lord has planted, like cedar trees beside the waters.

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) is referenced several times in the Old Testament.

(Exodus 16:31) Now the house of Israel called its name manna; it was like coriander seed, white and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.

Cumin (Cuminum cyminum) is an herb native to the upper areas of the Nile, mentioned in the Bible, along with Mint (Mentha sp.), when Jesus reproved the scribes.

(Matthew 23:23) "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you tithe mint and dill and cumin and have neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others."

Garlic (Allium sativum) is mentioned only once in the Bible. It was held in great esteem by the ancient Egyptians.

(Numbers 11:5) "We remember the fish we ate in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions and the garlic."

Hyssop (Sorghum vulgare) is known as the holy herb. Hyssop was used to cleanse the temples and other sacred places of the Egyptians. David mentions hyssop in Psalms 51:7. Hyssop as we know it may or may not be the hyssop mentioned by David. There is some debate since the derivation of the name hyssop is in the Greek word hussopos and the Hebrew esob, meaning simply, "holy herb."

(Psalms 51:7) Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.

Mustard (Brassica nigra) is described in Matthew 13:31 as "the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof."

Rose (Rosa spp.) The name for a rose is almost the same in every European language. Dried roses have been found in Egyptian tombs.

(Isaiah 35:1) The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the rose.

Rue (Ruta graveolens) has long been the symbol of sorrow and repentance and may have been nicknamed the "herb of grace" in Christian times for the grace given by God following repentance for one's sins. Brushes made from rue were once used to sprinkle holy water at the ceremony preceding High Mass.

(Luke 11:42) "But woe to you Pharisees! for you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others."

Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) is frequently mentioned in Scripture, always for its bitterness. According to legend, wormwood grew up in the trail left by the serpent's tail as it slithered out of the Garden of Eden.

(Jeremiah 23:15) Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets: "Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and give them poisoned water to drink; for from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has gone forth into all the land."

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a symbol of fidelity and remembrance once used in the holiest of Christian ceremonies, the wedding and the funeral. For centuries people thought that the rosemary plant would never grow higher than 6 feet in 33 years so as not to stand taller than Christ.

Another story tells that the flowers were originally white, but changed to blue when the Virgin Mary hung her cloak on the bush while fleeing from Herod's soldiers with the Christ child.

Costmary (Chrysanthemem balsamita) is also known as Bible leaf because in Colonial times a leaf served as a bookmark in Bibles and prayer books. When drowsiness set in, the sleeper treated himself to the minty leaf to stay awake.

Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) and Dill (Anethum graveolens) were carried to prayer meetings in Colonial times in small pouches. The seeds were used to curb the appetite. They were called "meeting seeds."

We should perhaps start our own 'Garden of Eden'..

Nice article Gita. I just printed that off for future reference. I am solidly in the Bible Belt. This will make a dandy short presentation at a luncheon or club meeting.

doc,.

I can't take credit for finding it. As i said--"bettypauze" posted it. She said she got it somewhere and it was OK to c/p it anywhere I wanted to.

I loved your Digeridoo article and listened to every one of those sample songs in the Weebsite. Very impressive! Is this something the Aborigines play or also the Maoris?

I was in Australia and New Zealand in 1988. It was kind of a rush--rush trip. Lots of sitting in buses and 2 days here and 1 day there kind of a thing. I enjoyed very much all the things i did see and learn about the Maori culture. Such simple people and such simple, down to Earth beliefs! Too bad all the tourism has "intruded" into their lives, BUT--they DO make a lot of money from it.

Glad you liked the article on Biblical Herbs. I posted it on the Herbs Forum also. You may want to check that out also to catch any feedback on it.

It was nice meeting you at the Swap! Gita

That is a fascinating article, GG. I want to print that off too. Never thought about herbs in that way. Excellent information, thanks for sharing. :)

I heard my first digeridoo in a music course at Shippensburg University during 1957 - 58. The instructor owned one and played it very well. My second occasion to listen to one being played was a student with a huge ten foot long digeridoo playing on the boardwalk nightly in Ocean City, Maryland about ten years ago. That one was extremely base and beautiful. He did not speak but had a notebook with a few pictures and brief copy as to the use and making of a digeridoo. As usual his hat was just a catching the bucks because it was very interesing....not the usual huckester tricks. There is one advertisement presently on TV that has digeridoo music in the background. I do not remember which one. There are only a few families that make and sell the digeridoo in Australia. I believe the majority are sold by one person here in the states.

all very interesting. Can somebody write me a permission slip to my husband as to why I did nothing productive today? Or explain to him I am trying to get rich by becoming the next only didgeradoo maker in the US?

Gita: I like to eat and then shop OR shop and eat! Sounds like fun either way! Weekends are best for me as I work full time.

Noobie: A summer time barbecue sounds like loads of fun. We could always swap seeds & plants if any one is interested OR just eat.

I just wanted to toss this idea into the "hat", there are LOTS of very nice parks in the MD/VA/PA area that don't cost much, some are free and some even have covered pavillions w/barbecue pits where we could have our get togethers. Some even offer boating, hiking trails & volleyball nets. Anyway, it's something to consider.

This message was edited Feb 26, 2008 12:33 PM

Hey Sally - want me to put it on the Dr's stationary? LOL

Shirley I think it was Diane that looked into that last summer...hmmmm, not sure but some how that rings a bell...

Chantell- thank you!!! I now feel free for another 30 min of browsing......

LOL - hey any time...gotta have each other's backs ya know.

Miata, I was telling Rick about the rocks the neighbors gave me for my pond. They were even nice enough to have them placed on my property when they had the heavy equipment out to do some other work. Here is a picture for him. That's my youngest son Jamie and his son JR.

Those rocks are grand. Not exactly the kind of rocks you could stick in your pocket!

Fabulous! I scored some rocks like that while our house was being built (the ones around the patio)... I'm going to keep my eye out again when they start building behind us. :-)

Holey Cow! Give JR. a kid sized shovel, a length of rope, a few big blocks (pieces of board) and a kid size cardboard box. He will be the comander of that rock pile in a flash. One more thing. He might need a truck to haul the bounty about the fort and a bucket of water to get all prettied up with. :)

Wow Holly! Maybe Rick will be more understanding when he sees me hauling a prize rock I've found to my garden after I show him that picture :-)

He may have those rocks to play with for a long time. You never know when we will actually get that pond in or if we will use all those rocks. But I love rocks so we will find something to do with them. I asked Ric if he though we could get both the pond and the conservatory put in this summer. Boy did I get "THE LOOK". Right now it's cold outside and my house is jammed full of plants so I'm thinking Conservatory but you never know what I will feel like this summer.
PS Doc, I gave him an old paint brush and a bucket of water he had a great time with it. I remembered how I would send hours painting the bricks on our house when I was a kid.

This message was edited Feb 27, 2008 9:57 AM

Holly..............JR needs a sunflower seed and a small bucket of soil to dump in a nootch and cranny. Three or four onions hidden somewhere else. A morning glory would go nuts up and over. He could pick you a fist full every day.

Gee....Holly those rocks are impressive. If you build a pond with those I'll have to send you more water plants. Makes my water garden look like a puddle. ☺

I'm not sure which will be bigger the rock pile or the pond. LOL I took less than half of what they had and not the very biggest ones. The neighbors behind us stopped and were checking out my rock pile and have offered to let me scrounge around their property for some smaller and more medium size rocks. They have a lot of rock walls that they are not very interested in. Boy don't offer me rocks I'll grab all I can get. I could make a good bit of their rock walls disappear. LOL

Holly---

Are you saying you have nothing but rocks in your head????

AH SOOO!!!! Now I understand!!!!

I received seeds labeled "Datura Wrightii" from someone -- can you let me know if they were from you? I love to know who I get seeds from -- makes me so pleased when they sprout to know the chain of ownership. And Wrightie disavows them.

Happy, They don't sound like mine. I gave out Double Yellow and Purple they would have been in little paper coin envelopes.
Gita, I always thought that was just air in there. LOL

Nope! That was not from me! Mine were labeled "Double Purple/White Datura Metel"
and "Double Yellow Datura".

"Wrigtii" sounds like a botanical name. How about Buttoneer? She had a slew of seeds there--all over the table.

Did you check PF?

Gita

OK! I've got some "mystery seeds" from the leftovers pile that I need some more info on so I can put them into SASBE's from newbies... any additional info is appreciated! I'm asking how old because there were some 10 year old veggie seeds in the pile that I think are unlikely to be viable... I don't want to frustrate a new gardener. :-)

"hibiscus 2005" in white paper folded packet -- what kind? hardy? tropical?

"hibiscus" in 2x4" plastic zip bag, labeled with black marker -- what kind? hardy? tropical? any idea how old?

"Mullein" in zip bag with white label, black sharpie marker -- any more info? Is this the tall yellow wildflower?

"Trumpet Vine" in packet made from bubble envelope -- any more info? tropical/hardy? any idea how old?

"Purple Conefower in paper packet from The Seed Site, label says gail14505@yahoo.com -- any idea how old?

Portulaca in sealed white/foil commercial packet -- any idea how old?

Cowpea, 35 seeds in zip bag with white label -- any idea how old?



Thanks!!

Some of those -- the Mullein and the Trumpet vine, at least, and maybe more, were from a big late 2006 seed swap I participated in. All the info I have on those seeds is what is on the pack. I didn't keep a record of which seeds were mine, but I do remember the trumpet vine (because I have been trying to eradicate it for some time!).

(These seeds were in a bag of seeds I knew I would never plant, and I added those to the pile on the table. They mostly were seeds of plants that required full sun and took a lot of space.)

I didn't see them but I know Buttoneer brought Datura Seeds.

No, I didn't bring any Datura seeds, but I took some of Holly's home with me.