Saving Seeds and More

I went outside today to see what seeds I could save from the flowers and found that I was too late for many of them.

Here are some yellow Columbine.  See all the brown (they look kind of orange) seed pods have opened and the seeds have fallen out.

I found some pods that were not open yet, so I put a bag around those.  The seeds will fall into the bag now.

I don't remember seeing this purple and white Columbine.  There are a few seeds left of this plant.  I put a bag around them and tried to bend the plant down, but broke it.  I'll get a few seeds, probably not as many now.

The front bag is the Columbine from the picture above this one and the back bag is Coreopsis AKA Tick Seed.

There are some of the Tick Seed still blooming and some going to seed.

All those green button looking things are Hollyhock seed pods.  The flowers are Maroon.  If you want them let me know.  Otherwise to the trash they go.

The White flower is Moonflower.  I have been throwing out these seed pods too.  If you want some let me know.

On the way back into the house I scared a lizard and he scared me.  He hit one of the Coreopsis plants and seeds fell on the sidewalk.

Now lets go to the vegetable garden.

Lots of Spinach seeds ready to save.

While I was saving flower seeds and broke the one plant, I came upon this bright idea.  Well time will tell if it is a bright idea.  Put a rock in the bag to help weight it so the seeds will fall to the bottom of the bag and write the seed name inside.

Here is the plant in the bag.  The binder clip is on and the rock is in the bag and sitting on the brick.

The lettuce is starting to flower and will be ready to bag soon.

The Blue Hubbard squash plant is huge.  It has a few flowers near the base of the plant.

Here are the Snow Peas going to seed in front of the Blue Hubbard.  I usually just let the pods dry and start to crack open, then collect them.  Today I decided to put a bag around this plant too.

Here are some dried pods with seeds showing in some of them.  I just dropped them into the bag around the plant.

I had to use a big grocery bag for this plant.

Do you remember in an earlier post where I talked about the cabbage plants needing to have the tule put around each plant to protect them, but I hadn't gotten it done?  I just put screens over the wood frames on the raised bed.  Well the wind keeps blowing the screen off of the bed and this is what I found today.  A cluster of eggs.

One cluster of eggs is no problem.  I'll just go get some Duct tape.  Well I didn't find Duct tape, but I found this blue plastic tape.  That will work to stick the eggs to just fine.

Well I got that bunch of eggs, then found a darker bunch of eggs and a worm.  GROSS!

WELL IT IS ABOUT TO GET MUCH WORSE.  I MEAN REALLY GROSS!

 They are on almost every cabbage.

 Disgusting!  Tape will not be enough now.

I broke off a leaf trying to get them wiped off with a paper towel.  They are in the cracks where the only way to get them out is by breaking the leaf when you try to move it.

I pulled this one off on purpose. Don't finish reading if you have a weak stomach.  I took the paper towels and wiped and wiped and wiped.  The eggs just smashed and smeared.  I felt like I was cleaning up after a baby who had a diaper that leaked and went in every little fat roll.  It seems to just smear and spread and you can't get it all.  After a pile of gross paper towels I did what I could never do to a baby.

I squirted the cabbages with the hose until all the eggs and grossness were gone.

I put bigger screens on the cabbage and rocks to hold them down in the wind.  I hope this stays in place and keeps the bugs away.

Now for a little better story.  Here are the garlic.

 This garlic is the saddest crop of garlic that has ever grown I think.

 I pulled everything that was left.  There is probably just enough to replant for next years crop.

 These four are just a single round ball each.

July 5, 2015, Sky Pictures

I tried to get pictures of the hail, but by the time I got my phone to take the picture the hail had almost stopped and melted.

I got a picture of one lonely ball of hail.  Can you see it in the center of the picture.  It is smaller than most of the dry spots on the patio.

Well the sky is beautiful, so I'll take pictures of the sky instead.  This is toward the back left side of my yard.

Toward the back right side of the yard.  Can you see the bright red spot.  That is the light on the firetruck passing by.

 One more picture.

The last picture for today.

Pictures of the Rain on July 2, 1015

This is where my strawberries used to be until I moved them last year and this year.  Hubby tilled the hard ground so that we could scrape off a few inches and put new soil in there.  The tilled soil held the rain well and turned into a muddy mess.

            

 Straight out the family room window.

        

 To the left some.

 As far to the left as I could take a picture without going outside.

Looking out the Family room glass door.  This is part of the low area of the yard where a lot of the weeds were. I guess they will be back.

 Looking at that low area out one of the bedroom windows.

This is out the other bedroom window.  Too bad my barrels aren't hooked up to collect the rain.  I need rain gutters and the barrels linked together.  Did you know that it is ILLEGAL to collect rainwater in Nevada and most other states.  Does that make sense in the driest state in the Union.  Utah, the second driest state, is working on changing that policy.  California is making some changes too.

Same window as above.  Hubby came home and said that there was a river running through the gravel on the other side of the fence and out into the street.

 A flower bed full of water.

 Another bed with just a little.

I put a brick in the pond and brought it close to the house the day before this rain, because the wind was blowing it across the patio.  Since this has never been installed and I don't think it ever will be set up as a pond, the children have claimed it as their swimming pool.

Cabbage Heads, Spinach Seeds, Garlic, and Potatoes

Five of the six cabbages, I got from my neighbor that started them from seed, are doing great.

Here are two of them.  I planted onions around them, but that isn't keeping the cabbage loopers away.  You can see all the holes in the leaves.  I have been going to put tule around them for 2 weeks and still haven't done it.  Tule is like netting, but has smaller holes, is softer, and used for bridal wear.

For now it just came into my brain that I could cover them with the window screens.  I don't care if the onion tops are bent over.  I hate onions!

Here is the spinach that has gone to seed.  I think it is ready to have a paper bag placed over the seeds to save them.  The lettuce behind it will be going to seed soon.  I am out of seeds from both of these plants, so I let a lot of them go to seed.

The garlic is dying without going to flower.  I noted before that it was going great in the winter and then when we got the hot winter spell it started dying.  The ones I have dug are double bulbs/cloves.  You can see them HERE.  I think I will pull these up and plant lettuce and spinach here.  I will have to go buy some seeds this time.

Here is a garlic from last year that must not have grown and came up this year instead.  Can you see the bulge near the top of the plant?  That is the flower developing.  After it comes out and starts to open I will break it off, so that it puts the energy into the garlic bulb and not the flower.  If it is broken off too soon it will come back.

             

This years garlic is weird.  The red spot in the center of the left picture is something popping out of the stock.  The picture on the right has a bulge at the base of the stock.