Posted on 07/26/2013 12:53:13 PM PDT by greeneyes
The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you.
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Sounds like you have jalapeno flavored tobacco...that could catch on with some folks...market it as an exotic new flavor...
Was it Blackstrap molasses? I think that is the kind you want. It seems to be harder and harder to find. The more mild type is everywhere, but the blackstrap, which is more nutritious, is becoming scarce around where I live.
Hey Marcella, at one point I think it was you that talked about seeing if sunchokes had edible seeds like sunflowers do? Well, I came across something about that in my plant-breeding book. It says that sunchokes have an “incompatibility mechanism”, which is the technical way of saying the flowers can’t be pollinated by the same plant, or by any plant that is too similar to them genetically. Since sunchokes are propagated by tubers, the entire patch is essentially made of of clones, and won’t be able to pollinate. If you want seeds, you would need to grow another variety of sunchoke nearby, and if they’re different enough they’ll produce seed. The differences may or may not be visible.
(Sounds like a fun experiment to me. I wonder if I can make a purple-tubered variety? Or one with red flowers instead of yellow? Plant breeding: more fun than the roulette table, and you get to eat your losings!)
Really cool/cold weather here in the Twin Cities far flung areas.
It was down to 46 degrees last night and has me concerned about the tomatoes. I’ve been reading that the lycopene/ripening gene turns off at 55 degrees or below, same with the taste enzyme.
Bad gardening season so far. Too cold...too hot...to cold and so on. Bah!
Any idea where I can get some good heirloom sunflower seeds for next year?
/johnny
There are two ways to say this: There are no heirloom Sunflower seeds -and- All Sunflower seeds are heirlooms if that strain stays the same from year to year.
Sunflowers leap from one strain to another easily and another new strain is born and this has happened over hundreds of years. If a grower keeps that strain to itself, it makes the same strain so could be considered an “heirloom” of that strain.
Growers who are flower sellers, keep creating new strains to get different colored flowers.
Growers who are eating seeds sellers (the striped seed), grow the same strain in the same field so they get eating seeds. The strain they are growing is a developed strain for eating seeds.
Growers who are oil seed sellers (the black seed), grow the same strain in the field so they get the oil seed. The strain they are growing is a developed strain for oil.
Growers who are tuber sellers (Jerusalem Artichoke, also called Sun Choke and White Fuseau which is different but still a tuber (this one is shaped like an Idaho potato), grow these tuber ones in a separate field so they are the same every year. One buys the tubers, not seed. These are perennial so they come back year after year from the tubers and will overtake a garden.
So, Sunflowers did themselves in hundreds of years ago, because they cross strains so easily so that heirloom doesn't really exist or one could consider any strain as heirloom because the plants did it themselves. One could say they are not picky with whom they have sex. :o)
Lady, if you tell me what kind of Sunflowers you want, I’ll list the companies I searched out for that kind of seed or tuber.
Do you want:
Just flowers to have pretty flowers.
Or Eating Seed.
Or Tubers.
Sunflower tubers are Jerusalem Artichoke, also called Sun Choke, or the other variety of tuber, which is White Fuseau. The Sun Choke, is knobby round, the Fuseau is formed like an Idaho potato.
The tuber Sunflowers have no eating seed. The energy of the plant goes to growing the tubers, not the flowers. It doesn’t need seed since the tuber is the reproduction of the plant. One could say the tuber is the seed.
The neighbor kid that tilled my garden this year just stopped by and checked out my garden, and talked about his problems with his. Tomatoes aren't doing great this year for anybody. I'm hoping fall tomatoes produce better.
I had given the kid some of my saved cantaloupe seed and he was raving about how good they are. They really are. I saved my seed for next year from one really giant cantaloupe that I cut and ate yesterday.
It feels good having a strain that grows well in my area that I can share.
/johnny
Thanks
We are lookin’ for the eating kind. Thanks.
We are cooler than normal as well, but still above 50 degrees at night. In the fall when we have cool nights and warm enough days, I double up the row covers and cover the tomatoes, or else use sheets to help protect the tomatoes.
I also use pvc pipe stuck into diagonal corners of the raised beds, and cover with clear plastic for a mini green house. I also plant a few in pots, so that I can just bring them in at night and put them out during the day if warm enough.
Some years are just less productive than others. So make hay while the sun shines, has become an attitude here.LOL
Some of the spices don’t can well and cause an “off taste”, but maybe those could be added later. Last winter, I canned up a bunch of chicken, and pork whenever there was a big sale.
They have been great “fast food” starters, or just heat and eat for busy days. I’ll maybe try some stuffing for hot peppers next time I buy up a bunch of hamburger.
That’s interesting. Thanks for the link.
Are you going to make rabbit stew?
Thanks for sharing the pictures. It looks great.
What memories. When our kids were young and we were poor, we would pile into the car when the drive in had G rated type movies, bring our own popcorn and cooler with soda and lawn chairs.
During intermissions, there was an play area for the kids. It was good fun.
PARK SEED has two kids of large sunflower striped seeds for eating.
http://parkseed.com/sunflower-giganteus/p/00950-PK-P1/
“Giganteus Sunflower Seeds”
If the birds gave awards to their favorite garden plants, Giganteus would be the wings-down winner! No Sunflower is more generous with the seeds—each 12-inch bloom contains a dinner-plate-sized central disk just stuffed with richness. The bright yellow petals, arranged in a tight circle around the center, are brilliantly colored and very cheery, bringing in the butterflies! Giganteus is the Sunflower that wins competitions, and its foot-wide blooms are absolutely staggering, especially when the 10-foot-tall plants appear in a long row against an outbuilding or other structure. The essence of summer in the country, Giganteus is an oversized, generous joy for birds and humans alike! 12 INCH BLOOMS
http://parkseed.com/sunflower-sunspot/p/00989-PK-P1/
“Sunspot Sunflower Seeds”
Blooms just 60 days after planting!
Plants reach just 2 1/2 feet tall! 10 INCH BLOOMS
Here is a classic Sunflower, with big 10-inch nodding heads stuffed with seeds. It is perched atop erect, child-size bushes only 2 1/2 feet tall. The vibrant, golden-yellow petals surround golden-brown centers filled with seeds.
Mature heads yield a bounty of delectable seeds for birds- and for people, also.
This sunflower is ideal for hedges, screens or as a background. It is also very easy to grow and it can be direct sown into your sunny garden. Pkt is 50 seeds.
I will get Sunspot because the plants are only 2 to 2 1/2 feet tall so they will mature faster. If you want them 10 feet tall, get the other one. It’s going to take some time for them to grow to that height and produce blooms and seeds ready to gather.
Hey, thanks for those links. I shop parks but usually for pepper and tomato seeds. I hadn’t thought to look at their sunflower seeds.
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