Steem-Powered Gardening: Got some cool seeds from @SageScrub!!
Guys!! Have you checked out the Homesteader's Co-op yet?!
What?! WHY NOT?!
Seriously, it is a really cool place to buy things from other Steemians, for STEEM! I spent all my steem on seeds from @PapaPepper, and @NateonSteemit felt bad for me, because I wanted to get more seeds for my Steem-Powered garden. He kindly forwarded his refund on an order from @SageScrub to me instead to allow me to buy some more goodies!
Well, I ordered something that many of you will think is odd... DANDELIONS!
Yes, dandelions. These pesky weeds are actually super beneficial plants! For some reason, I can't find ANY growing in my area! Seriously, we are devoid of dandelions here! I wanted to get some seeds so I can grow them in my garden, and also, hopefully seed them into my yard as an excellent foraging plant for our chickens and goats!
Well, my mail arrived, and with my dandelion seeds, I got a free GIFT!! Thanks @SageScrub!!
Purple Orach? What is THAT?! You may be thinking this. I sure was. I figured it was a flower...
NOPE! It is actually a really neat plant that is grown for its leaves! You can eat it in a salad! This is PERFECT for me! I am super excited to plant this plant just as soon as we get another bed up and running. (Any time now, hopefully!!)
I did, however, have space set aside to plant my dandelions:
Yep, several cinder-block holes were set aside for them, as well as some areas inside the bed itself.
The seeds were very clean and very healthy-looking:
When I got the seeds, I realized I wasn't sure about the exact way to plant these things.
I mean, as a child, I would just make a wish and blow, right? I looked it up, and it turns out you just plant them about 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep, but do not cover. They need sunlight to germinate. So, that's what I did.
I can't wait to plant the orach seeds as well! I need to hurry up and make more gardening space!!
As a quick update on the seeds that @PapaPepper sent, they are doing fantastic as well!
Here are the mustard greens I planted:
This is AFTER harvesting and thinning several times! We have been eating salads with them almost every day this past week! They are delicious!
Also, here are the Jerusalem Artichokes he sent me! They are popping up already and looking beautiful! I am amazed at how quickly they came up!
Can't wait to see their flowers later in the season, and to finally harvest a batch to EAT!
Lovely, right?!
That wraps up my update!! Thanks for stopping by! Please DO check out the Homesteader's Co-op for some really cool gardening stuff and other interesting items as well!
This work by @SquishySquid is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
After writing this post, I went to review the seeds on the co-op site. Turns out they posted planting instructions there:
Sowing Instructions
Direct sow seeds ¼ inch deep, any time of year in well prepared soil, tamp soil and keep moist until germination. Or sow in place anytime between early fall and late spring and let nature do its work after the rains come.
Haha, I am sure there are plenty of successful planting methods for dandelions. They are very sturdy things, after all! Mine did end up covered after being watered, so I guess I ended up planting them according to @SageScrub's instructions anyway. ;)
Looking forward to seeing how the new seeds do but the the ones already growing sure seem to be doing so well
Thanks! They are doing great! Feels good to eat salads that I grew!
Cant wait to see the baby dandelions too. :D
Ohh yes home grown always taste so much better:)
Wow, thanks so much!! ♥
I love my Steemit Mamas!
Cool! I'd never heard that song before!
Haha, that will be me when my dandelions grow, Imma pick an armful and dance around! ;D
Welcome to 1990s Christian ska/punk.
Ill have to find some more! I grew up in a family that was not Christian, hence, no Christian music. Now we listen to it daily, but Im sure these songs that come on pandora are much newer...
I find most modern Christian music insufferable, but there are a few bands like FIF that I like, and of course there is always old-time music.
Ill have to do some digging and find some good bands. I dont much care for most modern christian music myself, but I like to put on some positive stuff especially for the kids, praising God in the background while we go about our day. For personal fun listening, I prefer classic rock myself...
Dandelions are nature's calcium pumps. They shoot a tap root that can push down 30 some feet (it's super thin/tiny at that point) to find that mineral and bring it up to the surface. Some thistle varieties do the same, and they bring up other essential minerals too. Oddly enough, once they have brought up enough of whatever mineral they are looking for, they die out over time. In my gardens they tend to en up getting eaten though. haha Dandelion greens are tasty when young, and thistle root is like carrot. The thistle flowers make fantastic tea if you steep the buds before they open, or cut the green bottoms off once they bloom.
Wow, 30ft?! That is amazing!!
Yep, Im planning on eating the greens and, once they get established and I have plenty, we can eat the roots too, and maybe even try making dandelion coffee! :D
Thistle is also on my list of things to plant. Now, I just need some more growing space! :D
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Thanks!
Woowoo!!! How are your pineberries coming along?
They are growing great!! A few have already tried to put on berries, but I had to pinch those to force them to put that energy to the plants... unfortunately. I cant wait to try them!
We picked up a couple boxes too. Hoping they do well. The box said plant January through May, and it was February when we planted them. They did alright and were turning good and green and then it froze. A few leaves are still there, but most of the stalks fell...
Oh no!! Hopefully they will pull through!
It did freeze once here, but it wasnt really a 'hard' freeze, and I dont think it quite hit freezing inside the greenhouse...
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Wow, thanks!!
Oh hey @squishysquid! I do not know how I missed this post earlier... but I am sure glad I found it now!
Yay it is so nice to see you enjoying the seeds in your garden :) I'd love to see how the orach and dandelion work out for you!
And the mustard greens look so healthy and tasty!! Nice! Will you harvest the mustard seeds later for cooking?
I really appreciate you helping us to get the word out about Homesteaders Co-op! Its exactly what our vendors need right now while we are still rather unknown .... thank you!! I've given you an upvote from our @homesteaderscoop to say thanks!
Thanks so much!!
Yes, we are enjoying the greens and such so much right now! Getting a salad a day out of there. I havent even thought about saving mustard seed to use in cooking! I probably will, once the plants get bigger. Ill have to do a little research and see how people normally go about it.
The dandelions are popping up already and looking great! I am going to plant out some orach seeds today. I need to remove the sad looking kale from the bed and these can go in their place. Its just been too hot for kale lately.
I love the @homesteaderscoop! Im hoping later on to be able to sell seeds and such on there. ♥
Wow they are already popping up! Woo nice! I am so glad they are growing happily!
For mustard seeds once they start to bolt, just let them bolt and once the seed stalks and pods have dried up, clip them off. Sometimes they pods start to split so you know they're ready to harvest if that happens. Then put them in a bin or on a sheet and stomp on them and keep stomping and dancing until you've crushed them good. The seeds will be at the bottom, you can pull off the bulky stuff and toss it, then use a fan or the wind to winnow the chaff of the seeds.. I use a two bin method in front of my fan. You can see an example as I winnow peas in the video at the bottom of this post: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@sagescrub/anouas1j
Hope it helps you! Of course theres tons of other info online, but this is the easiest way I found, and very enjoyable and relaxing to stomp and winnow :)
Oh wow, thanks! Now I know what to do! Ill have to try it for sure. I love my mustard and it would be so cool to make my own!
I collected wild mustard seeds here for the first time last year and threshing and winnowing was fun and I got a lot of seed from just a few bushy plants :) Good luck!
Hey @squishysquid! Sorry about the spam, and I'm sure you're all over this one already, but if you're not ....@naturalmedicine is supporting @homesteaderscoop to hopefully win a 20K delegation! If you're up for it, please vote for them by following this link. If this in anyway bugs you, let me know and I'll happily delete it! With warmest regards and best intentions, @riverflows! xx
No prob!! It's supporting the co-op so its not spam. ;)
I actually already did vote for them, but thanks!
Thanks for stopping by!!