So yesterday after school the kids and I started doing some germination tests on my old seeds. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a 3 y/o to count out only 10 seeds? I think I'm just plain crazy.
The object of germination tests is to see what percentage of your old seeds will sprout. That way you can decide how thickly to plant them. If 90% sprout, you should plant them as directed on the package. If it's less, you can still use the old seed. You'll just need to plant them thicker.
To do this, you wrap 10 of whatever seed you are testing in wet paper. For the next several days, keep the paper wet, checking to see if any have sprouted in a week or two depending on how long that particular seed takes to sprout. If only five or less sprout, you probably ought to throw the seed out and get some new seed. If 7 sprout, you ought to plant them a little thicker than recommended because you are only getting a 70% germination rate.
My biggest problem with this project is finding flat surfaces to place my specimens on. I so need a heated greenhouse!
We also ate some oranges. They had seeds. Kathy thought we ought to plant those seeds so we did. My brother did that when he was young. My mom had an orange tree growing in her living room for years. It didn't have a pollinator so it never put on any oranges, but she just couldn't bring herself to kill it. After all, Scott had planted that tree! Of course she had a 12 foot ceiling with 10 foot south and east facing windows in a living room that was about as big as my whole house! I really need a great big heated greenhouse!
Speaking of greenhouses. I gave up on the pop bottle greenhouse. Just couldn't get enough donations. At the rate I was getting them, it would have been 10 years before I'd have enough to make even a small greenhouse. People who go to farmer's markets are just to health conscious to consume a significant amount of soda :)
The other night, I went to hear Tom Stamman preach. You can check him out at: http://www.tstamman.com/ After the service, he prayed over me. He asked if I had ever raised any livestock. My girlfriend and I laughed. Only chickens, sheep, goats, cows ... I replied. Then he went on to tell me I really needed a greenhouse and that God was going to get me one. I receive that!
Today, I decided to check to see if I had made any money with the ads that appear under my posts. The last time I checked, I hadn't made a thing. Now I've made $3.62. Wo- hoo! Unfortunately, they won't cut you a check unless you've earned $100 So if the ads here interest you, please click on them! And if something on I talk about interests you or tickles your funny bone, please share it with your friends!
God Bless You All!
~Grama Sue
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