Hi dad!
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c81/stoatmax/20080922_6.jpg
CATERPILLARS AND BUTTERFLIES!
This is going to be a ***** if I have to add tags around these for them to show up! ):<
EDIT: Arg, I had to xd
Not my garden, but close ;) October 15, 2008
Stevia! August 11, 2008
Stevia is an herb that can be used for a natural sweetener. It’s calorie free, Carbohydrate free, and has a zero glycemic index. It’s hardy as a perennial to zone 9. It’s been grown in tropical conditions for centuries, and was only recently discovered.
In it’s concentrated form, it’s 250-300 times sweeter than sugar.
It’s a shame that the USDA hasn’t accepted it as a safe sweetener yet. I believe it’s due to the sugar lobby.
Anyways, as a plant, stevia is amazing. It’s not very fussy, it’s easy to grow, and if you lay down a chute and cover it with some dirt, it will readily root. A single leaf alone is 25-40 times sweeter than sugar. It can be used in all kinds of applications. Bruise a leaf in your tea/coffee, use the powder for baking, cooking, eating. It has many possibilities.
You can buy seeds online, but I find them very hard to start. Go to your local nursery, and try to find the sweetest one.
Finally! August 10, 2008
Sorry about the delay, I’ve finally willed myself to post!
A lot of things have been happening. I’ve received a ton of cuttings, sprouted a few papaya, got a ton of new things.
Hawaiin Papaya has germinated. It’s doing really well, I’ve got it in coco-mix and humisoil.
Here’s a large tray of Papaya, Passion Fruit, Date, Rambutan, and Lychee seeds.
My mom’s friend Jack was nice enough to give me some plumeria cuttings. Fun!
I just bought a thompson’s seedless grape today. We’re making an arbor for it soon.
Stevia Jungle! Jealous Matt? 
I just bought a pepino melon plant as well. I’ll have delicious pepinos soon!
Our strawberries have stopped producing and are focusing on heavy runner production. Next year..
My greenhouse is FULL of fussy Datura, begonia, impatien, and tropical cuttings right now, thanks to Jack.
I hope they root!
We pulled our Sugar snaps after the powdery mildew became too fierce. Pole beans are now in.
Melons, Sugar Baby and Crimson Sweet.
Avocado…
And last, but not least…
Grobal!
I’ll be writing a review soon on it’s performance. I really like the idea of such simple hydroponics.
‘Til next time!
Mind my sloth… August 1, 2008
I’ve been busy writing a pretty extensive recap of the expo. In the meantime, I bought a few things at the county fair.
First of all, something I’ve been looking forward to… Plumeria! I currently do not know what variety, but I’m thinking I got aztec gold and petiite rainbow.
I also got two kinds of lilies..
Gloriosa lily, which is a climber, and starfire lily, which makes a big poofy flower.
Harvest July 11, 2008
My mom was having a particularly bad day, so me and my dad harvested some veggies for her.
There were a few firsts here. First bell pepper, Bok Choi, and first nectarines.
Oddities of the Horticultural Variety! July 8, 2008
An avocado with a pit the size of an almond?! SPOOOOOOOKY!!
A flower spike on my 2 year old geranium, for the first time? SHOCKING!!
What’s this? A HALF-SIZE FLOWER ON AN IMPATIEN CUTTING? HORRIFIC!
Cracking the code to the perfect plant July 4, 2008
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/pacificnw/2004360712_pacificpbamboo20.html
Gardenrific Picture Post June 29, 2008
Well, my garden is coming along well, it’s really changed! The peas are at the top of their trellis, the 5 tomatoes have filled their square cage.. It’s almost overwhelming.
Here are the peas, they’re producing, and heavily.
Here are the peas themselves.. I don’t think we have the patience to let them plump up!
To the left, we have.. CUKES!
This and one other are ready to pick.
Prolific tomato June 25, 2008
Well. It sure has grown. Remember the picture I took of the tomato growing in a neighbor’s sidewalk crack? I took the photo on may 16.
Here’s a photo I took yesterday, June 24..
Amazing, no? I took a cutting from it yesterday, and I hope to have it root. This is an extremely hardy tomato, which I believe to be a cherry based on the size of the blossoms.
Growing nearby, there was a nightshade growing.
Does anybody have any explanation as to why a tomato is growing so well in a crack in the ground, let alone, without much human interaction? Thanks.
