I have seen so many baby birds and animals around this year! Cardinals fledged in my yard today, and the robins are feeding a nestful of chicks. Baby bunnies are in the gardens. I even had a baby river otter run smack into my leg yesterday, with mother otter close behind. (First time I've even seen an otter.) So cute!!
Showing posts with label popcorn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label popcorn. Show all posts
time for spring babies!
I have seen so many baby birds and animals around this year! Cardinals fledged in my yard today, and the robins are feeding a nestful of chicks. Baby bunnies are in the gardens. I even had a baby river otter run smack into my leg yesterday, with mother otter close behind. (First time I've even seen an otter.) So cute!!
yesterday broccoli harvest
This is from seed I started last August. It grows in my cold frame until late October, then hangs out during the winter - not enough sun to grow. In early March it takes off again. Then gives us a very early harvest. However, this year I learned what not to do. I should have transplanted it out of the cold frame in April. The frame gets too hot too fast for broccoli and most of the plants buttoned. They made tiny little button heads and I was so mad I pulled them out and composted them. These three heads grew on plants at the edges and gave marginally nice heads. I steamed one of them up for dinner last night and it was tasty.
The broccoli variety I have been growing is called Diplomat. As I was doing some unrelated task it occurred to me why someone would use this name for a broccoli: the big head - of course! Very funny. (except when it buttons.....)
sweet potato sprouts
I have three sweet potato varieties sprouting: Beauregard, Jewel and Hannah. I am keeping them at 80*F, as they don't seem to grow at all at cooler temperatures. Still, they are growing slowly.
Significance
The existence of sprouts on your potatoes is more than a cosmetic change. Sprouts and the firmness of a potato have great significance regarding the advisability of eating the spud. Sprouts mean the starch within the potatoes has been converted into sugar. Check the firmness of the potato to determine whether it's safe to eat. If the spud is soft, it has lost most of its nutrients and is no longer safe to eat.
Considerations
If the potato is green or has a green tint, it has been subject to an unfortunate amount of light exposure. This excessive exposure changes the skin tone of the potato because of the formation of alkaloid solamin. Removal of any and all green skin before eating is recommended because this skin is toxic.
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Misconceptions
Despite the fact that soft and/or wrinkled potatoes are not safe to eat, not all spuds with sprouts should be discarded. If the potato has sprouts, you should still check the firmness level. As mentioned, a soft potato is no good and should be thrown away, but a potato that is not wrinkled and has maintained its firmness should still have a majority of its nutrients. Under these conditions, it is good to eat.
Prevention/Solution
There are three ways to prevent potato sprouts. Don't store the potato in a humid area. Moisture will ensure that sprouts grow. Potatoes also should be stored where air can flow freely to some degree. Finally, temperature should be closely monitored--anything much higher than 50 degrees may lead to the formation of potato sprouts.
Warning
Eating bad (green) potatoes or their sprouts is not life-threatening, but, as members of the nightshade family, potatoes under these conditions are mildly poisonous. While effects are not severe, eating green parts of a potato or eating a potato while raw can cause an upset stomach and digestive problems. Severity is always dependent on the amount of the potato consumed and how much of the potato was bad (green or raw).
Read more: Is It Safe to Eat Potatoes That Have Sprouts? | eHow http://www.ehow.com/about_4571127_safe-eat-potatoes-sprouts_.html#ixzz2VDqucXqq
Read more »»
Significance
The existence of sprouts on your potatoes is more than a cosmetic change. Sprouts and the firmness of a potato have great significance regarding the advisability of eating the spud. Sprouts mean the starch within the potatoes has been converted into sugar. Check the firmness of the potato to determine whether it's safe to eat. If the spud is soft, it has lost most of its nutrients and is no longer safe to eat.
Considerations
If the potato is green or has a green tint, it has been subject to an unfortunate amount of light exposure. This excessive exposure changes the skin tone of the potato because of the formation of alkaloid solamin. Removal of any and all green skin before eating is recommended because this skin is toxic.
Sponsored Links
Free Online Journals
Search the global online library on ethics. Sign up for free.
www.globethics.net/library
Misconceptions
Despite the fact that soft and/or wrinkled potatoes are not safe to eat, not all spuds with sprouts should be discarded. If the potato has sprouts, you should still check the firmness level. As mentioned, a soft potato is no good and should be thrown away, but a potato that is not wrinkled and has maintained its firmness should still have a majority of its nutrients. Under these conditions, it is good to eat.
Prevention/Solution
There are three ways to prevent potato sprouts. Don't store the potato in a humid area. Moisture will ensure that sprouts grow. Potatoes also should be stored where air can flow freely to some degree. Finally, temperature should be closely monitored--anything much higher than 50 degrees may lead to the formation of potato sprouts.
Warning
Eating bad (green) potatoes or their sprouts is not life-threatening, but, as members of the nightshade family, potatoes under these conditions are mildly poisonous. While effects are not severe, eating green parts of a potato or eating a potato while raw can cause an upset stomach and digestive problems. Severity is always dependent on the amount of the potato consumed and how much of the potato was bad (green or raw).
Read more: Is It Safe to Eat Potatoes That Have Sprouts? | eHow http://www.ehow.com/about_4571127_safe-eat-potatoes-sprouts_.html#ixzz2VDqucXqq
parasitic wasps
My first shipment of corn worm parasitic wasps arrived 3 weeks ago. They need to go out to the field within 24 hours, so I ran over to the community gardens and distributed the four cards. Each card has pin head size wasp eggs glued to it. I searched through the plots and found about 10or 12 patches of corn. In four of them, I hung a card of eggs.
I am receiving more eggs about once a week and each time I place the cards in different patches.
The wasps parasitize the eggs of the European Corn Borer. Its an experiment to see if this helps with our worms. From looking back to my old photos (below), the worms I had two years ago were Corn Ear Worms, not Borers. My understanding is that the Ear Worm lays its eggs singly so its hard for a wasp to be effective against them because it has to find every egg. On the other hand the European Corn Borer lays eggs in a cluster, so the wasps can effectively parasitize all of them. It seem like a fantastic, organic method of pest control, so I am trying the experiment anyway.
popcorn sprouts
My popcorn is a couple inches tall now. I thinned it once to about 2-3 inches apart and will thin again to about 6 inches soon. There is a giant sunflower that volunteered at the far end of the bed. It should be able to outgrow the corn.
I am planning to order some parasitic warps this year to see it I can get ears without worms. I need to order these soon.
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