paper pot planting & Seedy Saturday!

I think I like this little paper pot maker I bought at a seedy Saturday!

Main reasons for this are to get away from plastic and the troubles that come from re-using plastic 6packs (like disease and fungus.)
although I will use some this year anyways

Attie liked it it too at first!

Her teeny tiny attention span could only make it through about 3 pots...  then she ends up going on a tangent

She was just glueing bits of newspaper with the Oatmeal Glue paint.


Having so much fun.


Being creative.

Then she says:

"i'm going to Fridge it"


:0)


she "Fridges" things.




















Going through seeds to decide which to plant first.

I got my seeds from Seedy saturday in Regina!  (I bought from Prairie Garden Seeds and Heritage Harvest Seeds

What a great day THAT was.  We had a good time. Attie played in the children's spot - which was completely hands ON.  the theme was "touch everything"  - which for kids is the only interesting option.  paint, plant, play with dirt and plants...

and I got to wander in and out of like- minded, organic gardeney type folks, frantically gathering seed for this year's abundance!

Stories and enthusiasm bounced from one bright eye'd, winter worn prairie person to another. 

After what I had been through the weeks and months prior to March 9th,  It was like the first piece of sun I felt cutting through my skin,cuting thru to my bones.

Feelings were:  hopeful and warm-hearted.

 So, I used a mix of :  20% compost : 40% peat : 40% vermiculite

the first batch had some little weeds who didn't get cooked in the compost last summer.

so I cooked (sterilized)  the compost this time.  at 200 c for 30 mins, just like the internet said to do.
covered it with cardboard.

Sterilizing compost

... So I'll let you know how that worked.



 and Ava crawls.  also she is standing up on things!!  waaaahahaha she's growing fast.

 helping momma fill the pots with soil

Then her little creative and easily distracted tendencies drew her to the doggie dish. 

and mud making.

a few days later....

"...the difference between
the sprout and the bean
it is a golden ring
it is a twisted string..."

-Joanna Newsom  

Planting!!

yay for planting seeds.

We dragged out all the various containers I saved from last and passed years.
soil, peat, sand and vermiculite.

here's what attie's up to whilst I prepare the containers...
sensory heaven for her.

put the mix in the containment devices

umm, getting progressively dirtier and looking rather mischievous...

but very happy!!

This here's wild blue flax seeds, a native wildflower. They had to be stratified (go through a cold spell - ei.refrigerator) and scarified.
(rubbed between sandpaper or soaked in hot water)
I got em from Blazing Star Wildflower Seed company. Out of Aberdeen, SK. I'd like to order more, they have all kinds of wildflowers!
My goal is to get my back yard 1/2 in native plants this summer.

My favorite, Johnny Jump ups. They used to grow all over our farm, growing up.

I swear that I was watching and trying to avoid this,
but she had to test it out...

She's not sure what she thinks.

got er done!

is it ever nice to dig in the dirt again!

smile.

saska plants

Atlin and I just got back from a great road trip this weekend. Driving around Saskatchewan is lovely.


what a beautiful province it is.


I especially love the native prairie lands, of which there is not really a huge amount, sadly.
I am very interested in the plants of saskatchewan and they are very hard to study because of all the farming, most of it is taken over by crops. i kind of just recently realized this!

here's some plants i saw a while ago at Batoche, in the river valley.





not sure who this beauty is yet...
but i will find out.












this is how juniper grows in saskatchewan, flat!
some things about juniper from "Edible and Medicinal Plants of the Rockies":

"... juniper branches were often burned in smudges to repel insects. Smoke from the berries or branches was used in religious ceremonies or to bring good luck (especially for hunters)...

...if a horse was sick, it was made to inhale smoke from the needles 3 times for a cure...
...oil of juniper berries was mixed with fat to make salves for protecting wounds from black flies (wish i had known this in the yukon)...
...berries stimulate urination by irritating the kidneys and give urine a violet like fragrance (your pee could smell like flowers!)...
...strong juniper tea was used to sterilize needles and bandages during the black death in the 14th century Europe...
... tea was given to women in labour to speed delivery and after the birth it was used as a cleansing, healing agent...
and the neatest thing, in my opinion:
... some tribes scattered berries (to be used as beads in necklaces)on anthills. the ants would eat out the sweet center, leaving a convenient hole for stringing.

it is also a key ingredient in gin! yumm. gin and tonic on a hot day...

more plants later...