Month: November 2021

Redbuds, Seeds, and Propagating: FIVE EASY STEPS

~ Nicole R. Ordway ~ 2 Comments

For an even quicker look, here’s a shout out to the website that taught me all about propagating redbud trees by seed: https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/newsletters/hortupdate/2010/jun/tree_seeds.html

I’ve noticed several people on a Facebook group I’m part of –

Ugh, this is like those recipe pages where people write a freaking novel about why they made the dish they made before they paste the recipe card square and fuck off. So I’m just gonna get to the point…WITH PICTURES!

Step ONE: collect pods! Collect the pods in autumn when they turn brown and crispy. I always collect what I can from my height and leave the rest for the critters. After all, one of the many great things about redbuds is that they feed our wild seed-eaters in the winter when other food is scarce. This technique is called responsible foraging!

Step TWO: Pop the seeds out of the pods! Sometimes you’ll be lucky and there will be a couple of seeds in a pod. Sometimes there won’t be a single fucking one! But that’s nature for you.

Step THREE: scarify the seeds! Scarifying the seeds allows moisture to enter the thick husk and hydrate the seed meat itself. You can do this after the cold period (called stratifying, more info to come) with a knife by nicking the husk gently, or with sandpaper by scraping the husk gently. OR, if you’re A PYRO LIKE ME, you can dump the seeds in just-boiling water for about a minute BEFORE the cold period (“stratifying“). I prefer this method because there is heat involved and, as mentioned, I’m a bit of a pyro, AND ALSO BECAUSE this allows you to immediately determine which seeds are viable and which ones aren’t. Seeds that FLOAT are not viable and aren’t worth your time nurturing. Seeds that SINK are viable and should germinate. After a minute in the recently-boiling water I scoop the non-viable seeds out with a spoon and drain the water from the rest in a fine colander.

(PS, I always thought colander had two L’s, but Spellcheck just informed me it sure fucking doesn’t, so we’ve both learned something today.)

Step FOUR: stratify the seeds! Get a plastic baggie or other airtight container. Dump the seeds in the baggie. Dampen your fingers under the faucet and flick a sprinkle or so of water in the baggie. Seal that fucker and toss it in your fridge and FORGET ABOUT IT until you need that sausage that you’ve been saving for a stew. Check to make sure there’s a smidgen of moisture in the baggie, and if there isn’t then repeat the bit with the fingers and the faucet, and FORGET ABOUT IT AGAIN. See, redbud seeds need a period roughly 3 months long of cold temperature (NOT FREEZING, we’re talking fridge temps not freezer temps) to properly germinate.


4A: KEY NOTES ABOUT THE BAGGIE: So listen, don’t be an idiot like me the first time I did this. Grab a Sharpie or other permanent soft-tipped marker and notate the date that you fridged the seeds and the species of tree they are on your baggie. This way you won’t come across a long-forgotten baggie in the back of your fridge years from now and wonder what the fuck these seeds are. Maybe they’ll still germinate. If they’re like my pumpkin seeds that I did this to, maybe they will. But maybe they won’t. Practice good propagation and label your baggies. Luckily redbud seeds are pretty unique-looking.

Step FIVE: sow your seeds! When the last frost has passed and your seeds have been in the fridge for at least 3 months (90 days minimum, don’t fuck around with this part), sow your seeds in individual containers of soil. You can also sow them straight into the ground, but in my zone (8A) we sometimes get a random frost that forgot it was supposed to be springtime. Having my treelings in containers enables me to bring them indoors if I need to protect them from a random frost. A cautionary note with REDBUDS: These trees develop a long taproot pretty quickly, so if you sow them in containers plan to start them in a 1 gallon size and pot up within the first growing season. I don’t have a picture for this step because I didn’t take any last year and obviously I can’t sow my seeds yet as it’s Nov 29 and they’re stratifying right now. But I trust my dear readers of horticulture and propagation tips can imagine what seeds in containers of soil look like.

And that’s it! I promise! Follow these steps and in the spring you’ll have oodles of redbud treelings in pots! For really realz! And if this somehow doesn’t work for you, please comment below so we can figure it out together.

Fall Garden

~ Nicole R. Ordway ~ 2 Comments

A quick word: I’m in plant hardiness zone 8A. If you’re in a colder climate, this post may not apply to you. If you’re in a warmer climate, this post probably does. If you have no clue what zone you’re in, the USDA provides a nice chart! Check it out at https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/
But here’s also a screen print I grabbed on 11/4/21. Those are minimum winter lows on that chart that you’re looking at.

In and around my zone we have a longer growing season. This means I can sow cole crops in the fall like brassicas (broccoli, kale, cauliflower family) with little worry about them surviving the winter. Last year I tried this theory out with kale and it worked WONDERFULLY. After a little frost baby kale leaves are actually sweet! Summer gardening is nice and all, but you have to contend with insects and diseases. In the spring, fall and winter these concerns are limited. I’ve become quite a fan of leaving the summer for the development of squashes and root vegetables, and doing most of my “at-risk” gardening in the fall, spring or winter.

Right now, for example, my blueberry plants are changing into their autumn foliage in a magnificent blaze of color across the garden.

My kale is a successful experiment this year. I say that because last year (2020) I bought a seed packet for 2020 use. I sowed about half of it and refrigerated the rest. This year I sowed the rest of the 2020 seeds and they are coming in quite nicely.

I pruned my container-grown mint pretty heavily this past summer (2021, like probably late September) and it LOVED the abuse and has come around hard for a second round. Fucking mint, y’all. Beat it up, IT LIKES IT.

And the bell peppers. These guys did HORRIBLY in the summer and went to mold, weirdly enough. But this fall? Right now on November 4? FRUITS!!!!

They’re actually going red faster than they did during the summer months. I surmise that bell pepper plants prefer cooler temps in the 60 degree range for ripening. Further experimenting shall be performed next spring! I plan to start these early next year, like late January indoors for seed germination. I’ll transplant outdoors after the last frost and see how they do. I suspect they don’t like our warmer summer here in Zone 8A but will enjoy the transition seasons.

What’s your garden look like right now? Share in the comments below!

Hike Like a Girl: Part Five: TREKKIN’ POLES

~ Nicole R. Ordway ~ 3 Comments

Spelled how the kuhl kids do it. Pf, whatever, nobody pronounces the “g” anyway. Nobody says “trekking poles”; it’s always “trekkin’ poles”. The apostrophe takes the place of the letter not said. Deal with it.

Oh, hi, didn’t see you there! So this one WAS gonna be called Part Five: Accessories and I WAS gonna ramble about all the bits and bobs I bring or don’t bring hiking. But, honestly, short of the obvious like a stove and water filter, etc, which will get their own parts in the next installment or so, THE MOST CRITICAL EXTRA THING TO BRING HIKING OR BACKPACKING IS A PAIR OF TREKKIN’ POLES. A properly selected pair of trekkin’ poles will save your knees, your ankles, your back, and potentially your life.

I’M NOT FUCKING KIDDING AROUND.

I can’t tell you how many times my trekkin’ poles have saved me from falling and breaking a limb or dying. They’re game changers. They give you four operational legs rather than two, and do you see ANY two-legged creatures besides dumb humans gamboling around the wilderness? NO. Because four legs are absolutely better than two. Well-applied trekkin’ poles will save your ass from getting wet while crossing a stream; they’ll save your ankle from getting twisted while scrambling a particularly rocky trail; and they’ll save your knees from exploding during a steep decline.

You think I’m exaggerating? I’m not. Anyone that has walked in the wilds with additional weight on them (ie a pack of any weight really) will tell you that you want a walking stick or two, and the better option is a pair of trekkin’ poles. Poles are lighter than sticks, better designed in the grip, easier to use, and way more durable.

I love mine so much I did a fucking photoshoot for them. Here they are!

I have the Black Diamond model with the cork ergonomic grips and the carbon fiber lower bits. I got these ages ago from a retailer that doesn’t exist anymore, much like most of my major gear assortment, and honestly Black Diamond probably doesn’t make the exact model anymore just like Osprey doesn’t make my pack model anymore but still makes a 70L womens pack in green. You know. The basics are still there in the catalog: they just changed the names.

The important keywords to remember here are: CORK, ERGONOMIC grips, and CARBON FIBER lower bits. Cork is absorbent, so your hands don’t get all sweaty! YAAAY! “Ergonomic” means that they’re angled a smidge instead of being straight up and down, and HOLY SHIT does that take all the stress of impact off your wrists. It’s amazing. Pay more for it, it’s worth it. Carbon fiber is important because it’s a sturdy material that is lighter weight than steel and will still do the job.

There are a few key points to make regarding the proper fitting and use of trekkin’ poles. When standing still with your pole planted next to you, your elbow should be at a 90 degree angle and your wrist should be straight. Like this:

See that ergonomic angle? See how my hand fits perfectly into it and doesn’t try to bend the pole to accommodate? You want all these things.

You should also note how the handle loop is positioned around my wrist. My partner is a purist and cuts all the tags off his clothing to save weight, so he also took the handle loops off his poles. Whatever, it works for him. I keep the loops on because I have carpal tunnel syndrome and will occasionally, COMPLETELY BY RANDOM, lose all grip in either of my hands. THIS IS BAD if you’re trying to hold on to stuff like trekkin’ poles! The loops have saved my grip multiple times when a snag in a rock or a nerve flare up would otherwise leave that pole behind.

To correctly use the handle loop, insert your hand from below the loop and then grab the handle. This will place the curved end over your wrist with the collected ends that connect to the handle below your wrist (and often, in your palm when you hold the pole.) Take note this is the LEFT pole in my LEFT hand. Your set of trekkin’ poles should have a left and a right pole, for reasons I’m not sure of, but it’s definitely important and you’ll notice once you start walking if the wrong pole is in the wrong hand.

If you have the loop worn correctly, you should be able to let go of the pole and not drop it! WEEE!

So that’s fitting and measuring done. There’s just one more tip on trekkin’ pole use: THESE ARE NOT FOR POLE VAULTING. These are designed for tapping along rocks and roots and such to ensure you remain upright with all of whatever you’ve got in your pack. Aluminum poles CAN break if you try to use them for pole vaulting. Steel poles CAN break if you try to use them for pole vaulting. And then where are you? You’re fucked, that’s where you are.

Fucked.

Do you have a favorite model of trekkin’ poles? Geek out with me in the comments below!