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Updated on Wednesday*:
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It’s August and almost the end of the growing seasons.
I’m sure that you got enough bounty to can or freeze your winter supply,
but did you ever think about next year or the birds?
You can do both by collecting, drying and saving your
seeds. Wash your tomato, pepper and zucchini seeds, dry them on paper
towels, and store them in glass jars with tight lids in a cool, dry
place. About the middle of March, you can bring them out, buy some
potting soil and plant the seed in any containers that you have saved
over the winter for such a project. Place the containers in the sunniest
windows of your home and water them lightly.
In order to mark what is what, buy some inexpensive
plastic (preferably white) knives, write what veggie it is and place it
in the appropriate container. A magic marker will do the job just fine.
If you grow potatoes, save the small ones in a cool, dry
place and plant them next spring. They won’t do any good if they are
hybrid.
If you feed the birds, plus an occasional chipmunk (one
that the cat must have missed), I can help with bird seeds. Save your
cantaloupe, acorn squash, pumpkin, watermelon, grape and apple seeds.
Wash and dry them on paper towels, then mix them together and store them
in a glass jar with a tight lid in a cool, dry place until fall. Mix
them in with the seed you buy to give the birds a treat. I have never
tried orange, lemon or grapefruit seeds, but they might work also.
Now we have a vegetable garden and happy birds, all for
very little money and some “elbow grease,” as my mother used to say, and
a happy end to summer.
My thought for the month is: Don’t forget to share your
end of the garden goodies with those who don’t or can’t have a garden.
If you enjoyed reading this column click the link
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This Week's Editorial:By Helen Morris:
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