I had a very good day today (Sunday as I write). This morning I saw the little bird above, I think an Oak Titmouse. I also watched a chickadee for a while, and it caught a big fat something and relished it for quite a while.
I watered the greenhouse flats and pots, and then got off to the CNPS Propagation Group monthly work day. We were sorting and trimming plants for sale. Bringing out the beauty of the plant. Some of us sat round a table and enjoyed each other's company while we prepared the plant show mailer. All very pleasant, and a warm sunny day to boot.
On the way back home I stopped down by the local creek to have another look at the riparian plants there.
I couldn't help myself. So many lush plants growing right at the edge of the road. I would be doing them a favor. I scooped up various specimens from the boggy road ditch with as much root as possible and dirt too, and put them carefully in a garbage bag I was lucky enough to have in the car. When I got home I distributed them among various pots with heavy peat enriched potting soil.
These are possible candidates for the natural pool filtration system. I'll blog more about this anon, and Rana Creek's plant list for the natural pool conversion.
I also sowed lupine seeds today, then I decided to look up the time for sowing lupines. Of course, I read that I'm a few weeks too early! But I had treated them with almost boiling water, so they had to be planted now. Oh well. I'm just hoping they germinate.
I watered the greenhouse flats and pots, and then got off to the CNPS Propagation Group monthly work day. We were sorting and trimming plants for sale. Bringing out the beauty of the plant. Some of us sat round a table and enjoyed each other's company while we prepared the plant show mailer. All very pleasant, and a warm sunny day to boot.
On the way back home I stopped down by the local creek to have another look at the riparian plants there.
I couldn't help myself. So many lush plants growing right at the edge of the road. I would be doing them a favor. I scooped up various specimens from the boggy road ditch with as much root as possible and dirt too, and put them carefully in a garbage bag I was lucky enough to have in the car. When I got home I distributed them among various pots with heavy peat enriched potting soil.
These are possible candidates for the natural pool filtration system. I'll blog more about this anon, and Rana Creek's plant list for the natural pool conversion.
I also sowed lupine seeds today, then I decided to look up the time for sowing lupines. Of course, I read that I'm a few weeks too early! But I had treated them with almost boiling water, so they had to be planted now. Oh well. I'm just hoping they germinate.
Comments
http://www.cnps.org/cnps/grownative/why_native.php
(Scroll down.)
You can delete my comment.
It seems that the legal but less ethical way to go is to get permission from the neighbors and then gather from less disturbed areas farther from the road!!!
I thought because they were in a ditch where they can easily be run over by a car (and the other reasons in my other comment) it was prob. OK. So now I'm not sure what to do with the plants. Can I get a collecting permit?
Some sites just say to be discrete, and I think lots of people break the rules in an "ethical" way - which I think is what I did.
CNPS link: http://www.cnps.org/cnps/archive/collecting.php
Content from link:
"It is illegal to collect plants along a highway right of way, in National Parks, National Monuments or National Forests, State Parks, or most local parks without a collecting permit. Plants and wildflowers growing in such locations are part of a natural system designed for public enjoyment, and in most cases should be left to natural processes. Permits for collecting plants must be obtained from the appropriate supervising agency. "