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Popcorn Seedlings

I was pleasantly surprised that I now have corn seedlings. I purchased a package of corn seed for use as part of a Thanksgiving card. Even though I attempted to use the seeds in a card, the seeds were still viable.

Corn Seedling

Corn Seed Packet

Corn Seeds

I ended up using pumpkin seeds that I harvested in 2011.

Pumpkin Seeds

Thanksgiving Card

The lyrics are from a Thanksgiving song that was popular when I was in elementary school.

Lyrics–Henry Alford, 1810-1871
Music–George J. Elvey, 1816-1893

Botanical Interests offer great seed in gorgeously illustrated packets.


Memory Bowl Tests

Gone back to working on my knitted Memory Bowls. Ran into a problem with the bowls not being sturdy enough. Put them on hold.

The bowls are fiber with some negative spaces within the patterns, a stiffener is in order. In the past I used sugar, shellac, corn starch, liquid starch, floor wax, microcrystalline wax, salt, and miscellaneous other stuff in the past. Wanted to spend some time thinking about how to finish the bowls.

Serendipity?

I have been following Maria Amélia Mendes’ YouTube channel. Her concrete tutorials are easy to follow, with loads of good tips. I really want to make some concrete pieces. Recently she posted a video–How to make baskets with wood sawdust. Thought I would test out her glue formula on a couple of knitted pieces.

The glue was combined with wood shavings and pressed into a form. After the pieces dried and hardened she added an application of her Finishing Glue. It is the same formula as her glue, with the addition of 100 ml of PVA.

Maria Amélia Mendes’ Homemade glue recipe:
1 liter of water
1 cup of cornstarch
50 ml of white vinegar

I made the Finishing Glue for my test pieces. I had forgotten that heated corn starch and water solution can suddenly become thick. Applied the glue to the test pieces. The thickness made it a tad challenging. If the pieces had been fragile, wouldn’t have been able to apply the glue. I refrigerated the left over glue. May try diluting it a bit if/when I use it in the future.

The first bowl is linen with a little plant fiber.

Test Bowl 1

Test Bowl 1

Test Bowl 1

Test Bowl 1

Test Bowl 1

Because the glue was a bit thick, after I applied the glue I gave it a rinse with the kitchen faucet spray function. The bowl was placed over a form to dry.

The second bowl is cotton with plant fiber.

Test Bowl 2

Test Bowl 2

Test Bowl 2

Test Bowl 2

The bowls were placed over forms and left in the sun to dry.

Test Bowls Drying

Both bowls are firm and the appearance of fiber hasn’t been altered too much.

Bowls China Cabinet

My next test will be with wool. Wool can be tricky. My first test using molten wax on wool changed its appearance to a plastic-like surface. Definitely ugly.

Check out Maria Amélia Mendes’ Youtube channel and her excellent concrete videos.


Garden Finds

How was the hole made? An animal?

Hole

Hole

Nope, it was the location of a large pinecone.

The pinecone was eaten by some type of animal.
Eaten Pinecone

Pine Pollen
The first time I have seen pine pollen up close. It fell into the garden during a windy evening. The trees are roughly 40′ tall.

Pine Pollen
Pine Pollen

Pine Pollen

Pine Pollen

In the four days it has been on the dining room table, it has opened up more. Its pollen is clearly visible.
Pine Pollen

Pine Pollen

Pine Pollen

Pine Pollen

Pine Leaves

Pine Debris

Another Pollen Find While Looking for A Seed

Pine Pollen in Hand

Pine Parts

Pinecone

Unfortunately the Seed is From a Previous Season
It is still beautiful.
Pine Seed


Senecio articulatus, Botanical Illustration, Photos, Books

My Senecio articulatus looks elongated. During the day it sits on a window ledge. Why elongated? Could this be normal growth?

Senecio articulatus

This morning I googled Senecio articulatus. Most of the images did not look like my plant, but an interesting and very cool thing happened. I found a link to a botanical illustration site. One Senecio articulatus illustration was dated 1781. Gives me pause to think my plant could be connected to the plant in the illustration.

I spent some time looking at several illustrations. The images are so beautiful.

Senecio articulatus at PlantIllustrations.org

Links and Photos Plantgenera.org

The Online Books Page–Botany

Great day for finding loads to view and read!