Or can the seed pod/flower head be cut off and hung to dry after it is
formed? I'm thinking of things like Bread-seed Poppy, Balsam, Echinacea,
Sunflower, etc. I can't think straight anymore but I'd like to gather some
seeds from my garden before I move.

Heck, I'd like my Moonflower to finally bloom just ONCE before I go.

And, while I think about it, how can I move my Batik Iris? Can I dig them
up now, cut back the leaves and... what? Let them dry? Put them in dry
peat to move? Move them in clumps of earth in a bucket and keep them damp?
I love those things. I'm not leaving them behind to get mowed down.

FragileWarrior expounded:

Or can the seed pod/flower head be cut off and hung to dry after it is
formed? I'm thinking of things like Bread-seed Poppy, Balsam, Echinacea,
Sunflower, etc. I can't think straight anymore but I'd like to gather some
seeds from my garden before I move.

Depends on the plant. Definitely don't hang those bread-seed poppies,
all the seeds will fall out! G If the seeds are far enough along
then yes, I'd try gathering them and drying them - try small paper
bags and elastics, put them in head first, that way you'll lose fewer
seeds.

Heck, I'd like my Moonflower to finally bloom just ONCE before I go.

Ipomoea or datura? My daturas are blooming, but that damned vine
hasn't shown a bud yet!

And, while I think about it, how can I move my Batik Iris? Can I dig them
up now, cut back the leaves and... what? Let them dry? Put them in dry
peat to move? Move them in clumps of earth in a bucket and keep them damp?
I love those things. I'm not leaving them behind to get mowed down.

Take the iris. Cut it back, keep some earth on the roots and try to
keep it slightly damp. This is the ideal time to move them, so go for
it!

Good luck with your move and let us know when you're settled in.
--
Ann, gardening in Zone 6a
South of Boston, Massachusetts
e-mail address is not checked
******************************

In article ,
Ann wrote:

FragileWarrior expounded:

Or can the seed pod/flower head be cut off and hung to dry after it is
formed? I'm thinking of things like Bread-seed Poppy, Balsam, Echinacea,
Sunflower, etc. I can't think straight anymore but I'd like to gather some
seeds from my garden before I move.

Depends on the plant. Definitely don't hang those bread-seed poppies,
all the seeds will fall out! G If the seeds are far enough along
then yes, I'd try gathering them and drying them - try small paper
bags and elastics, put them in head first, that way you'll lose fewer
seeds.

Heck, I'd like my Moonflower to finally bloom just ONCE before I go.

Ipomoea or datura? My daturas are blooming, but that damned vine
hasn't shown a bud yet!
I know that my vine is alive but lord is it coy and/or timide.

And, while I think about it, how can I move my Batik Iris? Can I dig them
up now, cut back the leaves and... what? Let them dry? Put them in dry
peat to move? Move them in clumps of earth in a bucket and keep them damp?
I love those things. I'm not leaving them behind to get mowed down.

Take the iris. Cut it back, keep some earth on the roots and try to
keep it slightly damp. This is the ideal time to move them, so go for
it!

Good luck with your move and let us know when you're settled in.
I'll second that.
--
FB - FFF

Billy
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/

In article
,
Billy Rose wrote:

In article ,
Ann wrote:

FragileWarrior expounded:

Or can the seed pod/flower head be cut off and hung to dry after it is
formed? I'm thinking of things like Bread-seed Poppy, Balsam, Echinacea,
Sunflower, etc. I can't think straight anymore but I'd like to gather
some
seeds from my garden before I move.

Depends on the plant. Definitely don't hang those bread-seed poppies,
all the seeds will fall out! G If the seeds are far enough along
then yes, I'd try gathering them and drying them - try small paper
bags and elastics, put them in head first, that way you'll lose fewer
seeds.

Heck, I'd like my Moonflower to finally bloom just ONCE before I go.

Have you checked the Moonflower at 2am?
I am not positive, but don't they only open up late at night?
Or did a slight humorous statement fly over my head
Night time cannot see ...... Dan

Ipomoea or datura? My daturas are blooming, but that damned vine
hasn't shown a bud yet!
I know that my vine is alive but lord is it coy and/or timide.

And, while I think about it, how can I move my Batik Iris? Can I dig them
up now, cut back the leaves and... what? Let them dry? Put them in dry
peat to move? Move them in clumps of earth in a bucket and keep them
damp?
I love those things. I'm not leaving them behind to get mowed down.

Take the iris. Cut it back, keep some earth on the roots and try to
keep it slightly damp. This is the ideal time to move them, so go for
it!

Good luck with your move and let us know when you're settled in.
I'll second that.

--
Email "dan lehr at comcast dot net". Text only or goes to trash automatically.

"Dan L." expounded:

Have you checked the Moonflower at 2am?
I am not positive, but don't they only open up late at night?
Or did a slight humorous statement fly over my head
Night time cannot see ...... Dan

No, no humor other than the constant wait for moonflowers to bloom. If
they did so at night, then there would be a dead blossom in the am.
Not happening on the Ipomoea, but the Daturas are blooming away out
there.
--
Ann, gardening in Zone 6a
South of Boston, Massachusetts
e-mail address is not checked
******************************

Dan L. wrote:
In article
,
Billy Rose wrote:

In article ,
Ann wrote:

FragileWarrior expounded:

*snip*

Heck, I'd like my Moonflower to finally bloom just ONCE before I go.

Have you checked the Moonflower at 2am?
I am not positive, but don't they only open up late at night?
Or did a slight humorous statement fly over my head
Night time cannot see ...... Dan


Moonflowers grow along the shoulder of the road around and the edges of
the yard, and while they do open at night, the ones that are heavily
shaded are still open as late as 11:30 in the am.

*snip*

Good luck with your move and let us know when you're settled in.
I'll second that.


agree.....

Dan L. wrote:
In article
,
Billy Rose wrote:

In article ,
Ann wrote:

FragileWarrior expounded:

Or can the seed pod/flower head be cut off and hung to dry after it is
formed? I'm thinking of things like Bread-seed Poppy, Balsam, Echinacea,
Sunflower, etc. I can't think straight anymore but I'd like to gather
some
seeds from my garden before I move.

Depends on the plant. Definitely don't hang those bread-seed poppies,
all the seeds will fall out! G If the seeds are far enough along
then yes, I'd try gathering them and drying them - try small paper
bags and elastics, put them in head first, that way you'll lose fewer
seeds.

Back to the question whether seeds have to ripen on the plant -- what
about pokeweed -- if the seeds are still green and not full-sized yet?
Deadly nightshade -- if the seeds are still green or just starting to
turn red? Clover? A patch of land that adjoins my yard has gone
untended for over a year now, and I've been wading in there to pull the
plants that are making seeds (getting scratched up by rampant
raspberries in the process). I'd like to put them in the compost (we're
talking a lot of biomass), but I'm already being overrun by those weeds
in my own yard because of last summer's neglect, and I don't want more.
My compost often gets warm, but seldom warm enough reliably enough or
for long enough to sterilize the seeds.

TIA

helco

On Mon, 30 Jul 2007 21:58:09 -0500, helco wrote:
turn red? Clover? A patch of land that adjoins my yard has gone
untended for over a year now, and I've been wading in there to pull the
plants that are making seeds (getting scratched up by rampant
raspberries in the process). I'd like to put them in the compost (we're
talking a lot of biomass), but I'm already being overrun by those weeds
in my own yard because of last summer's neglect, and I don't want more.

Don't blame last year's weeds in the neighboring lot for germinating weed seeds
in your lawn this year. Chances are, the stuff that's germinating this
year has been there for quite a while, waiting for an opening in the
lawn canopy to germinate. Easiest way to prevent lawn weeds is to grow
thick grass mowed at the proper height for the species.

On Mon, 30 Jul 2007 15:09:39 +0000 (UTC), FragileWarrior
wrote:

Or can the seed pod/flower head be cut off and hung to dry after it is
formed? I'm thinking of things like Bread-seed Poppy, Balsam, Echinacea,
Sunflower, etc. I can't think straight anymore but I'd like to gather some
seeds from my garden before I move.

Heck, I'd like my Moonflower to finally bloom just ONCE before I go.

And, while I think about it, how can I move my Batik Iris? Can I dig them
up now, cut back the leaves and... what? Let them dry? Put them in dry
peat to move? Move them in clumps of earth in a bucket and keep them damp?
I love those things. I'm not leaving them behind to get mowed down.

The seeds should ripen on the plant for best germination rates. All
the plants you mention really do need seeds to ripen on the vine or
plant.

You can dig the iris and divide them. Store them in a dry, cool place
over the winter and plant them in early spring. Cut the foliage off
to about six inches into a fan shape. OR you can move them with a
dirt ball on them, but chances are they may not flower next spring.
They are very hardy and difficult to kill.

Ipomoea alba (moonvine) is a photosensitive plant and depending on
daylight length will determine when it blooms. It will probably start
blooming in mid-August along with morning glories.

Echinacea

You might be able to transplant these. I have more first-hand
experience with black-eyed susan, so I'm not sure I've successfully
transplanted any of my purple coneflowers, but at least based on the
black-eyed susans, they require a lot of water in the first days after
the transplant (especially if it is hot), and can get killed off by
winter if they are transplanted late. If they make it over the
initial shock, they seem to do well. I transplanted some around May
or June and they are flowering now.

Probably too much work to worry about in the middle of a move, but
in case you were wondering...