Thursday 16 August 2012

Budding, Blooming and Bolting

Let's start off with a slightly expanded review of what I just updated in Grow-A-Garden Chronicles:

Back on the 10th of August, I was the 'Harvester Of Basil' yet again, and made what has become somewhat of a favorite (so much so that I bloody well eat it all before I take a picture to post here, honestly how could I? -OM NOM NOM-) with my significant other and I: Bruschetta. If you are unsure what that is, all the more reason for me to make it again sometime soon and get the recipe up here... Anything like that moulded to be gluten free is worth it, for sure. But basically, it is Tomatoes, Basil, Olive Oil, Sun dried Tomatoes, Salt, Pepper and Devour on a slice of Rice bread with some mozzarella or other white cheese. Quick and divine, I tell you.

ANYWAY that is what became the fate of the Basil that filled the bowl, this picture is of the third and final Basil plant just before I harvested it for the second time since they were ready:
A neat memory of note: The fellow upstairs (my landlord) had his family over while I was harvesting this (they've been camping out in the backyard here) and he asked me what it was that I was picking. I told him, and asked him if he wanted to try one; he said no, but then I asked if he wanted to smell them after we spoke more about what I would be using said Basil for. After smelling the fragrant leaves in the bowl, he promptly took one and nibbled on it, and said 'Woah!' and took it upstairs. ^.^ Neat!


On the 13th of August, I went picture crazy again:


These are the Peppers (and the few herbs that you can see in the background)
Jalapeno, Kung Pao and Bell varieties.
 1/3 Oregano; showing the first signs of bolting (see the buds?)
 2/3 Oregano; showing the least signs of bolting. It has resided in the back, gotten less sun and more water than its counterparts--it is also the only one in its original container and therefore has no drainage.
 Oregano 3/3, The most advanced in the bolting process of the 3. Must divine a use for it all soon besides just picking one or two of the super, super strong spicy leaves for sauces...
 The two Parsley subjects. The one on the right was moved out from behind the bolting Cilantro and is now up front; both have drainage, but the white one has been suffering from over watering nonetheless. I moved it up yesterday and during that day and even so far today it has recovered a huge quantity of its previous bright green, which makes me quite happy.
 Speaking of bolting Cilantro! I've eaten the leaves, the stalks, the flowers--all have their own individual tastes, and are supremely pleasant to eat and enjoy. The flowers are my favorite; they have an almost saccharine quality to them and I can sure see why they are a delicacy and used in salads and the like. Believe it or not, this picture is looking down at all three of them--they are a good three feet tall, but lay all over the place and hang out with their neighboring plants.
 1/3 Basil, just a few days after the second harvest. This, like all 3 of my Basil, does not have drainage so I need to be careful when I water them. Beside it is the base of one of the Cilantro--see what I mean by being tall but leaning elsewhere?
 These are the other two of my three Basil subjects--the front one there, if you look in approximately the center of the photo but just slightly up and to the right you can see the cluster of leaves (it almost looks like a bud?) that is beginning to form on the tallest of the three plants.
 Kung Pao budding away... So what does it look like when it blooms?
 Something like this. ^.^ There are two there if you look close.
 Now, I honestly have to admit that I was not expecting to have something like these come out of planting the seeds that I found in a Bell Pepper, but they have grown at twice the speed of the other peppers and I have already transplanted them all once. I must admit I forgot to take a picture of the tiny pot that had the upside down stem of the pepper in it--it is growing well, I shall attempt to remember to take pictures of it close up and not just in front of all the herbs in a black pot next time.
And here, moving at just a slightly slower pace in budding and blooming than the Kung Pao, is the Jalapeno bud. The other sets of Jalapenos are coming along as well, but seem to be a good week behind these ones. Perhaps that is due to container size? Watering? Sunlight? Unsure.

Of course I have a few other pictures from that date that I did not add into the chronicles; but I have decided to do both 'The Other Plants' and the Tomatoes in another posts that will focus on comparison right after this one. Talk to you soon... So very soon! Ah, how I love unexpected days off...

©reated by ŊetHerŊøte



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