volunteers

i was out roaming around the yard after work, looking in on the teosinte after a couple of nights of intense rains ( 3.8" in two days by my rain guage )...

and wondering how a colony of jerusalem artichokes had established itself out by the alley ( i certainly did not plant them...not that fool hardy...rodents i am thinking )... i was walking past a patch of maize...

when i found an ear ( partially gnawed...rodents again? ) of purple flint maize on the ground...several kernels had begun to germinate on the cob...doubtlessly spurred on by the sudden abundance of mositure...

which brought to mind some yellow dense #2 i had found germinating in a field after harvest a few years ago...

i have a weakness for dna trying to replicate in difficult circumsatnces...remember puddles? ( and the puddle she germinated in? ) well this maize was never going to reach maturity before a frost...

so i pulled them off the cob...a couple had rooted into the cob already ( about twelve pounds of nitrogen in a ton of cobs...not altogether void of nutrients )...

and planted them...

putting the peat pots in the sunshine on the patio...as i said these wil never make it to maturity before a frost so you are probably looking at the start of the indoor season here...maize under the lights...i can only surmise how this may turn out

solanum solved

i knew this plant that appeared unbidden in the bed of my truck was a nightshade...

as soon as i saw the blooms...unmistakably solanum despite being rather small...still i was clueless as to what nightshade...

the fruits it produces bear a strong resemblance to potato or carolina horse nettle fruit...however i knew it wasn't a spud and there are no thorns on this plant...besides, both those plants' blooms are much larger...

the fruits from bittersweet nightshade are somewhat different in appearance,as are the ripe fruits ( as you will see in a moment ) the plant is a more viney ( it is all over the back fence ) while the plant in the truck looks more like a bush...and the bittersweet blooms are all wrong as well...

while i was poking around the bed today i noticed ripe fruits...very dark...almost an eggplant ( another nightshade ) color and some research has led me to believe we are looking at black nightshade...allegedly edible...i believe i will pass since i am not completely secure in this identification...it fits the descriptions and photos i have seen in some reliable, university based information...that still does not guarantee i know with certainty..i would prefer you not pick them...if you do, consume at your own risk...i will be saving seed however...betting some birds wil be spreading some as well

zea mays mays...zea mays mexicana

over at the portage garden the heirloom maize is topping out at around eleven feet...

and i have some eight footers out back...

there seem to be fair sized ears on most of the plants...which means seed saving i am thinking...

in the yard the teosinte continues to bloom away...

and, in general, where you find blooms you find silks...

usually silks are an index of ears...

where there are ears there is a likelihood of seeds...and i can just begin to discern ( and feel ) the outlines of some here...more seed to save if it all come out right...and that means a new generation come spring.

on the garden bus

out early this morning i to a trip by the community garden in the next town over...

along the way i picked up a hitchhiker who rode along ( despite the thirty and forty mile an hour buffeting ) with me...

my bed seemed to be in order...the maize row is tall and the ears of flint corn look robust...

there are still multiple blooms on the spuds...

however, rather than producing fruits, the blooms are simply turning brown, shriveling up, and falling off...leaving the stems behind as evidence that this is not the year for fruits...

and these spuds have been in the bed since spring...some are showing signs of finishing up...harvest soon enough...

the rainbow quinoa is in fine shape...

and the happy beans delivered a handful that will be good in a salad...

back home the mooseberry bush has sprouted new growth...

the jerusalem artichokes and the squash continue to bloom...

there are ripe tomatoes...more ingredients for that salad...

the teosinte is bloming as well...

and the plants have responded with silks and ears...

i found a few more beans...

and the hitchhiker stayed onboard until the bus reached the terminal...he can move into the mirror or find a niche in the yard with the rest of the insect population...we will see if we see him around.