Patience is needed with the Impatiens
October 16, 2009 by Humphrey
Filed under How and When to Plant or Collect Seed, How to Guides, Species and Product Overview
I like to collect Impatiens, both Yellow Jewelweed (Impatiens pallida) and Spotted Touch-Me-Not (Impatiens capensis), but it can be trying. I carry a 12” x 20” x 5” pan into a nice big patch of plants and knock the tops of the plants into the pan. Seeds fly everywhere but a goodly amount fly into [...]
Seed Drying Techniques for Anyone
October 10, 2009 by Arnel
Filed under Customer FAQ's, How and When to Plant or Collect Seed, How to Guides, Prairie Moon Happenings, Seasonal Reminders
Today is October 9th and we already have collected seeds from a lot of the species around the farm. Before we clean the seed, it needs to dry out, especially because we had a lot of rain the last few weeks, during the height of the collection season. From these photos, you’ll see that our [...]
Outdoor Operations: What’s New?
September 22, 2009 by Humphrey
Filed under How and When to Plant or Collect Seed, Prairie Moon Happenings, Seasonal Reminders
After the driest start to September, three weeks with no rain, we finally started to get rain on the first day of autumn. Yipee. Unfortunately the drought may have lasted too long. It appears like some seeds may not be good this year. I have seen many plants that bloomed and dried out with out producing [...]
September Seed Harvest: Culver’s Root
September 18, 2009 by Arnel
Filed under How and When to Plant or Collect Seed, Prairie Moon Happenings, Species and Product Overview
The past few weeks we have been harvesting seeds of many different species. A lot of species we collect by hand using (grass) hooks; some people may prefer to use pruning shears. Harvesting seeds by hand, instead of by machine, is the best way to avoid also harvesting weeds. The hooks are very sharp so [...]
What are the Pros and Cons to a Fall vs. Spring Seeding?
September 14, 2009 by Becky
Filed under Customer FAQ's, How and When to Plant or Collect Seed, How to Guides, Seasonal Reminders
Seeds can be planted in fall, spring or dead of winter. This chart lists the pros and cons of each season. TIME ADVANTAGE DISADVANTAGE Fall (plant mid October until the ground freezes) -Clay soils are easier to work in the fall than the spring -Higher forb/sedge germination in the first growing season -High moisture conditions [...]
