Viewing comments posted by Cakeholemoon

Sloe gin is made from the Blackthorn drupes. I discovered a hidden thicket of Prunus spinosa at the Washington State University Arboretum in January 2018. I could see the blue color of the berries from quite a distance across the open meadow, and I wondered: what in the world would be so blue, in such large numbers, in the middle of winter here in Washington? As I got closer, I couldn't believe my eyes! There were hundreds of powder blue balls covering the branches. I had never seen these little trees before. I had no idea what they were. The fruit looked for all the world like concord grapes, only they didn't hang in clusters and there were no vines, just spiny branches, like a plum tree. Because of that, I knew they had to be in the Prunus genus. I ate some and they were very good and sweet. Probably because they had been through many "frosts" and had been on the branches for quite some time. They were definitely good and ripe! I kept the pits from the ones I ate and planted them in some pots in my green house. I hope I will see little sprouts this spring. I will return to them again to see how they look in the spring, summer, and fall, and of course, take more photos!

Is the Common Teasel a carnivorous plant? The leaves of this plant form a cup at the base where they attach to the stem. When it rains, the leaf basin fills with water. Insects become trapped in the water and die. There have been studies which have shown that this plant can benefit from the additional nitrogen and phosphorous from the decaying insects. The benefit: increased seed production. Good news for the Goldfinches!

There is a big patch of these plants growing in Latah County, Idaho. I do not have this plant at my home for fear that a person or an animal may eat a berry by accident. "The berries, foliage, and roots are highly poisonous. As few as two berries can induce vomiting, bloody diarrhea and finally cardiac arrest or respiratory system paralysis." (from Plants of Southern Interior British Columbia and the Inland Northwest by Parish, Coupe, and Lloyd).

Houndstongue is a beautiful plant in the spring. It boasts many tiny, nodding, burgundy-colored flowers. However, in the fall, this plant becomes a terrible weed to avoid at all costs. The beautiful little flowers spend their summer creating little tick-sized and shaped seeds that will stick to anything and everything that brushes by them! These plants can become invasive and can cause real problems for livestock and other animals.

This plant has invaded part of my land, which is an old abandoned railroad bed in eastern Washington. It is hot and dry in the summer and cold and wet in the winter. I have cows and horses in this area, which probably helps this Artemisia to spread and flourish because the animals keep the grass competition down. I have distilled this plant just because I like to make my own essential oils. The oil is a very dark green and has a very strong odor.

I love pine trees, and I especially love the Ponderosa Pine. There is a lone Ponderosa Pine tree living next to my property. It must be over 100 years old and 100 feet tall. I visit it once in a while and listen to the wind whispering through the needles way up in the branches at the top. The lower branches have long since receded. The puzzle-like bark is over 3 inches thick at the base with deep grooves. Fire protection at its finest. It had several sister trees living nearby that have fallen because the land that they lived on changed from dry land to wet land. During a wet and flooded winter, the wind blew them down exposing giant pancake-like root disks which could no longer hold the massive weight of the trees upright to the wet soggy earth. The lone survivor may be in danger. I planted a small stand of Ponderosas nearby on a dry hill above the flood plain. They were just seedlings when planted and now they are soaring above my head and catching some wind of their own. They grow fast, and now they are getting big enough for me to prune a few of the lower branches to allow easier passage for me into my miniature pine forest. I love the smell of my pine forest. I love to stand among them and take in the sights, smells, and sounds of them. I collected some pine needles from them one day and extracted the essential oil through a distillation process. A half-pound of pine needles yielded about 2 ml of oil. Now I can smell my favorite pine trees anytime, anyplace. And when I do, I am standing among them once again.

This is my favorite plant of all time! I have grown Egyptian Walking Onions for over 10 years. I love these plants so much that I started my own website about them and I sell them online. I grow Egyptian Walking Onions in several locations in eastern Washington in zone 6. They are beautiful to look at and wonderful to eat. I love to just gaze upon my plants because of their Medusa-like "heads" and their highly unique individuality. Every plant is different. Some plants may have only two big topsets, and others may have over 50 topsets! Some may have a ball of white flowers for a "head" and some may have a round cluster of topsets for a "head," perhaps with a twisting branch leading up to another cluster ball of topsets -- a "two-headed" onion plant! They surely make a great subject for the botanical photographer. The Egyptian Walking Onion plant is also very prolific (hence the Latin name Allium x proliferum). In the ground, one plant will divide into many over a few years and form a clump of onion bulbs. As clumps get bigger, the plants become more crowded, and the bulbs, though many, do not grow as large. The topsets tend to be smaller as well, and small white flowers dominate over topsets. Plant height also decreases with crowding. Dividing the bulbs every few years is a good idea for an overall increase in plant size both in the ground and above the ground. Above the ground, these plants grow wonderful little topsets which are basically miniature versions of the mature plant itself. The topsets typically form a cluster at the top of the plant, and when they become heavy enough, they will pull the plant stalk over and hit the ground. If the conditions are right, the topsets will take root where they touched down and grow new plants. This is how the Egyptian Walking Onion "walks" around your garden!