How to Save Spaghetti Squash Seeds
// August 17th, 2010 // No Comments » // House-of-Chaos, PlantSwap, Tiny House Projects, china, personal
Spaghetti Squash
Spaghetti squash, which can be eaten in a variety of ways, is simple to grow in the garden, provided you have the space for the long vines that the plant produces. Saving the seed from spaghetti squash for growing the next year is a simple process. If you plan to keep seeds from the current harvest, you should plant the squash in an area away from other varieties of squashes to prevent cross-pollination.
Things You’ll Need:
- Sharp knife
- Heavy spoon
- Wire mesh colander
- Paper towels
- Newspaper
- Envelope
- Glass jar with lid
How to Collect Seeds
- Make sure to select a healthy squash to ensure the seed will produce healthy plants.
- Use a sharp knife to cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. Place the mesh colander in the sink or on your workspace.
- Pick up one of the squash halves and hold it over the colander. Use a big spoon to scoop out the seeds from the center of the squash, allowing them to fall into the colander.
- Layer paper towels or newspaper on the counter near your sink. Run the seeds under cool water to separate the seeds from the fibrous ribbons holding them together in big gobs.
- Place the clean seeds on the paper towels or newspaper in a single layer. Use a paper towel to pat, pat, pat the top of the seeds dry.
- Transfer the seeds to dry paper towels or newspaper and place the seeds in a dry, cool area to finish drying. The seeds should be dry in approximately a week.
- Place the dried seeds into an envelope, label and seal. Store the seeds in a closed jar or in the refrigerator until planting time.
Other Information
Spaghetti squash can be baked and served plain as a side dish, or you can fork the strands of the squash out and serve with pasta sauce.
Nana bought it for her birthday. So last December, the box arrived and we needed “nice weather” and a “breeze” to make it work, so we needed to Ohio weather to turn warm. Now, in May 2010, that has finally happened so she sent away for the caterpillars in April and they arrived about two weeks ago.
Poppies Rock!
Beautiful flower stalks in blue, purple and white appear in spring on tall perennial. Perfect in beds and borders as a background plant. Soil should be kept constantly moist. Fertilize monthly during growing season. Prune old stalks to the ground after new shoots appear. All delphiniums are easy to grow from seed, sown in pots or flats in late July or August. Transplants should be set out in October for late spring to early summer bloom. In colder areas, sow seeds from March to April or set out transplants from June to July for September bloom. Rich, well-drained soil is a must for delphiniums and they love regular fertilizings. Delphiniums will not do well in strongly acid soils, so add lime to make soil more neutral. A little superphosphate worked into hole when planting will result in a stronger plant. Do not cover root crown and beware: Snails and Slugs LOVE this plant, so keep area clean and free of debris. In spring, remove all shoots, except for 2 or 3, and side dress plants with a complete fertilizer. Stake plants early and remove old flower spikes immediately after bloom, leaving only foliage. Once new shoots are several inches tall, cut old stalks back hard. If plants have been well fertilized, you should get a second flush of flowers for fall.
Soil Requirements
March 7, 2010
From the most awesome 
Category: Annuals
Thunbergia, also known as black-eyed Susan vine or clock vine, is a quick-growing vine boasting many open-faced flowers, usually with dark centers (hence the name “black-eyed Susan”). Where not struck down by frost it is a perennial, but most climates of the United States grow it as a beautiful annual. The name Thunbergia honors a Swedish botanist named Karl Pehr Thunberg.
