Ill-timed corn

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The tassels starting to emerge a week ago. Note the stormy sky in the background - this was taken around midday...

The tassels starting to emerge a week ago. Note the stormy sky in the background – this was taken around midday…

It’s happened again. Just as our white corn plants started maturing, the weather changed and the pollen from the tassels was washed away by the incessant rain over the last week or so. So, now that the first silks have started appearing, I’m left with nothing to pollinate them with.

Washed-out tassels. I didn't have the opportunity to collect the pollen because it rained so much, and there has been a lot of insect activity in this patch - lots of breeding aphids, mainly. I may post about that later - or I may not because it was pretty depressing to see the insects thrive at the cost of my plants...

Washed-out tassels. I didn’t have the opportunity to collect the pollen because it rained so much, and there has been a lot of insect activity in this patch – lots of breeding aphids, mainly. I may post about that later – or I may not because it was pretty depressing to see the insects thrive at the cost of my plants…

Some of the other plants are lagging behind in growth, but they haven’t produced tassels yet, so it looks like this round will be “corn kosong” again.

The first corn silks, spotted today.

The first corn silks, spotted today.

I think I’ll try starting the next set of corn in October or November, so that the plants will start maturing in the beginning of the year, when we’re supposed to have less rain. Of course, being the rainy season when I start the plants out will probably bring another set of problems (snails, most likely).

It’s all trial and error…

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The easiest transplant I’ve ever done

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Step 1: Get a seed to germinate.

Step 1: get a seed to germinate.

I’m pretty laid back when it comes to transplanting young plants, which is a really bad habit, because I end up with plants that are stunted because they’re stuck in small pots that were only supposed to house them for a week or so after the seeds germinated.

Well, you know that they sell little biodegradable paper pots that I suppose if you forget to transplant the young plants, will just fall apart with time and if they’re sitting on more soil, the plant can keep growing. Those are perfect for procrastinating people like me. But then, I thought, why buy them when I can recycle something already in the house?

Step 2: Let the plant grow long enough to develop a decent root system.

Step 2: let the plant grow long enough to develop a decent root system.

Enter the cardboard tube from the middle of the toilet paper roll…

Oh, I’ve tried using paper pots made from newspaper, but it’s so much easier to just use the TP cardboard roll, or even from kitchen towel rolls – just trim them to the length you want.

Step 3: Dig a hole deep enough to bury the cardboard roll and place the plant in it.

Step 3: dig a hole deep enough to bury the cardboard roll and place the plant in it.

All I did was fill them with potting mix (not soil – that would have spilled out the bottom), then place them in a tray with a rim, sow the seeds, and water them well. After a few days in a nicely lit area, you should get your seedlings.

Step 4: Fill up the hole with soil and a little fertilizer, if you want (I left the top rim of the roll exposed for the sake of the photo, but covered it when I was done); water the plant well, and keep watering it well so that the cardboard will disintegrate faster over time.

Step 4: Fill up the hole with soil and add a little fertilizer, if you want; then water the plant well, and keep watering it well so that the cardboard will disintegrate faster over time. (I left the top rim of the roll exposed for the sake of the photo, but covered it when I was done.)

The beauty of this system is that you can let the young plants grow one or two sets of true leaves before you plant them out. This also gives them a chance to grow a stronger root system – which you won’t disturb at all when you plant the plants out in the garden.

I love it!

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Weekend bird-watching

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The weather was rather hot on Saturday, and I decided to take a break from gardening and armed myself with the camera instead. It’s been a while since I’ve documented the feathered visitors that visit, and these were the ones that stopped by in the early afternoon…

A pair of lovey-dovey speckled doves - they're always in pairs! - but this was the first time I've seen them looking affectionate.

A pair of lovey-dovey speckled doves enjoying the shade – they’re always in pairs! – this was the first time I’ve seen them being affectionate.

A suspicious black-naped oriole up in the palm tree. They're difficult to photograph because they're so alert and fly off fast.

A suspicious black-naped oriole up in the palm tree. They’re difficult to photograph because they’re so alert and fly off fast.

A nice, fat sparrow looking for a patch of sand to have a sand-bath in.

A nice, fat sparrow looking for a patch of sand to have a sand-bath in.

Not to be confused with the sparrow, but easily so, is this scaly-breasted munia. It was one of a pair that were happily browsing the uncut lawn for food.

Not to be confused with the sparrow, but easily so, is this scaly-breasted munia. It was one of a pair that were happily browsing the uncut lawn for food.

And, last in this series, a mynah feeling the heat after busily looking for food in the grass. It looks like it's gasping from the heat, doesn't it?

And, last in this series, a mynah feeling the heat after busily looking for food in the grass. It looks like it’s gasping from the heat, doesn’t it?

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The great pineapple experiment

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The pineapple crown shortly after it was planted out.

The pineapple crown shortly after it was planted out.

I’m glad I usually take photos of our plants to keep track of their progress (or lack of), because this experiment began over a year ago!

It started with a trio of over-ripe pineapples and a few curious people here. We’d all heard about growing pineapple plants from the tops of the pineapple fruit – but we had never attempted this. So, we kept the tops of the fruits after eating them, and let them dry for a week in loosely wrapped newspaper.

The plants were initially planted out by someone else, within a two square foot area. They didn’t rot away and looked as if they were growing new leaves, so we were excited.

Well, I eventually got around to reading about how to grow pineapple plants, and found out that they spread out a lot and need to be at least a metre apart! I was glad to find out that you can transplant the plants without traumatizing them too much because they have shallow roots, and so two of them were moved to different spots in the garden – one to a full sun position, the other to partial shade.

One of the pineapple plants after the transplant - it looks satisfied with the new location and is growing stronger leaves now.

One of the pineapple plants after the transplant – it looks satisfied with the new location and is growing stronger leaves now.

Both plants have settled in nicely and have started growing stronger-looking leaves. Part of the problem with the first spot was that it was too shady, so the leaves were thin and long. Neglect also killed one of the plants, but made us more vigilant of the other two, especially after transplanting them.

I know we’ll probably make a number of mistakes as this is our first time growing pineapples. One of my favourite websites, Tropical Permaculture, has a comprehensive page on growing pineapples, so we have some good guidelines and tips to follow.

And since we have these tips and guidelines, I can share that we are halfway there in our quest to grow pineapples, because it apparently takes two years to fruit! Some gardeners wouldn’t have the patience to try growing them, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned about plants, it’s that they carry on growing whether or not we pay attention to them if they have favourable growing conditions. So, I just need to remember to fertilize the plants occasionally and make sure they have enough water, and we should have pineapples to harvest in another year or so …if we don’t kill them, too!

Our ornamental pineapple plant has borne a fruit and is putting out a pair of suckers!

Our ornamental pineapple plant has borne a fruit and is putting out a pair of suckers!

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