Gardening & Other Things

[neversremedy8]

I didn't get any gardening done this weekend, but I did get some organic seeds off of a couple of different web sites that have been recommended to me ... only to find out later that Ana won't garden unless I get her spinach and white pumpkin seeds. I agreed, and she started clearing out the round bricked area that's to be her special planting area.

I wasn't able to get the strawberry crowns I wanted, all of them were more commercial in nature, and I was looking for something more native like the beach strawberry (fragaria chiloensis) or something of that nature that grows wild in the area. Maybe I should just ask for a clipping from my grandmother's garden, assuming my aunt has kept the plant in the first place. Emerald City Gardens will have some strawberries (I'm not sure which types) in about two weeks, but I'm worried we'll not get the small, extra sweet natives that I'm looking for. Anyone with experience or knowledge on that subject? [J'adore the pictures on Wikipedia for garden strawberries.]

I've sorted out the seeds I already have based on planting dates, but many of them say to plant when the last threat of frost is gone. When I think about the changes in our climate over the last several years, I really can't say when that will be. We had snow last April that chilled and damaged the ranunculus I planted near the front door (and then the slugs got to them). A few years ago, we had hail in June. Who's to say when the last frost will be when the weather is so tempermentally out of whack? Oh, but remember, there's no such thing as global warming that causes planet-wide climate upsets and leads to freak storms. No, no, no.

Other news:
sebab needs a new kidney. Anyone got a spare? Please? She is currently rejecting the transplant she received only a couple of years ago. Send good thoughts.

My step-father, Stephan, is in appeal for his Tornado Machine patent [see Tornados 'R' Us]. He's still making them by hand because the company that was going to mass produce them bailed, and they're terribly large and time-consuming. What's more, some git from the patent office has rejected his patent despite having permission from the owner of another patent to utilize his gizmo in my step-father's machine. Everything is in order, but now he, who doesn't have any money to spare, has to go through the legal system to fight for the right to hold onto his patent or lose it forever. That just shouldn't happen. He's brilliant. Anyone with good legal advice (for Germany), or who can, despite the economy, become a small-time investor, or knows of a good place to mass produce items, PLEASE LET US KNOW. He requires:

• ~1000 EU to maintain patent rights.


• ~1000 EU to afford the amazing lawyer who has been an advisor during the early stages of this case.


• And whatever it takes to start marketing and mass production

The problems they've faced with this are negatively affecting my parents' lives and they deserve to have his inventions given merit, and to be marketed effectively. He's been working for years on this project, and wants desperately to get them on their way so he can work on the next one. Everyone who has seen his tornado machines is wowed by them.

And damnit, I know at least two dozen people who need new jobs. Now. I don't believe these figures regarding unemployment. When 80% of the people closest to me are out of work, that doesn't seem to match the 7-10% unemployment rate quotes I keep hearing about. I suppose those people who were receiving unemployment at the start of this crisis have fallen off of the records by now, and the stats are only showing the current/new people joining the unemployed masses? Technically, I'm unemployed, but as a student, it doesn't count on the records. And people who have to move or lose their homes, are they being counted? People who already were unemployed, do they figure in? Well, it's all rhetorical anyway. Now is definitely not a good time to be thinking of quitting what one already has. It's an employer's paradise, except even some of the employers are being laid off. *sighs*

Strawberries anyone?

Comments

[cyprinella]

I have oodles of wild strawberries growing in my yard, but they're really seedy and rather tasteless and I'm sure not at all what you're looking for.

[neversremedy.livejournal.com]

Not exactly. There's a strawberry native to this region that tends to grown wild, but my grandmother cultivated them in her garden and though they were small, they were incredibly sweet and succulent. I just don't know which fragaria variety they are.

[lyonesse.livejournal.com]

i used to go out to a particular place (on rt 2, or 202?) every june for the wild strawberries. craig may remember where it was, and if they're still they're i'd recommend the trip to grab some transplants. they were awesome.

(if not i could maybe put you in touch with my seattle household -- they may still have some propagations from the stuff i planted there, for that matter?)

http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com also has some nice alpine-type varieties. http://www.papagenos.com has wonderful ones too (incl. the white ones i use for "mindfuck neapolitan ice cream") but i can't tell if they're selling them for 2009 or not, might be worth keeping an eye out though.

good luck with your garden!

[neversremedy.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for the tips! :)

I think I know what you mean about the place near 202--do you mean the little community farm?

[lyonesse.livejournal.com]

actually it was just a weedy little field at the side of the road, with train tracks running up on a hill behind.

but if there's a farm out that way it wouldn't surprise me if they had the same plant as a cultivar :)

[neversremedy.livejournal.com]

I'll ask him, and if he doesn't remember where that spot is, I can check the local farm as well. My best bet, if my aunt hasn't uprooted them, is probably to get them from my grandmother's garden. I may not be able to name the variety, but at least I'll have the right plant.

[betsycontent.livejournal.com]

thank you for your kind post for steph!

you might also want to add the link to his website, so people ccan see what it looks like.

http://tornadosrus.com/

::hugs::

[neversremedy.livejournal.com]

:)

[neversremedy.livejournal.com]

I really think he should be putting ads out online (e.g. Craigslist, various locations) and in free papers (e.g. The Stranger) where there are ads seeking investors for "business opportunities". Personally, I'd post one in every major metro area including Seattle, L.A., NY, Tokyo, Frankfurt, and ... think of some others for me, and in those ads use the same spiel as what's on the web site (there's a "wanted" page that includes all of what needs to be said about the product) and include short, specific statements about what type of investors are needed: primarily those who can take the product, ensure its patents, mass produce it, and market it effectively. Include a picture in the online/Craigslist ads, like this one:

[betsycontent.livejournal.com]

i will pass this on to step. :love you: