Plants

[writerkit]

My zucchini are coming up! As are one of my other things-- either the basil or the parsley. Whichever of those two didn't say it takes a very long time to germinate.

The problem is that I now have eight peat pots with active plants and two large clay pots. And pots are expensive. Anyone have a local idea for sourcing pots? Ideally cheaper than Home Depot.

Comments

[rugessnome]

I think parsley is the notoriously long to germinate one? I seem to recall encountering a mention of some kind of folklore that it, uh, had to go to hell and back before it would germinate. (does seem to be attested online)

[writerkit]

That is *fascinating* and I will have to look into what the origins are.

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> My zucchini are coming up! <<

Yay! I like to make zucchini bread with them, and zucchini milk can replace cow milk in most baked goods.

>>The problem is that I now have eight peat pots with active plants and two large clay pots. And pots are expensive. Anyone have a local idea for sourcing pots? Ideally cheaper than Home Depot.<<

Try all of your dollar store variants. I got some huge pots really cheap there -- I think Family Dollar this year. They had smaller stacking-tower pots too, for $1 each. I bought a dozen.

Thrift stores are always worth a look. Don't just look for "pots." Look for anything that could hold plants. A cooler with a drain hole, a storage tub, etc. can all work.

Garage sales are promising, especially if you find a town-wide one where dozens of people will run theirs on the same day. Search "your state" + "town-wide garage sales" or similar.

Buy potting soil at farm stores, it's cheaper there. Do it soon because they'll run out.

Re: Thoughts

[writerkit]

Huh. Apparently I walk past a dollar store on the way home from work which I have never noticed, says the internet. I will have to investigate.

I don't think I have convenient farm stores, but that's a good tip! (Also I have never heard of zucchini milk before; learn something new every day.)

Re: Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Huh. Apparently I walk past a dollar store on the way home from work which I have never noticed, says the internet. I will have to investigate.<<

Go for it!

>> I don't think I have convenient farm stores, but that's a good tip! <<

I recommend searching for "farm store" or synonyms on Google Maps. They are usually on the edge of a town, occasionally out in the country, and it makes them very easy to miss if you don't already know where they are. If that doesn't get you hits, try searching for their products, like baby chicks or garden plants. You'll get a string of places, then just check the names. In my area the big stores include Rural King, Farm & FLeet, and recently Runnings.

>> (Also I have never heard of zucchini milk before; learn something new every day.) <<

It's a hippie trick. You just shove zucchini in a blender and liquify it. It makes baked goods taste like they have a zillion calories, but what they have more of is vitamins. \o/ You know how moist and delicious zucchini bread is? Like that.

Note that if you want pale zucchini milk, use a yellow or pale gray zucchini, or peel it. The rind is edible and the dark green to black ones have more vitamins, but the milk will come out green and you can wind up with green pancakes or whatever. Some people like that, but not everyone does.

[squirrelitude]

Pots can probably be had from Freecycle or Trashnothing.

[writerkit]

I always seem to forget that those things exist.