Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post.
Hi friends,
Recently read a Citizens Times article about Monarch butterflies and milkweed and its got me interested in planting some. Does anyone know where I can buy some locally?
I am looking for varieties I may not have I have a bunch of species I can trade with also a variety of other seeds!
My friend just bought this house with lots of gardens. Stuff is coming up!iNaturalist is trying to tell me that this is milkweed. It's in a garden of fancy, non-native (to Maryland), plants. It seems unlikely the former owner would have a bunch of milkweed. So what am I looking it?
https://preview.redd.it/bmm8dx27t4y61.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=78c2abbef305e43699c591400083ddb3dd9962fb
https://preview.redd.it/fhes2237t4y61.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=787ee6a3189e0291b727935c9958689bd0925d9e
https://preview.redd.it/ij3dms27t4y61.jpg?width=1536&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4475d35f2904ef261ed68ea648b9b43b9dc68ac0
https://preview.redd.it/a95xjs27t4y61.jpg?width=1536&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d822f70c0151fa7685c9c104e0b45e9c45245715
My process is to collect the stalks, which have retted (basically, rotted) in the field. Then I break the stalk and pull off the bark. I soak that for a few minutes in water to soften it, then scrape off the black plant material to strip the fibers. To clean them up more, I pulled the fibers through the teeth of a wool carder at first, then started carding them into rolags. I'm not sure the rolags were a great idea, because the fibers are so fragile that some of them are like lint now. But it's too late to turn back!
I estimate I'll end up with about 200 yards of singles when I'm finished. I have no idea what I'm going to do with it. This is actually my second attempt at spinning anything (the first was abysmal), so I'm super pleased with how it's turning out!
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For some background, I'm participating in a project where the goal is to create an outfit made entirely from materials produced within our fibershed (250 miles from Cleveland, Ohio). Our region mostly produces wool, although recently the Cleveland Flax Project -- through the Rust Belt Fibershed -- grew and harvested a patch of flax for linen.
I was reading about wild fibers, so I'd been looking for nettle to get fiber from, but it was too difficult to access and too painful to pull. A friend told me she'd heard of someone making yarn from milkweed, so I tried that instead. I picked the stalks in early winter, long after any caterpillars could have used it.
Edit: Also interested in Arnica, Calendula, Creeping oregano/rosemary/thyme, St Johns Wort, White Sage, Self-heal, Jewelweed
I can offer in return:
Basil, Beets, Bell Peps
Cabbage, Carrots, Celery, Chives, Cucumbers, Cress, Chamomile
Dill
Lettuce (buttercrunch, red sails), Lavender
Marigolds (crackerjack)
Onions, Okra
Parsley (Italian flat), Peas (little marvel)
Radishes (French breakfast), Rosemary (cuttings)
Spaghetti Squash, Swiss chard (rainbow),
Tomatoes (celebrity, early girl, beefsteak)
Watermelon (Charleston gray)
Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post.
Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post. So what's new in your garden?
Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post.
This week's theme: What native plant do you want to grow, but can't seem to find available for sale?
Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post.
This week's theme: What native plant do you want to grow, but can't seem to find available for sale?
Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post.
Our weekly thread to share our progress, photos, or ask questions that don't feel big enough to warrant their own post. So what's new in your garden?
