A few weeks ago while listening to Backstory, a great American history podcast/radio show, I the against-character decision to provide requested listener feedback. In this case, they were looking for advertising styles that they could use to create mock-up ads in the same style for the show. I suggested the mid-20th century tobacco that featured advice from medical professionals about the benefits of smoking.
Much to my surprise, I was contacted by the show to say that they were hoping to go with my suggestion. The only bummer is that they were hoping that I could call in to leave the suggestion as a phone message (I'd previously submitted the idea textually).
Somewhat begrudgingly, and with much uptalk and hesitancy, I left the requested message outlining my idea.
When I heard the show last week I was quite impressed with the segment that preceded my mocked up ad - it was about one of the individuals most responsible for this type of advertising. I like to think that my suggestion not only lead to the mocked up ad, but also in the entire preceding segment. I guess I could try and ask the producers of the show - but why risk it?
Anyway I recommend not only the episode in which I make an appearance, but the show generally - it is very well done (my only real frustration with the show is that a friend who applied for one of their producer positions was not hired). I particularly looking forward to listening to this week's show about women in the workplace (as one of the stories is about the 'Rosies' - a in which my grandmother is a relatively proud and active member).
Cameron - 3
Neil - 0
Showing posts with label Tobacco. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tobacco. Show all posts
Saturday, February 07, 2015
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
This brings back memories
It seems that the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador will be going ahead with their plan to sue big tobacco 10 years after passing the enabling legislation.
Working at the public hearings held before the passage of the legislation that got this ball rolling was one of my first responsibilities as page when I started working at the House of Assembly in April 2001. Though I think I only worked for one such session I still remember quite a number of the presenters that participated in the event.
In many ways the presentations pretty much summed up the whole pro/anti-tobacco discourse. On the anti side there were presentations from older individuals suffering from tobacco related ailments, an anti-tobacco 'youth team,' and several doctors. Opposing the legislation and the idea of the lawsuit was a lone tobacco industry advocate - a lawyer/law professor if my memory serves me correctly. Given that the tobacco advocate was a hired gun it isn't too surprising that they gave the most professional and effective presentation of the day. And, for better or worse, it is their presentation that I remember the most.
Actually, as far as presentations on dry topics go, this may have been most engaging presentation I have ever heard - and it was in the service of an industry with a somewhat tarnished reputation, a fact that has since made me feel a little strange about finding it to be such an effective presentation. But I guess this is basically the movie Thank You For Smoking was about.
Of course, to no one's surprise, the legislation was eventually passed and the chain of events leading up to today's story set in action.
Anyway, if it has taken 10 years to get to through the pre-lawsuit I am curious to see how long it will take to get through the full-blown lawsuit phase and whether or not not they will ever meet with any success.
Score
Cameron 26
Neil 0
Working at the public hearings held before the passage of the legislation that got this ball rolling was one of my first responsibilities as page when I started working at the House of Assembly in April 2001. Though I think I only worked for one such session I still remember quite a number of the presenters that participated in the event.
In many ways the presentations pretty much summed up the whole pro/anti-tobacco discourse. On the anti side there were presentations from older individuals suffering from tobacco related ailments, an anti-tobacco 'youth team,' and several doctors. Opposing the legislation and the idea of the lawsuit was a lone tobacco industry advocate - a lawyer/law professor if my memory serves me correctly. Given that the tobacco advocate was a hired gun it isn't too surprising that they gave the most professional and effective presentation of the day. And, for better or worse, it is their presentation that I remember the most.
Actually, as far as presentations on dry topics go, this may have been most engaging presentation I have ever heard - and it was in the service of an industry with a somewhat tarnished reputation, a fact that has since made me feel a little strange about finding it to be such an effective presentation. But I guess this is basically the movie Thank You For Smoking was about.
Of course, to no one's surprise, the legislation was eventually passed and the chain of events leading up to today's story set in action.
Anyway, if it has taken 10 years to get to through the pre-lawsuit I am curious to see how long it will take to get through the full-blown lawsuit phase and whether or not not they will ever meet with any success.
Score
Cameron 26
Neil 0
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
A Few Quick Notes 411
-Today, while not as nice as the past few days, was pretty OK until some time this evening. Unfortunately, things are expected to get even worse tomorrow (meaning rainier), though I am still holding out a little hope that the forecast is as inaccurate as usual.
-I am now 2/9 with my Roll Up the Rim to Win cup. I am starting to feel a little like Chuck Knoblauch, in that that I am just not doing what doing what needs to be done. I keep missing my mark.
-I have recently been so busy tipping back diet passionfruit pop that I completely forgot how refreshing a nice glass of ice water can be. In case you too have forgotten how nice a glass of ice water can be and are curious the answer is great and refreshing. Glasses ice water are so good it is no wonder that they are my favourite drink and the one drink I would take with me to a desert island (assuming I am ever given such a choice).
-In class today we were talking about international development NGOs and their relationship to missionary work when the professor asked the class "Have NGOs assumed a missionary position?" After I broke the silence and laughed a few of my classmates joined in before the professor caught on and shamefacedly rephrased the question. Though I know my father might spend years crafting such a line, I am pretty sure that this one was spur of the moment and considered a misstep by the professor.
-I harvested some of my tobacco seeds today. I still have to separate some of the seed pods from the seed, but it is already clear that I have thousands and thousands of seeds. I have no idea what I might do with thousands and thousands of tobacco seeds.
-There is an awesome butter sale at the grocery store this week. I am hoping to head by tomorrow and pick up a few pounds.
-A few weeks ago I decided to "soften my image" by growing a beard. I was hoping that a beard would draw attention away from my super-short haircut and allow me not to look so intense. Generally I think that this worked, though it is kind of hard to say. Anyway, my beard was getting kind of long and my hair had grown out enough that I decided that I could go back to being beardless and would likely not look to intense so I got rid of my beard this morning. I generally think it was a good move.
-I am now 2/9 with my Roll Up the Rim to Win cup. I am starting to feel a little like Chuck Knoblauch, in that that I am just not doing what doing what needs to be done. I keep missing my mark.
-I have recently been so busy tipping back diet passionfruit pop that I completely forgot how refreshing a nice glass of ice water can be. In case you too have forgotten how nice a glass of ice water can be and are curious the answer is great and refreshing. Glasses ice water are so good it is no wonder that they are my favourite drink and the one drink I would take with me to a desert island (assuming I am ever given such a choice).
-In class today we were talking about international development NGOs and their relationship to missionary work when the professor asked the class "Have NGOs assumed a missionary position?" After I broke the silence and laughed a few of my classmates joined in before the professor caught on and shamefacedly rephrased the question. Though I know my father might spend years crafting such a line, I am pretty sure that this one was spur of the moment and considered a misstep by the professor.
-I harvested some of my tobacco seeds today. I still have to separate some of the seed pods from the seed, but it is already clear that I have thousands and thousands of seeds. I have no idea what I might do with thousands and thousands of tobacco seeds.
-There is an awesome butter sale at the grocery store this week. I am hoping to head by tomorrow and pick up a few pounds.
-A few weeks ago I decided to "soften my image" by growing a beard. I was hoping that a beard would draw attention away from my super-short haircut and allow me not to look so intense. Generally I think that this worked, though it is kind of hard to say. Anyway, my beard was getting kind of long and my hair had grown out enough that I decided that I could go back to being beardless and would likely not look to intense so I got rid of my beard this morning. I generally think it was a good move.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Winter blooms
As many of you likely know, I am in the midst of growing my first tobacco plants. The seeds were ordered and planted this summer. By mid-July I had quite a number of relatively small tobacco plants.
While early progress and growth was quite rapid, things really began to slow down once winter set in and the available sunlight was drastically reduced. While growth has continued all winter, it has been much slower than it was in the fall.
Interestingly, since we returned to Halifax after Christmas I have noticed a somewhat substantial increase in the rate of growth. At first I attributed this change to the increased sunlight that the plants were getting (a minute or two more each day). Now I am starting to think that while the sunlight may have contributed to this change, it is most likely that the plants reached a certain developmental stage and were engaging in a particular kind of growth.
What I mean by this is that a number of plants are now showing flower buds. The leaves leading up to the buds are relatively small, and presumably faster and easier to develop.
One of the plants has even begun to show flowers, which is rather surprising given that we are now in the midst of winter and this isn't when I would expect most plants to be flowering.
My understanding is that the plant's seeds will be found in the part of the plant behind where the flower is. I am hoping to be able to collect a few of these seeds and then try to re-plant them this summer (though I don't think that I will grow quite as many plants the next time around).
Anyway, I am really pleased that a few of these plants have been able to reach this stage of development. For a while I was worried that my late planting date may have permanently retarded their development and prevented them from fully maturing. Turns out that all that was needed was a little extra time (a few months) and a relatively serene environment in which they were able to grow undistracted by the changing seasons and weather.
While early progress and growth was quite rapid, things really began to slow down once winter set in and the available sunlight was drastically reduced. While growth has continued all winter, it has been much slower than it was in the fall.
Interestingly, since we returned to Halifax after Christmas I have noticed a somewhat substantial increase in the rate of growth. At first I attributed this change to the increased sunlight that the plants were getting (a minute or two more each day). Now I am starting to think that while the sunlight may have contributed to this change, it is most likely that the plants reached a certain developmental stage and were engaging in a particular kind of growth.
What I mean by this is that a number of plants are now showing flower buds. The leaves leading up to the buds are relatively small, and presumably faster and easier to develop.
One of the plants has even begun to show flowers, which is rather surprising given that we are now in the midst of winter and this isn't when I would expect most plants to be flowering.
My understanding is that the plant's seeds will be found in the part of the plant behind where the flower is. I am hoping to be able to collect a few of these seeds and then try to re-plant them this summer (though I don't think that I will grow quite as many plants the next time around).
Anyway, I am really pleased that a few of these plants have been able to reach this stage of development. For a while I was worried that my late planting date may have permanently retarded their development and prevented them from fully maturing. Turns out that all that was needed was a little extra time (a few months) and a relatively serene environment in which they were able to grow undistracted by the changing seasons and weather.
Friday, January 22, 2010
It's going to be amazing
A few days ago I received a notice that I would be invited to a friend's birthday party, which is to take place this evening. Almost as soon as I learned of the party I started to think about jokes and whatnot that I might bring to the party. After not too long I settled on the idea of bringing a joke present, one which would emphasize a character flaw of my that the celebrant and I have enjoyed laughing about.
I guess I should go back a bit, and explain this character flaw. It seems that for some number of years, at least going back to my high school days, I have been moderately interested in knowing what nicotine feels like (and I should be clear, not what smoking feels like). I think I am curious to know what it is that people like about smoking that makes it addictive, or at least something along these lines. As a result of this fascination with nicotine and the resulting feeling I have tired a number of smoking cessation products over the past number of years.
I started with a piece of nicotine gum that I acquired from a friend of mine who was trying to quite. Contrary to the instructions I received from my friend I chewed away like this was regular gum. Perhaps not surprisingly, I quickly felt quite ill and nothing else. Though this experiment ended with me feeling rather poorly, I have always felt that it was a success of sorts. If nothing else, I learned what a high dose of nicotine will do to me.
More recently I decided that my first experiment with the gum wasn't enough and that I should really try the patch. This summer I was able to get a patch from a friend. It turned out that he gave me the strongest level patch, which was supposed to be equivalent to smoking some relatively high proportion of a pack of cigarettes. Again, not surprisingly, it made me feel a little like death.
This past fall I mentioned this incidents to the birthday boy and he found them funny (meaning ridiculous). A few days afterwards suggested that I might try a nicotine inhaler that he had recently seen advertised. Since then a running conversation we have had is about my non-smoking use of nicotine and tobacco.
When I heard it was his birthday I thought that I could try and bring him in on the fun. As I know that he isn't interested in ingesting nicotine or tobacco, I thought that I could give him some of my dried stash that he could use as pesticide (nicotine can be dissolved in water by soaking tobacco leaves and then used as a pesticide). This should allow him to partake in the whole nicotine thing without having to worry about developing an addiction or bad breath.
Instead of just giving him dried home-grown tobacco leaves I decided to try to make the whole thing a bit more elaborate. I created a name for the product, and then matching packaging material. I then decided that I would go all out and make a 'gift basket' by also included disposable strainers (to remove the leaves from the water) and a spray bottle (for spraying the homemade pesticide). This was all wrapped together, as you can see below.
[Embedded Video]
For those of you who are interested in a more direct view of the product and its packaging, here you go:
Sorry if this is a little disorganized, I was writing this and getting ready to go (hopefully I won't miss the bus).
I guess I should go back a bit, and explain this character flaw. It seems that for some number of years, at least going back to my high school days, I have been moderately interested in knowing what nicotine feels like (and I should be clear, not what smoking feels like). I think I am curious to know what it is that people like about smoking that makes it addictive, or at least something along these lines. As a result of this fascination with nicotine and the resulting feeling I have tired a number of smoking cessation products over the past number of years.
I started with a piece of nicotine gum that I acquired from a friend of mine who was trying to quite. Contrary to the instructions I received from my friend I chewed away like this was regular gum. Perhaps not surprisingly, I quickly felt quite ill and nothing else. Though this experiment ended with me feeling rather poorly, I have always felt that it was a success of sorts. If nothing else, I learned what a high dose of nicotine will do to me.
More recently I decided that my first experiment with the gum wasn't enough and that I should really try the patch. This summer I was able to get a patch from a friend. It turned out that he gave me the strongest level patch, which was supposed to be equivalent to smoking some relatively high proportion of a pack of cigarettes. Again, not surprisingly, it made me feel a little like death.
This past fall I mentioned this incidents to the birthday boy and he found them funny (meaning ridiculous). A few days afterwards suggested that I might try a nicotine inhaler that he had recently seen advertised. Since then a running conversation we have had is about my non-smoking use of nicotine and tobacco.
When I heard it was his birthday I thought that I could try and bring him in on the fun. As I know that he isn't interested in ingesting nicotine or tobacco, I thought that I could give him some of my dried stash that he could use as pesticide (nicotine can be dissolved in water by soaking tobacco leaves and then used as a pesticide). This should allow him to partake in the whole nicotine thing without having to worry about developing an addiction or bad breath.
Instead of just giving him dried home-grown tobacco leaves I decided to try to make the whole thing a bit more elaborate. I created a name for the product, and then matching packaging material. I then decided that I would go all out and make a 'gift basket' by also included disposable strainers (to remove the leaves from the water) and a spray bottle (for spraying the homemade pesticide). This was all wrapped together, as you can see below.
[Embedded Video]
For those of you who are interested in a more direct view of the product and its packaging, here you go:
Sorry if this is a little disorganized, I was writing this and getting ready to go (hopefully I won't miss the bus).
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Balcony Garden Update 11
Moments ago I noticed that Environment Canada has issued a frost warning for Halifax this evening, so it now seems rather fortuitous that I took the time to take a few photos of some of the plants that still remain in my balcony garden. Of course, I hope that the frost doesn't hit tonight and that I am able to stretch things out a little longer, but I am obviously quite aware that any day now frost will be a reality that I will need to deal with.
The thunbergia have really been doing quite well recently. Earlier today I noticed that there are presently three flowers on the vines, and that there a number of additional buds. It is rather unfortunate that it took these plants about four months to really come into their own as it turns out that they are pretty nice looking, but that we won't really see much of them before the impending frost.
I quite like the flowers on this plant, though they don't seem to last for a particularly long time.
The morning glory plants have been growing at an incredible rate since they were first planted in July. When I was inspecting the plants today I spotted a few buds, though I don't know what will happen on this front as I don't know if I will have room to store this plant indoors all winter. Though it may be a little late to replicate this tremendous growth pattern, I am thinking that I may try to plant a few of these in my bedroom and have them grow up my new hanging plant shelving unit.
The banana plant has done quite well this summer. As you might be able to see, the pups and the main plant have put on some height and girth in the past few weeks. Moments after this photo was taken I removed the pups from the mother and re-potted them. As I was in the midst of the process I think that I may have discovered that they weren't quite big enough for the re-potting process, but I guess I will just have to wait and see. Presumably within a few days I will have a better sense of whether or not they have taken to their new environments, or whether I have killed them.
The peas have really taken a turn for the worse within the past few weeks. Not only have most of the plants started to look a little sickly, a good number of them have actually died, and pea production has dropped off to almost nothing. I am not even sure if I will go to the effort of trying to protect these from the threat of frost, they likely don't have much life left what ever I do.
The watermelon plants have been doing quite well these past few weeks, though seemed to have either picked something up are not taking well to the more limited sunlight that they are getting these days. I am really not sure that they are worth bringing in for the winter, but I do quite like the idea of having watermelon plants so they are likely to get special attention.
The tomato plants have finally stopped putting on so much new height and seem to be dedicating at least a slightly greater portion of their efforts to fruit development. Of course, it seems that these efforts are for nought as there is no way the fruit will be ready in the near future and it seems unlikely that I will be able to store these rather large and unwieldy plants inside for any length of time. As far as these plants are concerned, I think that I will just have to play things by ear.
For those of you who are interested, and if you have read this far I presume that you are, there are a few of the tomatoes that are a little larger, but most are these sizes or smaller. None of them are showing any signs of turning read.
On a more positive note, the tobacco plants, particularly those in my room, seem to be doing quite well. Actually, I am continually amazed at how large and quickly the plants are growing given the late start and small containers in which most of them have been planted.
The thunbergia have really been doing quite well recently. Earlier today I noticed that there are presently three flowers on the vines, and that there a number of additional buds. It is rather unfortunate that it took these plants about four months to really come into their own as it turns out that they are pretty nice looking, but that we won't really see much of them before the impending frost.
I quite like the flowers on this plant, though they don't seem to last for a particularly long time.
The morning glory plants have been growing at an incredible rate since they were first planted in July. When I was inspecting the plants today I spotted a few buds, though I don't know what will happen on this front as I don't know if I will have room to store this plant indoors all winter. Though it may be a little late to replicate this tremendous growth pattern, I am thinking that I may try to plant a few of these in my bedroom and have them grow up my new hanging plant shelving unit.
The banana plant has done quite well this summer. As you might be able to see, the pups and the main plant have put on some height and girth in the past few weeks. Moments after this photo was taken I removed the pups from the mother and re-potted them. As I was in the midst of the process I think that I may have discovered that they weren't quite big enough for the re-potting process, but I guess I will just have to wait and see. Presumably within a few days I will have a better sense of whether or not they have taken to their new environments, or whether I have killed them.
The peas have really taken a turn for the worse within the past few weeks. Not only have most of the plants started to look a little sickly, a good number of them have actually died, and pea production has dropped off to almost nothing. I am not even sure if I will go to the effort of trying to protect these from the threat of frost, they likely don't have much life left what ever I do.
The watermelon plants have been doing quite well these past few weeks, though seemed to have either picked something up are not taking well to the more limited sunlight that they are getting these days. I am really not sure that they are worth bringing in for the winter, but I do quite like the idea of having watermelon plants so they are likely to get special attention.
The tomato plants have finally stopped putting on so much new height and seem to be dedicating at least a slightly greater portion of their efforts to fruit development. Of course, it seems that these efforts are for nought as there is no way the fruit will be ready in the near future and it seems unlikely that I will be able to store these rather large and unwieldy plants inside for any length of time. As far as these plants are concerned, I think that I will just have to play things by ear.
For those of you who are interested, and if you have read this far I presume that you are, there are a few of the tomatoes that are a little larger, but most are these sizes or smaller. None of them are showing any signs of turning read.
On a more positive note, the tobacco plants, particularly those in my room, seem to be doing quite well. Actually, I am continually amazed at how large and quickly the plants are growing given the late start and small containers in which most of them have been planted.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 349
-Today was quite pleasant, though a little breezy at time. The most significant feature of today's weather, at least as far as I am concerned, is how much it has cooled down this evening. At the moment Environment Canada is suggesting it is 12, but that it may go to as low as 8. I guess I may soon need to start thinking about moving my plants in to avoid frost.
-Early this evening, or maybe it was late this afternoon, I went for my daily walk along the waterfront. The number of cruise ships then in port immediately stood out. Actually, maybe it was just that there were multiple, large cruise ships.
I had the feeling that quite a bit of the harbour front traffic was related to the cruise ships. My sense was that people were heading back to their ship after a day on their feet in Halifax.
As I was heading back one the ships was in the process of leaving. The departure was actually quite impressive as the ship had to do a 180 and then immediately navigate around George's Island. Maybe the most impressive aspect of the entire manoeuvre was that it all took place in only a matter of minutes.
-As I was returning to our apartment I passed through a small park. I was immediately struck by the apparent similarities between photos of tobacco plants that I have seen and these plants. Anyway, now that I have had a chance to look at the plants a little more closely, and also examine a few more photos, I am pretty sure that HRM is growing tobacco, or a related plant, in at least one of its parks as a decorative plant.
-My own tobacco plants aren't as large as those that I spotted this evening, though they definitely are making some progress. I am hoping that in a few weeks they may even start to look a little like HRM's crop.
-The thesis party is still going strong. I think I will have to put in another few hours tonight before I can pack it in for the day.
-So far we have received no word from the Las Vegas contingent. I presume that this means that they managed to lose just about everything on their first afternoon and are now frantically trying to win their life savings back so they can save face. If this is the case I hope Neil isn't so frazzled that he strays from Blackjack and starts playing the slots or some other loser game.
-Most of the bean plants took quite a beating during our recent Hurricane. Fortunately, I don't think any of them were killed. Most of the other plants, because they were indoors, seem to have managed to pass through almost completely unfazed.
As things have gotten a bit cooler growth really seams to have slowed down. I think it would be nice if in the next few weeks would could get one last spurt of growth that would allow for the production of all kinds of consumables so that the entire effort can be justified.
-Early this evening, or maybe it was late this afternoon, I went for my daily walk along the waterfront. The number of cruise ships then in port immediately stood out. Actually, maybe it was just that there were multiple, large cruise ships.
I had the feeling that quite a bit of the harbour front traffic was related to the cruise ships. My sense was that people were heading back to their ship after a day on their feet in Halifax.
As I was heading back one the ships was in the process of leaving. The departure was actually quite impressive as the ship had to do a 180 and then immediately navigate around George's Island. Maybe the most impressive aspect of the entire manoeuvre was that it all took place in only a matter of minutes.
-As I was returning to our apartment I passed through a small park. I was immediately struck by the apparent similarities between photos of tobacco plants that I have seen and these plants. Anyway, now that I have had a chance to look at the plants a little more closely, and also examine a few more photos, I am pretty sure that HRM is growing tobacco, or a related plant, in at least one of its parks as a decorative plant.
-My own tobacco plants aren't as large as those that I spotted this evening, though they definitely are making some progress. I am hoping that in a few weeks they may even start to look a little like HRM's crop.
-The thesis party is still going strong. I think I will have to put in another few hours tonight before I can pack it in for the day.
-So far we have received no word from the Las Vegas contingent. I presume that this means that they managed to lose just about everything on their first afternoon and are now frantically trying to win their life savings back so they can save face. If this is the case I hope Neil isn't so frazzled that he strays from Blackjack and starts playing the slots or some other loser game.
-Most of the bean plants took quite a beating during our recent Hurricane. Fortunately, I don't think any of them were killed. Most of the other plants, because they were indoors, seem to have managed to pass through almost completely unfazed.
As things have gotten a bit cooler growth really seams to have slowed down. I think it would be nice if in the next few weeks would could get one last spurt of growth that would allow for the production of all kinds of consumables so that the entire effort can be justified.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Balcony Update 7
Much to my surprise, today turned out to be a rather sunny and pleasant day. As I was inspecting my plants this afternoon I had the sense that just about everything everything was doing well and had made some progress in the past few days.
At least one of the thunbergia plants has really taken off. Over the course of just a few days it has turned into something vine-like and seems to be working its way around the cords supporting the pot. Eventually I am going to try to add some string to connect the two hooks on which the hanging pots are hanging. If all goes according to plan some of the scarlet runner beans will also come into the equation.
The scarlet runner beans working their way around the column are putting on vine length and blooms. I am hoping to see signs of beans within a few days. Assuming all of the potential blooms turn into beans we should have quite a runner bean harvest.
The banana has really taken off in the past few days. Aside from the two new shoots at the bottom of the plant, it seems that each new leaf is larger than the last. The only problem with all of this growth is that the plant may soon outgrow its current plant.
The tomatoes seem to have a few more buds that look as though the are about to bloom, to go along with the one flower that we have presently. While all of this bud activity is going on the plants are continuing to grow taller each day.
The watermelons seems to be a little larger than they were when I purchased them and transplanted them a few weeks ago, but not all that much larger. I am hoping that I get at least a vine or two before they succumb to frost in the fall.
While the pea plants continue to grow I see no signs of the plants developing elements that should eventually turn into peas. I am assuming that such developments should occur in the coming days as the plants are now about six weeks old.
Within the past few days the pepper plant has been showing signs that it is about to flower. I think that I can see at least three buds. Given the rate of development of these buds I assume that it will be at least a few more days before they open. I have no idea if the flowers will eventually turn into peppers, though I hope that they do.
The beans in the planter continue to do well. A number of the yellow beans are beginning to flower while the scarlet runner beans are racing up their strings.
Actually, just recently a second plant reached the top of the original string set-up and has started to make its way along the string just below the rafters.
The more recently planted peas, like the other peas, are continuing to grow without showing signs of productivity. Fortunately the yellow bean plant seems to have the early stages of a handful of beans. Another nice development in this area is that the recently planted sugar beet seeds seem to have started to sprout, and may be visible (in the reddish pot in the front). While I have too many seeds in this pot I am hoping that the plants may eventually produce some type of edible output.
In other news, the morning glory seeds that I planted a few days ago are also starting to sprout. Unfortunately the mint and cumin seeds aren't yet showing signs of life.
The best plant related news may actually be that the tobacco seeds, which are presently in my room, have started to sprout and have thus started their journey towards being the key components of some of Halifax's best home-rolled cigars.
At least one of the thunbergia plants has really taken off. Over the course of just a few days it has turned into something vine-like and seems to be working its way around the cords supporting the pot. Eventually I am going to try to add some string to connect the two hooks on which the hanging pots are hanging. If all goes according to plan some of the scarlet runner beans will also come into the equation.
The scarlet runner beans working their way around the column are putting on vine length and blooms. I am hoping to see signs of beans within a few days. Assuming all of the potential blooms turn into beans we should have quite a runner bean harvest.
The banana has really taken off in the past few days. Aside from the two new shoots at the bottom of the plant, it seems that each new leaf is larger than the last. The only problem with all of this growth is that the plant may soon outgrow its current plant.
The tomatoes seem to have a few more buds that look as though the are about to bloom, to go along with the one flower that we have presently. While all of this bud activity is going on the plants are continuing to grow taller each day.
The watermelons seems to be a little larger than they were when I purchased them and transplanted them a few weeks ago, but not all that much larger. I am hoping that I get at least a vine or two before they succumb to frost in the fall.
While the pea plants continue to grow I see no signs of the plants developing elements that should eventually turn into peas. I am assuming that such developments should occur in the coming days as the plants are now about six weeks old.
Within the past few days the pepper plant has been showing signs that it is about to flower. I think that I can see at least three buds. Given the rate of development of these buds I assume that it will be at least a few more days before they open. I have no idea if the flowers will eventually turn into peppers, though I hope that they do.
The beans in the planter continue to do well. A number of the yellow beans are beginning to flower while the scarlet runner beans are racing up their strings.
Actually, just recently a second plant reached the top of the original string set-up and has started to make its way along the string just below the rafters.
The more recently planted peas, like the other peas, are continuing to grow without showing signs of productivity. Fortunately the yellow bean plant seems to have the early stages of a handful of beans. Another nice development in this area is that the recently planted sugar beet seeds seem to have started to sprout, and may be visible (in the reddish pot in the front). While I have too many seeds in this pot I am hoping that the plants may eventually produce some type of edible output.
In other news, the morning glory seeds that I planted a few days ago are also starting to sprout. Unfortunately the mint and cumin seeds aren't yet showing signs of life.
The best plant related news may actually be that the tobacco seeds, which are presently in my room, have started to sprout and have thus started their journey towards being the key components of some of Halifax's best home-rolled cigars.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
The merging of two dreams?
As I have been writing about for months, it seems that our apartment has a bit of a spider mite problem (though things might be under control at the moment). So far most of the approaches I have tried have failed and meant that I have had to get rid of quite a number of plants. Anyway, the result of this situation that returning to a spider mite free condition is a bit of a dream of mine. Such a condition would allow me to grow all kinds of plants indoors and maybe acquire a few more that seem interesting (coffee tree, hops vines, and a hibiscus). Until the apartment is clean I really can't consider adding any fancy plants to the environment.
At least that is what I thought until a little earlier this evening.
While looking through a Richter's seed catalogue earlier this evening I ended up coming to the tobacco seed section. As I have been interested in growing my own tobacco since at least junior high I thought I would look at the blurbs to see what they said and to see whether or not the seeds would be economically feasible. It turns out that not only are the seeds economically feasible, but that wild tobacco "is a source of nicotine sulfate, an insecticide for the control of aphids, thrips, whiteflies and mites."
It sounds as though this may be one of the few plants that might be of use to me in my battle against the spider mites.
If you are wondering, it seems that growing tobacco in a personal garden is viable but the curing and aging processes are very difficult without the proper facilities. So while I may be able to grow tobacco plants, don't expect me to start trying to sell any on the side.
At least that is what I thought until a little earlier this evening.
While looking through a Richter's seed catalogue earlier this evening I ended up coming to the tobacco seed section. As I have been interested in growing my own tobacco since at least junior high I thought I would look at the blurbs to see what they said and to see whether or not the seeds would be economically feasible. It turns out that not only are the seeds economically feasible, but that wild tobacco "is a source of nicotine sulfate, an insecticide for the control of aphids, thrips, whiteflies and mites."
It sounds as though this may be one of the few plants that might be of use to me in my battle against the spider mites.
If you are wondering, it seems that growing tobacco in a personal garden is viable but the curing and aging processes are very difficult without the proper facilities. So while I may be able to grow tobacco plants, don't expect me to start trying to sell any on the side.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)