Back From Idaho

Well, I am back from a 5-day visit to Idaho. I left my husband in charge of watering my seedlings while I was gone, so I wasn't sure what to expect when I got back. Some of the seedlings had been underwatered, which I must admit was my fault. I didn't give him very good instructions on watering. I gave him a spray bottle to water them, because I was afraid of overwatering. However, the soil has been drying out much faster than it was before I left, and so I should have told him to water more frequently. Oh well. Good news first. The zinnias are very tough, and I only lost a few. I gave 3 away to a friend, so my zinnia count has gone down even more. I still have lots, though. I even have my first 6-leaf zinnia plant! They are getting really big and should probably be planted in their own, larger containers. They are supposed to be planted outside around 5 weeks of age (2 weeks from today), but I don't know if that is past the last frost here. I will have to find out. 

Zinnias (Day 22)

Tall Zinnia (Day 22)

6-Leaf zinnia (Day 22)

I also have 3 columbine sprouts! I was worried that they weren't going to germinate, because online I have read that the seeds need to be chilled before they are planted. It was a pleasant surprise to find the 3 new sprouts! Columbine is one of my favorite flowers, and I have read that they self-sow very easily. 

3 Columbine sprouts (Day 22)

Close-up of one Columbine sprout (Day 22)

I was also excited to see 3 sprouts of lupine! (Weren't those supposed to take a long time to germinate??) 

Lupine sprout (Day 12)

Finally, I have tons of poppy sprouts. That was somewhat expected, but I wasn't expecting so many! I have to figure out how I am supposed to thin them out. 

Poppy sprouts (Day 12)

Lupine sprouts on left, Poppy in center (Day 12)

Now for the bad news. I lost all of my portulaca. They weren't really doing that well before, though, so I don't know if they would have survived anyway. And the worst news now. I really love William, but he is a little absent-minded sometimes. One day, Callie, our "good" cat, got shut in the guest bedroom (where all the seed trays are). And yes, she did the worst: she ate the leaves off of my single nasturtium. Nasturtium leaves and flowers are edible (to people, at least) and are sometimes used in salads. I guess they are supposed to be spicy. So I guess it's understandable. She didn't just stop there though. She also ate the leaves off of my delphinium plants! And so, Callie has lost a little bit of her "angel cat" status. I will probably grow more delphiniums since I had relative success with them. I don't know about the nasturtiums, though. I have some more seeds that I am trying to get to germinate, so maybe I will get lucky with one of them.

All that's left of the Nasturtium

Leaf-less Delphinum sprout

Hard to believe this kitty could cause that destruction!