You know how you find seeds inside certain vegetables like capsicum, tomato and cucumbers? One day, I was making some butternut squash chilli for dinner, and as I cut into a squash, I found a lot of seeds that had already started sprouting cute green tips.
I come from a family of green thumbs, and some of my fondest memories of my grandparents are from when we were sitting in the garden planting vegetables, climbing the trees to reach the figs, and eating the tomatoes straight from the vine. So when I saw these sprouts, I didn't have the heart to toss them into the rubbish bin. So, while the chilli was simmering away on the stove, I separated the sprouts from the fleshy part of the pumpkin. I wiped them clean, and sorted them into two piles. I threw out the pile of seeds that hadn't sprouted, and set the rest aside.
I dampened a few layers of napkins with some water, and scattered the sprouts on them, and then I folded over the napkins. This went inside a ziplock baggie with a few mists of water. I put the bag on the windowsill in the laundry where they would get some afternoon sun that created a makeshift greenhouse.
Five days later I checked on the seeds and to my surprise they had more than doubled in size, and some had even released their first leaves from the shells. They also started growing lots of roots into the tissues, so I knew the time was ripe for them to go into soil. I drenched the tissues in water, and the tissues fell apart quickly, which made removing the seeds that much easier. A few sprouts were damaged in the process, but in the end, there were about 16 seedlings left.
I found a pot, scooped some soil into it till it was about 4/5 full, and then poked holes in it with my finger. I put a seedling into each hole, and gently filled them up until the rounded tops of the seeds and leaves were peeking through the soil. I added some water to the pot, and then draped a plastic bag over the pot. This was to create another makeshift greenhouse to trap in the moisture, while the warmth from the sun would aid in the growth.
Two days later the seedlings had grown to twice the size. I added a little bit more water and replaced the plastic bag. Another two days and they've already doubled in size, and looking particularly proud of themselves. As the days go along and the leaves are about to pop, I picked off the shells from the fronds so they weren't squashed (pun intended).
After a week, they've grown really nicely, and are starting to fall over due to the sheer weight of the leaves. Mum wanted a few seedlings for her garden, as her summer crop is going really successfully, especially her fat and juicy eggplants. So, using a little palette knife, I scooped out a few of the seedlings from the pot, and planted each one in a plastic cup for easy transport. By this time the roots are going strong and were starting to take hold in the soil.
In this final picture you can see the first true leaves starting to form, and oh gosh, aren't they adorable? This is starting to look very optimistic, and I have high hopes for this crop of butternut squash, as this is my first ever gardening project I've started ever since moving out of home. I'm just so excited.
Are you growing anything at the moment?
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