7 day germination

Last weekend I sowed a few more seeds in the garden. Probably a bit late in the year but I should get some reward before the autumn. Most surprising was the seed at which the dwarf beans germinated - 7 days. Perhaps I shouldn't be so surprised, the weather has been very warm.

Yet again I have not done very well with the tomato seedlings. The first seedlings germinated in early April. However they are still only about two inches tall. This could be caused by a combination of errors on my part. Poor soil - I have used a mixture of general purpose compost, garden clay soil and perhaps other unsuitable matter. Greenhouse - Once germinated I left the seedlings in the greenhouse. This sounds ok, but I think it may have been too dark for proper growth to start. The greenhouse cover is clear plastic with a green mesh, which from the outside seems ok but from the inside might be just a bit too shaded.

So next year I shall used proper seed compost and put them outside sooner (depending on the frosts).

Daffodil flowering time lapse

Over nine days during March this year I photographed a daffodil as it developed and eventually flowered. I was interested to see how the plant changed before flowering. I had noticed on other daffodils that although the petals looked ready to open it was some time before the flowerhead would reveal itself.



The time lapse movie reveals that the flowerhead moves from pointing skywards, through approximately 100 degrees to point towards the ground, before flowering.



The time lapse has been done very roughly as the camera was not set up on a tripod but I would simply hold the camera in the same place as best I could. As a result the background moves around but the overall effect is still good.