Here is a full update on my seed-starting activities. Most of the sprouted plants in this post are being started way, far earlier than they need to, but I have learned after a few years which vegetables prefer an early start indoors, and which plants also enjoy growing in the cooler weather.

Let's get started with the most exotic tropical plants I am growing. Eventually they would become a flavorful spice used in cooking.

Turmerics to the left. Gingers to the right.

Every day these two #rhizomes are growing a few millimeters more. The tips are turning slightly greenish. I dashed a few sprinkles of organic tomato fertilizer around the edges. Maybe that will help it green up and form some shoots.

In cooking I love using #turmeric and #ginger as a spice in soups. They are extremely useful as a #medicine when you feel sick. Turmeric is my favorite #painreliever if I have muscle or joint problems. The last (and only) time I tried doing yoga on my own, my back muscles became very sore in the lower back area, making it difficult and painful to change from sitting to standing up. A few days of turmeric usually helps reduce #inflammation in the large muscle groups, allowing for normal joint movement. Turmeric is also reputed to be an excellent anti-cancer super food.

Ginger and turmeric are a powerful combo when used together. It is great for reducing fever from the flu. I had waves of dizzy spells after eating a soup loaded with these two spices, but it worth it for the warm, cozy sleep it helped me to have. Ginger definitely helps me to stay warm whenever I get cold chills.

Young pumpkins posing for the the spotlight. They know they have a big future in store for them.

#Cilantro, and three kinds of #tomatoes. If I didn't label them on the outside, I would never be able to remember which is which. Roma on the left is supposed to be good for making thick sauces. Rapunzel in the middle is a cherry tomato variety, known for making hundreds of treats to snack on. Ideal for salads and fun for small children to grab. Beefsteak on the right has noticeably larger leaves, and is supposed to make the largest fruit, ideal for sandwiches.

#Arugula growing in two pots. On the left is Roquette kicking out. To the right is Wild Dragon Tongue.

The #cabbage is growing very quickly. I've heard people can grow these to full harvest size in less than ten weeks. I bet these would make tasty sprouts if I wanted to eat them now. Since they are growing very tall and skinny, I have been rotating all of my pots 1/4 turn counter-clockwise every day. Plants always grow towards the light. Most plants also tend to grow with a slight spiral shape along their stem where there they set leaves and branches, so I think letting it twist up to the light might actually be a good way to help the plants strengthen the stem.

Wish you could smell this one. #Anise has a minty licorice scent and taste to the leaves. It makes a fantastic dessert garnish. It also repels ants and aphids, and attracts exotic pollinators. Sometimes I mistaken this with cilantro. If you look closely, anise does not have deeply separate lobes in the leaves like cilantro does. To me, the anise leaf looks like a circular grandma doily.

Poblano #peppers. These guys are all popping out for attention. Never had so many sprout so quickly before. Notice how I mounded up the soil around them. Originally the cup barely had an inch of soil. Now it is nearly two inches full. I started doing the same thing with the tomatoes, because I want them to have a tall straight stem with a root that goes straight down deep. Tomatoes will actually form suckers that might become new roots along the buried stem. Peppers do not not grow side roots along the stem so much, but they do like to grow very tall quickly. Using a cup is it easier to build the soil up around it to support the stem so it continues to grow towards an upright position.

This is the mystery seed. Two of the seeds have barely sprouted, and they have looked this way for a few days. My guess is it is black cumin, and not chives. It can be really hard to tell the charcoal-like black seeds apart after seed collection.

This one is definitely black #cumin. I know because these seeds were labeled properly.

Some other seeds not pictured are still in pots, but they are too lazy to sprout for the camera today. We're still waiting for lady #lavender, banana pepper, Lincoln homestead #peas, and perfume #nicotiana #tobaccco.

So tempted to start planting some more seeds but space is already looking tight under my grow lights. Once some of these look strong enough, I'll move them to the windowsill to make room for others.

Coming Soon...

This Saturday I will be out rock hunting!

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Not rock climbing, although that looks like fun too.

Currently, my quest is to hunt for some medium sized natural looking rocks. The goal is to eventually form a landscape #bonsai, sometimes referred to as #sekai.

Small rocks, large rocks, and gravel can be combined together in a natural way into a work of art. It can be made to look like a scene such as a mountain, island, river bed, pond, beach, hilltop, canyon, or cliff.

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I feel really luck actually, because I am going to a rock landscaping retailer with another member of the bonsai club I attend. She is a trained concrete artist, and has training in making large rock-like sculptures used in film and tv shows.

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She's the person they go to when they need someone who can make a set that looks like the Temple of Doom or Drogon's Cave. Hopefully she has enough patience to help a novice like me interested in trying something new.

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Thank you for taking the time to review my post.

Please review the comments as well if you have the time. I'm on the the hunt for #Shrimp who need our upvotes on their posts. As long as they look shrimpy, and provide tasty content, we can give them some buttery love.

It is my pleasure to share. Now, enjoy the rest of your day.