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| I have some penstemon plants here that make stinky seeds--like PU catbox stink. The plants have NOT been spritzed by cats--it's their seeds that stink that way. Yuccch.
Does anyone have some suggestions for descenting them? I've already tried placing them in the sun on a plate and airing them--but it doesn't seem to have changed their scent. I don't want to spray them with lysol and dry them again--I'm concerned with sending seeds that have any artificial additives coating them. TIA T |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Hi, Trudi. This is waaaay to funny; I thought it was just me (I mean just my penstemon, not ME)! My 'Husker Red' just reeks. I warned the recipient so that she wouldn't think I sent rancid seeds, LOL. What to do? I don't think we're supposed to do anything, except maybe warn the recipient, if any... Say, off topic I have a WS question for you, so please check in and take a peek, okay? Constance. |
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| I sat down with my Print Master Program and made a mini-label with two skunks surrounding the words STINKY SEEDS! I'll use plastic for packing the seeds and add a label to each. Hopefully I'll be forgiven ;-) T |
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| Good idea about the plastic, Trudi; although sometimes you can smell right thru it, LOL. Thank goodness the flowers don't stink! Con. |
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- Posted by tracey_nj6 6 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 8, 06 at 11:51
| I often wondered why my cat always goes over to my "Husker Red" after opening the deck door. She's generally an indoor cat, but I let her out once in a while. Last year I harvested my "Husker Red" by cutting off the stem and sticking in a paper bag to harvest. It was truly a rude awakening when I went to get some seed! I don't think anything works to de-scent them. When I trade them, I put them in a plastic ziplock wrapped in a piece of coffee filter, and too, label 'STINKY' seeds, lol... |
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| Just an idea...next time I get a 'stinker' of a trade, I think I'll send a charming thank you note, and include some 'Husker Red' seed just to demonstrate no hard feelings, LOL Just kidding, right? |
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| NOW I'm going to HAVE to try saving Penstemon seeds. I've got P. palmeri, P. eatonii, P. parryi and P. strictus growing happily in my garden. I'm a biologist by profession, and like most biologists, I have a certain weakness for Really Bad Smells. Curiously, Fritillaria agrestis (common name Stinkbells) seed does NOT smell of anything. Some Salvia varieties, specifically S. clevelandii, have a pleasant scent. Lisa |
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| Hi Lisa, I know that some people can detect scents that others can't. Hubs and I often walk at beautiful Old Westbury Gardens, where they have a boxwood garden. I say they smell like a month old catbox on a rainy day, Hubs doesn't notice them at all. Some folks say that cleome stinks like that, but I can't notice it. I did open up my rubbermaid container of penstemon seeds for him to whiff and he agreed they're stinky, but he said just a bit. I think they are downright awful PU Gross. As usual we have a tendancy to argue over everything, including how bad seeds stink. To each their own, but keep a nose-pinching clothespin nearby! |
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- Posted by romando 9b/10a , sunset 17 (amanda.azevedo@juno.com) on Fri, Apr 21, 06 at 19:10
| I think that centranthus ruber (red valarian) stinks like rotten toe cheese... ... and society garlic smells like skunk... Amanda 'romando' |
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- Posted by inthegarden_k z7 NC (My Page) on Fri, May 19, 06 at 0:54
| do your husker red come true from seed? or are helf of them green? i like the leaves better than the flowers :) |
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| My penstemon hirsutus seeds are stinky for awhile but it seems to go away after they dry a bit more. I think I was harvesting them a little too early. Do they need cold before they sprout? |
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| I've not noticed that they need it. MAny of the pentemons I have were started outside in July, I also start them with Winter Sowing. They are, like many perennials, very easy to get going. |
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| Thanks Trudy, some new houses are being built behind me and most of mine were killed during the wiring (I'm the lucky one with the box at the corner). Had a few seeds so I stuck them in a pot to see what happened. |
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