Biograffiti
March 25, 2015 8:47 AM Subscribe
First off, a caveat. This is an entirely hypothetical question. I'm not planning on doing this.
So, if you got a party popper, (I'm thinking probably of the springloaded ones, but maybe the other kind would work too) emptied it out and filled it with seeds, what kind of seeds would
a) cause the most havoc and b) be most pleasant.
As an example, a party popper full of mint seeds would (in theory) delightfully minty, and yet very very difficult to completely eradicate. So, persistent, beautiful (in look or smell) and potentially useful (herbs and the like) that would work well as a mix and germinate after being launched from a party popper. Would this work? If so how would you refine it?
As an example, a party popper full of mint seeds would (in theory) delightfully minty, and yet very very difficult to completely eradicate. So, persistent, beautiful (in look or smell) and potentially useful (herbs and the like) that would work well as a mix and germinate after being launched from a party popper. Would this work? If so how would you refine it?
Sounds like you're talking about Guerrilla Gardening? Or seed bombs? The usual recommendation I've seen is to use wildflowers (pretty and self-seeding) and/or plants native to the area (to help local fauna).
posted by tchemgrrl at 8:56 AM on March 25, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by tchemgrrl at 8:56 AM on March 25, 2015 [2 favorites]
What you are describing is essentially seed bombing, although generally takes other forms. If you search on that term, you'll find suggestions of seed types. What will germinate and flourish will primarily depend on what climate you live in.
posted by kimdog at 8:57 AM on March 25, 2015
posted by kimdog at 8:57 AM on March 25, 2015
Chia seeds would work, they wouldn't fully grow, but they would create a chia pet where ever they landed, and on most damp surfaces.
A modified potato cannon could act as a seed shot gun. You would need to fashion a capsule that would disperse seeds in the air as it fell, rather than creating a cloud in front of you, and have a seal around it so pressure could build up behind it.
Kudzu can be quite devastating.
posted by FallowKing at 8:58 AM on March 25, 2015
A modified potato cannon could act as a seed shot gun. You would need to fashion a capsule that would disperse seeds in the air as it fell, rather than creating a cloud in front of you, and have a seal around it so pressure could build up behind it.
Kudzu can be quite devastating.
posted by FallowKing at 8:58 AM on March 25, 2015
Mint is actually difficult to grow from seed. Also, you're talking about seeds that will basically just rest on the soil, not get buried, so they need to be very small seeds.
Poppy seeds are small enough. Mustard. Most lettuce. Radish. Dill. I'm sure there are lots more, but those come to mind immediately.
posted by Gilbert at 9:01 AM on March 25, 2015
Poppy seeds are small enough. Mustard. Most lettuce. Radish. Dill. I'm sure there are lots more, but those come to mind immediately.
posted by Gilbert at 9:01 AM on March 25, 2015
Response by poster: Spring Loaded Party Poppers
(Although the other normal explodey kind would be fine, I just thought the explosion might damage the seeds)
Would using streamers of seed tape improve germination chances?
I picked Mint because it is famously quite aggressive and hard to eradicate whilst still being quite pleasant.
other things in this category would be useful.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 9:08 AM on March 25, 2015
(Although the other normal explodey kind would be fine, I just thought the explosion might damage the seeds)
Would using streamers of seed tape improve germination chances?
I picked Mint because it is famously quite aggressive and hard to eradicate whilst still being quite pleasant.
other things in this category would be useful.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 9:08 AM on March 25, 2015
Aren't party poppers almost always used indoors? If you can grow plants on the floor of your home, you are probably on the verge of having your house condemned.
That said, I had this experience quite recently. On February 3, we celebrate Setsubun, which largely consists of the kids throwing beans at me wearing a demon mask. Living in the US, we used dried pinto beans instead of the traditional roasted soy beans. About four weeks later, half of our back yard had leaves sprouting from the turf. We were puzzled at first but then remembered the bean-throwing. So, my experience supports that merely throwing pinto beans on a grass lawn will result in a fine crop.
posted by Tanizaki at 9:27 AM on March 25, 2015 [4 favorites]
That said, I had this experience quite recently. On February 3, we celebrate Setsubun, which largely consists of the kids throwing beans at me wearing a demon mask. Living in the US, we used dried pinto beans instead of the traditional roasted soy beans. About four weeks later, half of our back yard had leaves sprouting from the turf. We were puzzled at first but then remembered the bean-throwing. So, my experience supports that merely throwing pinto beans on a grass lawn will result in a fine crop.
posted by Tanizaki at 9:27 AM on March 25, 2015 [4 favorites]
Can you find out if your seeds have been treated with pesticide? I understand that a lot of commercially available seed has been treated with pesticide that will kill the insects that might feed on it, or live among it. I'd say "mixed wild flowers" but I've been told that the seeds you buy to create a butterfly garden are usually treated with a poison that later kills the butterflies it attracts.
My suggestion is to put grain seeds in your popper and shoot it over a prepared lawn surface. This way you can have wheat and flax and millet all growing in a wonderful variety. Grain usually germinates well when it is broadcast.
But possibly what you are looking for is a stronger contrast between the seeds you plant and the environment where they are planted. In that case you need to know where you are letting the popper go off. Broad casting grain seeds onto a lawn could end up with no visible result after the usual run of a lawnmower. Broadcasting onto unprepared ground might result in a negligible germination rate. Your seeds will have to be picked to do well in their environment.
posted by Jane the Brown at 9:28 AM on March 25, 2015
My suggestion is to put grain seeds in your popper and shoot it over a prepared lawn surface. This way you can have wheat and flax and millet all growing in a wonderful variety. Grain usually germinates well when it is broadcast.
But possibly what you are looking for is a stronger contrast between the seeds you plant and the environment where they are planted. In that case you need to know where you are letting the popper go off. Broad casting grain seeds onto a lawn could end up with no visible result after the usual run of a lawnmower. Broadcasting onto unprepared ground might result in a negligible germination rate. Your seeds will have to be picked to do well in their environment.
posted by Jane the Brown at 9:28 AM on March 25, 2015
Morning glory would cause a lot of havoc. I would call it the opposite of pleasant though so don't do that.
Dill would work--it spreads itself similarly to mint. Poppy seeds too. Refining it would depend some on your climate and the time of year you did this (presumably outdoors).
These seed bombers describe some of the species they use:
"White Yarrow, Purple coneflower, Shirley Poppy, foxglove, Red prairie coneflower, maltese crosee, Catchfly, Snapdragon, and sweet alyssum"
"For shady spots, choose a woodland mix, for example including foxgloves or honesty. For sunny places, go for meadow flowers such as cornflowers, marigolds or hollyhocks."
"Some classic choices for feeding insects include mustard, fennel, dill, buckwheat, clover and wildflowers such as coneflower, goldenrod, yarrow, ironweed and sunflower"
posted by purple_bird at 10:17 AM on March 25, 2015
Dill would work--it spreads itself similarly to mint. Poppy seeds too. Refining it would depend some on your climate and the time of year you did this (presumably outdoors).
These seed bombers describe some of the species they use:
"White Yarrow, Purple coneflower, Shirley Poppy, foxglove, Red prairie coneflower, maltese crosee, Catchfly, Snapdragon, and sweet alyssum"
"For shady spots, choose a woodland mix, for example including foxgloves or honesty. For sunny places, go for meadow flowers such as cornflowers, marigolds or hollyhocks."
"Some classic choices for feeding insects include mustard, fennel, dill, buckwheat, clover and wildflowers such as coneflower, goldenrod, yarrow, ironweed and sunflower"
posted by purple_bird at 10:17 AM on March 25, 2015
I've been told that the seeds you buy to create a butterfly garden are usually treated with a poison that later kills the butterflies it attracts.
This doesn't make a ton of sense considering the very small amount of pesticide that could be on seeds, relative to the volume of a healthy plant, and considering the time between planting and having that plant be mature enough to flower and provide nectar to insects.
What I think is getting mixed-up in that statement is the known connection between pesticides—sprayed on adult plants—and the lifecycles of various butterflies, including and especially the Monarch butterfly, which as larvae can only eat milkweed leaves and are frequently killed by pesticides sprayed thereon. (Which ought to be obvious: pesticides that stop insects from eating plant leaves are rather obviously going to wreak havoc on an insect that has to eat plant leaves as part of its lifecycle.)
Anyway, I'm not sure about OP's question although I have had lawns which were 'overseeded' with different types of grass at different times, with sometimes dramatic differences in color particularly under low-water conditions. I've always thought you could probably do something funny if you carefully "stenciled" with grass seed on a big sports field, although they probably water/fertilize them so atrociously heavily that only the approved Borg-grass that they plant there would remain.
posted by Kadin2048 at 11:20 AM on March 25, 2015
This doesn't make a ton of sense considering the very small amount of pesticide that could be on seeds, relative to the volume of a healthy plant, and considering the time between planting and having that plant be mature enough to flower and provide nectar to insects.
What I think is getting mixed-up in that statement is the known connection between pesticides—sprayed on adult plants—and the lifecycles of various butterflies, including and especially the Monarch butterfly, which as larvae can only eat milkweed leaves and are frequently killed by pesticides sprayed thereon. (Which ought to be obvious: pesticides that stop insects from eating plant leaves are rather obviously going to wreak havoc on an insect that has to eat plant leaves as part of its lifecycle.)
Anyway, I'm not sure about OP's question although I have had lawns which were 'overseeded' with different types of grass at different times, with sometimes dramatic differences in color particularly under low-water conditions. I've always thought you could probably do something funny if you carefully "stenciled" with grass seed on a big sports field, although they probably water/fertilize them so atrociously heavily that only the approved Borg-grass that they plant there would remain.
posted by Kadin2048 at 11:20 AM on March 25, 2015
I've been told that the seeds you buy to create a butterfly garden are usually treated with a poison that later kills the butterflies it attracts.
I'm thinking of the pesticides that are being suspected as the primary cause of colony collapse disorder. They are neurotoxins that kill insects through attacking receptors in nerve synapses. They are the ones in the neonicotinide family which are definitely used to treat seeds and are systemic pesticides that get transported to all the tissues as the plant grows and remain active for many weeks inside the plant. They also get washed out into the soil and kill earthworms. But I don't have good sources to quote on this and it is probably a peripheral piece of data that Just This may not have any use for so I didn't go into much detail.
I was under the impression that milkweed is generally eradicated by a herbicide that is designed to kill the plant so it won't complete with commercial crops. My experience is that these herbicides came into heavy use in the 70s which is why I saw monarchs as a little kid and now never see them.
Which leads me to an idea. Milkweed! Milkweed would be a lovely plant to introduce. The pods are fun to play with and if they bring butterflies they are even nicer.
posted by Jane the Brown at 1:29 PM on March 25, 2015
I'm thinking of the pesticides that are being suspected as the primary cause of colony collapse disorder. They are neurotoxins that kill insects through attacking receptors in nerve synapses. They are the ones in the neonicotinide family which are definitely used to treat seeds and are systemic pesticides that get transported to all the tissues as the plant grows and remain active for many weeks inside the plant. They also get washed out into the soil and kill earthworms. But I don't have good sources to quote on this and it is probably a peripheral piece of data that Just This may not have any use for so I didn't go into much detail.
I was under the impression that milkweed is generally eradicated by a herbicide that is designed to kill the plant so it won't complete with commercial crops. My experience is that these herbicides came into heavy use in the 70s which is why I saw monarchs as a little kid and now never see them.
Which leads me to an idea. Milkweed! Milkweed would be a lovely plant to introduce. The pods are fun to play with and if they bring butterflies they are even nicer.
posted by Jane the Brown at 1:29 PM on March 25, 2015
+1 Milkweed!
In an attempt to counter two decades of destruction, the Fish and Wildlife Service launched a partnership with two private conservation groups, the National Wildlife Federation and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, to basically grow milkweed like crazy in the hopes of saving the monarchs.and you may be able to get free seeds...
As part of an agreement, the federation will help raise awareness about the need for milkweed, provide seeds to anyone willing to plant it and to plant the seeds in open space — roadsides, parks, forests and patio flower boxes, to name a few places.posted by Little Dawn at 2:13 PM on March 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
If I'm understanding correctly, you're looking for seeds that, once they grow, will be plants that are difficult to eradicate. Pleasantness is totally in the eye of the beholder!
Anything that produces a lot of seeds itself (or underground runners) would be ideal. I have NO idea how easy it would be to get your hands on seeds for these, but:
Dandelions, bamboo, crabgrass (apparently each plant can produce up to 150,000 seeds!), bindweed (wandering roots produce offspring 20 - 30 feet from the mother vine), plantain (each plant can produce more than 15,000 seeds) .. and any other plant that you can find by googling "hard to eradicate outdoor plant".
If you were going to do this, rather than it being a hypothetical, I would caution you to NOT pick any invasive species and to only go with native species for the sake of being kind to the rest of the plants/environment in your area.
posted by VioletU at 3:33 PM on March 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
Anything that produces a lot of seeds itself (or underground runners) would be ideal. I have NO idea how easy it would be to get your hands on seeds for these, but:
Dandelions, bamboo, crabgrass (apparently each plant can produce up to 150,000 seeds!), bindweed (wandering roots produce offspring 20 - 30 feet from the mother vine), plantain (each plant can produce more than 15,000 seeds) .. and any other plant that you can find by googling "hard to eradicate outdoor plant".
If you were going to do this, rather than it being a hypothetical, I would caution you to NOT pick any invasive species and to only go with native species for the sake of being kind to the rest of the plants/environment in your area.
posted by VioletU at 3:33 PM on March 25, 2015 [1 favorite]
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posted by easily confused at 8:50 AM on March 25, 2015