#how to start tomato seedlings

[solarpunkpresentspodcast]

Yesterday the weather outdoors was super terrible, so my Solarpunk Action was setting up a little gardening station in the corner of my laundry room so I could get tomato seedlings started.

[hedgehog-moss]

I finally planted my garden last week! We had a couple of days of sun which gave me hope, but it's once again raining every day. Thoughts and prayers for my tomato plants, but I couldn't keep everyone in the greenhouse forever, I had to make room for other plants.

(In the fourth picture above you can see what's inside the hügelkultur mound—it's a pile of branches + llama manure + compost + potting soil. One thing I find great about it is how well it retains moisture! Well it's not a problem this year so far but during heat waves I water these plants a lot less than non-mound plants.)

In the greenhouse my seedlings have been struggling due to lack of sun. Impossible to get courgette plants so I had to buy a few from the young couple in town who recently started a plant nursery—they didn't have many either, and I had to share with the mayor who also came looking for courgette plants because slugs devoured all of his.

He must have seen on my face that I thought my plants didn't stand a chance if slugs don't even respect municipal authority, because he kindly advised me to place crowns of bedstraw (see above) around my plants to protect them. I didn't dare to ask "If it works so well why do you have no courgette plants left?" I just said thank you, and then spent an entire evening last week weaving this sticky weed into crowns and whatsapping photos of my art to the mayor, who always replied "More! More! It needs to be thicker! Like a doughnut!"

Meanwhile 1 leek in the greenhouse suddenly grew a lot thicker while the other 3 remained skinny and fearful-looking and I'm not sure why. They share a pot, so maybe it's like vanishing twin syndrome. My bell pepper seeds had the same asynchronous development issue—one pot is just now starting to have timid seedlings while the other (right next to it) already contains a grown-up plant with baby peppers:

By far my happiest greenhouse plants are the potatoes and lettuce. They shot up so fast! I've been eating a lot of lettuce lately but I can't keep up with how quickly they grow in this cold, rainy spring. And I haven't had any slug raids in the greenhouse so that's great.

My greenhouse squash, onions and pickles are still tiny and not worth a photo (harsh, but this post already has too many photos). My strawberries in the aquaponic towers are beautiful despite the lack of sun and I've been getting mini-harvests of 2-3 strawberries a day for two weeks! They're done now, but I started more seeds so maybe I can get a second round at the end of the month.

Three more things:

1. Morille helped a lot as I was planting the garden. She kept an eye on my gardening tools so no one would steal them, and sometimes used them as cheek-scratchers. At one point I put one of my beautiful bedstraw crowns around her neck so she looked like Philip III of Spain in that painting where he wears a big ruff, but tragically she ran away in outrage before I could take a picture, and when she returned she'd got rid of her collar.

2. At the cow parade the other day there was a lady at the market who sold jars of homemade pesto sauce made from all kinds of different plants, and it opened up my mind to entirely new pesto horizons!! I always make the traditional kind with basil, but I have plants that grow much faster than basil, like my rocket, so I tried making pesto with 1/3 basil 2/3 rocket (plus garlic, olive oil, parmesan, cashews) and it was so good! I have to explore all of her recipes now, like plantain or nettle or sage pesto...

3. There's a monster in the greenhouse. It appeared practically overnight and is quickly claiming more and more territory. Unlike last year it's not a parsley monster—it's my lemon balm. One day it was growing in its vertical tower, luxuriant but tidy, like a normal plant, and the next it had quintupled in volume and was threatening to swallow the nearest planter. Look at the tiny tomato plants, they look terrified of it!

I urgently need to fight back against this giant mélisse (as we call lemon balm) but I've been really busy and I keep putting it off, and then remembering anxiously at 11pm that I still have this creature to take care of, which is ironic seeing as lemon balm is supposed to relieve stress and anxiety. This is the exact opposite of why I planted you. Anyway if you never hear from me again after this post it's because I finally engaged in battle against this year's vegetal menace, and lost.

[togament]

“your first kiss with ume went horribly.”

₊˚⊹♡

a/n: not proof read. this was written in one sitting pls pls forgive. a/n pt 2: if you saw me saying 3k words before, no you didn't. 3k characters HAH.

warnings: none, just fluff and kotoha’s stressing.

⋆˙⟡♡

You both leaned in at the same time. cheeks flushed and hearts racing while you’re sitting side by side on the bench by his vegetable garden. noses and foreheads knocking against each other because you tilted your head in the same direction. you sneeze because you leaned in a bit too quickly. he offers his hanky just in case but you shake your head, saying it’s alright. he opts to hold your hand instead. you’re both sweating bullets, now dead silent.

-

you wanted to kiss him because he’s been yapping about how his okras have been growing so fast and how the pests have been eating away at his tomato leaves and how Sakura’s been warming up to the others and how the flower seeds you both bought are already sprouting and and and and —

you realize you look forward to each yap session now. you realize he looks a bit more handsome in the sunlight. you realize he’s been walking you home for the past few weeks. you realize you spray way too much perfume when you know you’ll be bumping into him.

you confide in kotoha about it and she nags you, telling you he you obviously like him. you wave her off, saying it’s just a crush. it’ll go away (you’ve been talking about him for months), that he’s like that with everyone. she sighs.

little did you know ume confided in kotoha about the same thing.

-

ume wanted to kiss you because he’s been dropping you hints for the last few months. horribly, by the way. kotoha nags him about it too, saying he should just show up at your doorstep and tell you straight up with a bouquet in hand. he has. but his first confession flew over your head and instead of flowers, he gave you flower seedlings (they’re growing on your windowsill). then he proceeds to moan and groan about you to her, wondering how he’s gonna get through to you, that maybe he’s doing too much, maybe he’s doing too little, maybe you like someone else and and —

he’s yapping now.

kotoha lets out another sigh.

-

now you and ume are both sitting there, noses reddened, cheeks flushed, hands on top of each other and sweating.

ume’s starting to overthink again, ready to pull away and talk about other things to ease the tension.

you beat him to it, though.

you nervously lean on his shoulder and you swear you felt him jump. he melts into it, running his thumb over your knuckles and he smiles softly to himself.

this is really happening.

you glance up at him and he’s already staring down at you with the softest eyes. you can almost hear his heart racing. or is that yours?

his voice is softer now. one trembling hand holding your hand tightly and another is pushing a strand of hair behind your ear. his fingers ghost the skin of your cheek as he stammers,

“can I please kiss yo—“

“please.”

you respond before he even finishes his sentence. you smile up at him. he chuckles, holding his hand against your cheek and he whispers a soft celebratory “yes!”.

you tilt your head just right now and he does as well.

he finally kisses you.

and you swear you can feel him smiling against your lips.

you are too.

your first kiss with ume went horribly.

but he wouldn’t want it any other way.

a/n: whew. this was supposed to be a short drabble. ume kisses go brr. also poor kotoha.

[borathae]

↳ Index [Snippet #37 - Pierced]

“When Jungkook’s lip ring finally healed and you can’t resist each other anymore.”

Genre: Smut, married life!AU

Warnings: switch!Jungkook, switch!Reader, it goes from Dom!Kook to sub!Kook to Dom!Kook, tattooed & pierced!JK, he’s got his lip & nipples pierced, he ties his long hair together nfdnf, muscle & strength kink, lil bit of thigh riding, sex outside on a sun bed, messy oral (f.receiving), some biting, multiple orgasms (f.receiving), creampies, she rides him to an orgasm, body hair kink aye, she smothers him with her tits, nipple sucking, lotsa drool, subby boy tears, dirty talk, praise, a lil bit of degradation, he has such a lose tongue, they are very horny & needy & just wanna fuck, cuddly aftercare, they are in love!!

Wordcount: 5.4k

a/n: there is no thought behind this drabble. it’s a crime that i never wrote about his lip ring until now. enjoy besties, this was created from the depths of my pussy 🧡

You are in the little greenhouse in your garden when Jungkook comes home. Your tomato plants, which you and Jungkook have carefully raised from infant seedlings to healthy six foot plants, are finally starting to flower and you are currently making sure that no bugs or other insects nibble on them. Yes, you are very protective over your tomato plants. 

After reading an article about self-sustaining living, you developed an obsession with growing as much of your food as possible. You asked Hoseok for help – given how he is already a complete expert at it – and Seokjin gave you some tips as well. Jungkook called it way too time consuming at first, but soon gave in with a fond smile. He even helped you build the greenhouse and soon after, the plant growing fever took a hold of him as well. 

It was when the first of your tomato seed experiments grew a little sprout. You can still remember how Jungkook called you in the middle of your shift with the great news of “babe, you won’t believe what just happened but tomato number ten just grew a sprout.” It was a truly exciting day in your marriage. 

Now come early summer and all your vegetable and fruit plants are thriving, ready to be pollinated and later carry fruit. 

The glass door opens and Jungkook steps inside. 

“Hey there.”

You turn, placing the sheers down on your working table. 

“And?” you ask him, eyeing it. 

There was something else new in your relationship. It was on Jungkook’s body, his lower lip to be more exact. A small metal ring close to the right corner of his mouth. A lip piercing. 

It was a well-thought-through decision of his’, one you completely support. Not only because it is his body and he can decorate it with whatever he wants, but also because you always had a gist that he would look amazing with a lip piercing. And you were correct. He looks so handsome with it. Truly, each day you fall more and more in love with this man. 

The only downside came with the healing. No touching except for when he has to clean it. That is what the piercer told Jungkook. Which meant no kissing and truly, it left you feeling unbearably needy for him. Eight long and grueling weeks of not being able to kiss your husband. It sounds like torture and it truly was. Especially because you and he were so used to kissing all the time. Soft little morning pecks, sweet goodbye kisses, the relieved smooch of comfort after a long work day, sleepy kisses, desperate making out or the loving surprise kiss throughout the day. You and your husband love kissing. So to be unable to feel each other’s lips for eight long weeks felt like torture. You tried to kiss him one time, but that ended in Jungkook yelping up in pain and bleeding a little. You apologised a million times with tears in your eyes whilst he assured you that it wasn’t your fault and after that, you never tried to kiss again.

Today however, you hope that he comes bearing good news. 

“And? What did he say? Has it healed?”

Jungkook steps closer, but stays silent. 

“Talk to me, I can’t take the silence” you whine, shrugging off your gloves. 

He takes another step. 

“Come on, tell me. I wanna know”, you stress, stomping your foot. Truth was, you have been sitting on needles the entire day, wishing for his quick return. All you did today was take care of your garden and think of Jungkook’s kiss. If he doesn’t answer you soon – or take your face to kiss you stupid – you will burst. You can’t bear the longing anymore.

“Kookie, please tell me”, you plead, staring at his lips. 

Jungkook breaks the last of the distance between the two of you, cups your face in his hands and kisses you deeply. 

Your knees buckle, a moan slips past your lips. Everything that was wrong is right again. The world finally starts turning and colour returns to your universe. You are kissing your husband! You tilt your body back as Jungkook presses himself into you, your arms hook behind his head. Holy fuck. Yes.

You grab a bundle of his long hair, twisting it to the point where Jungkook moans into your mouth. Or perhaps he is moaning because all he has been craving was your kiss. Driving home from the piercer with news of finally having healed sitting heavily on his heart was torture. All he wanted to be was to be home with you and have you in his arms. Eight weeks without your kiss and Jungkook had reached his breaking point. If he had to live without your kiss for even one second longer, he would have actually combusted.

Jungkook breaks the kiss, breathing just as heavily as you. He didn’t want to break it, but air was sparse in his lungs. Fuck, if he could live on only your kiss, he would. But alas, he has to breathe, running his hands over your face as if it was the first time he ever touches you.

“I missed you”, he whispers, “I missed you so fucking much.”

“Me too, Kook. More, kiss me please.”

Jungkook obeys gladly, kissing you so deeply that nothing could separate the two of you. His strong arm slings around your waist, pressing you into his body. His long fingers close around you, reminding you why it is so nice to be touched by him. He does it with so much tenderness, but also with just enough strength to let you know that he was there. That you were his' and that he intends on never letting you go. 

You run your hand down his torso until you can touch his waist. He shivers and pushes you until the back of your legs hit the edge of the work table. Like this, he can cage you in and keep you right there with him. Not that he needs to do anything for that. You want to be with him. This is all you crave. 

You gasp for air again. Your faces are barely apart. His cock is hard. Well, not completely but still swollen enough that you can feel it poke your tummy. You grind yourself against it, feasting on the desperate whimper he lets out. You are so turned on yourself. Your desperation is soaking your panties. His kiss and loving touch does that to you.

“Fuck”, he chuckles breathily, “you’re messing with me.”

“I can feel it”, you sigh, “I’m so wet too.”

“It’s been too long.”

“Kook, just fucking take me.”

“Jump.”

You follow instantly. Jungkook catches you safely, tensing his muscles just for you. You fucking love to be in his arms and feel him tense. It gets you so fucking wet. Moaning his name, you cup his face and pull him into a kiss.

The walk back to the house gets difficult, but Jungkook wouldn’t want it any other way. These few seconds without your kiss where you talked felt like torture. He needs your faces to literally melt with each other. He missed you so goddamn much.

Jungkook manages as far as the terrace and then he has to drop you. Not because you grew too heavy for him, but because he needed you so bad that it got impossible to walk. So he sets you down gently, massaging your hips. He breaks the kiss, holding your hips to grind you against him. He makes sure to lift his leg so your pussy was grinding on his thigh. You whimper because of it, looking up at him with glassy, droopy eyes.

“Koo…”

“I need you to lie down, baby”, he rasps, “I fucking can’t wait any longer.”

“The sun bed?”

“Yeah, please. If you want.”

“I want to. You?”

“Baby, I’ve been thinking about you the whole drive home ‘course I fucking want you”, he says and pushes his thigh against your pussy, making you moan, “please. Please lie down for me.”

“You’re so hot, fuck”, you say and step back. You waste no time getting naked. You would have to fumble with your clothes later either way. It’s better to get it over with now and safe yourself the trouble.

“Fuck, sweetheart”, Jungkook moans, watching you with heavy eyes. He tongues his lip ring, driving you mad with it.

You step out of your sundress and panties and finally lie down on the sun bed. You give him a sensual writhe, looking up at him with big, pleading eyes.

“And now?” you ask him.

Jungkook takes off his shirt and shorts. He knows that he won’t be needing them anymore. His cock is completely hard, slapping against his toned stomach and leaking the prettiest droplets of excitement.

“So pretty”, you whine, “Koo, I want you.”

Jungkook takes his heavy cock and jerks it twice, “you can”, he lulls, falling to his knees in front of you. He grabs you by your ankles and tugs you to the edge even if that makes you squeak and later giggle.

“This was so much fun”, you squeal.

He chuckles, eyes glued to your glistening pussy and hands running along your inner thighs, “you’re so cute”, he says and pushes gently, nudging your legs open so he can lower himself to your pussy.

“Oh?” you squeak, tensing up, “o-oh”, you relax in a shudder, arching your back seconds later, “holy fuck.”

Jungkook growls against you, gripping your waist to give it a needy squeeze.

“I missed you”, he moans, “holy fuck, you’re heaven”, he adds and buries his face back in your leaking cunt. He doesn’t think about cleanliness right now. He is messy and sloppy and fucking dirty in the way he eats your pussy and he wouldn’t want it any other way. He can finally have you again, taste you, feel you, experience you and make you moan so fucking sweetly. Eight long weeks without your taste. Jungkook never wants to experience such agonies again. He felt like an addict denied of his favourite drug. And now he needs to be covered in you. It is all he needs.

“Slow please”, you beg with trembling thighs, “Koo, you’re too fast oh god.”

Eight long weeks without feeling his tongue. Bear in mind, you weren’t abstinent from each other. You still touched each other, made the other cum and found yourselves lost in deep rolls of your hips. It never felt truly fulfilling of course because you weren’t able to kiss, but you weren’t completely abstinent from each other. So you shouldn’t be that sensitive right now. But you are. His tongue feels like paradise. A paradise which is currently making your legs shake like there is no tomorrow.

He is so sloppy in the way he eats you out. His tongue can’t seem to stay at one place for too long as greed for more of you always keeps it busy. His lips are sucking and kissing every inch of your pussy until she feels all puffy and sensitive. You can feel his lip ring whenever he closes his lips around you. Hard, thin metal, hot from his body and your pussy and incredibly maddening to experience. There is this little grinding sensation whenever he uses his lips on you. You can’t get enough of it, reaching down to twist his hair.

You mess it up the point where it hangs into his face and gets stuck between his lips and your pussy.

“Baby”, he breaks away, “stop tugging so much, you’re messing up my hair.”

“I can’t help it, you’re so good. Don’t stop, please”, you whine, tugging him closer. More of his hair falls into his face. Jungkook chuckles and with a gentle shake of his head, shakes off your hands.

“No, please”, you beg, trying and failing to reach for him.

He leans back. You look at him with a big pout. It gets washed away instantly as you watch him use his teeth to take off the black hair tie from his wrist. He keeps it tangling between them, staring at you with half-lidded eyes. His lips glisten in your juices, his lip ring is wet from your sex. He reaches behind his own head and combs his hair back. His tattooed, sculpted arms flex and tense as he works, making you whimper because all you need is him. All of him. You need him so bad.

Once he is happy with the style, he holds up the ponytail with one hand and uses the other to get the hair tie. His arms pulsate and flex as he secures it, his chest stretches in the position, his nipple piercings practically beg for your attention.

Jungkook finally finishes the ponytail, giving you a taunting smirk. He is aware how into the little show you were.

“Kook please”, you beg, opening your legs for him.

“I’m obsessed with you”, he growls and grabs your hips. He spits on your pussy only to smother himself with you a second later and slurp up the mess he just made. He uses his entire head for the movements, changing between sucking your pussy and grinding the flat of his tongue against it.

“Kook”, you mewl, reaching for his hands. You know that you can’t hold his hair anymore. He made sure of that when he tied it back. But you still need to hold something of him. He makes you shake so much that you need to hold him for encouragement. He allows you to intertwine your fingers with him, running his thumbs over your skin in a soothing manner. It almost feels like mockery, how gently he soothes you while his mouth makes you shake so uncontrollably. A mockery you enjoy to the fullest because you get to hold Jungkook’s hands and that’s the best thing ever!

“You have no idea how much I needed this”, he rasps, letting his voice vibrate against your clit, “I want you to cum like this, baby. It’s all I need.”

“Soon”, you keen, squeezing his hands.

“Mhhm, baby”, his deep voice makes your thighs shake, “you make me the happiest man.”

And with that he disappears in your warmth again, giving your hands a squeeze and growling into your pussy. 

You fall apart on his tongue mere moments later. Everything felt way too good. It is all you needed to be fulfilled. 

You sob his name as you climax while Jungkook licks your clit through the fire and squeezes your hands. 

Seven times you convulse and tense. Seven times you lose control over your limbs. Seven times and then his tongue feels like too much.

“Break”, you beg him and Jungkook listens. 

“Good girl”, he praises, kissing your clit as a reward. You are still pulsating. Jungkook wants more, but knows not to overstep. 

Instead, he kisses his way up your recovering body, sucking on your nipples when he reaches them. His big hands cup your softness, massaging you gently. It feels so good to be touched this way.

“Kook”, you mewl softly, tangling your fingers in the hair he left outside. He has so much of it that it still easily hides your hand. The softness of it soothes you like nothing else. Jungkook contrasts it by giving your left nipple a soft bite. It stings, making you keen in pleasure.

He purrs, letting your sensitive bud slip from his teeth just so he can drag his lips up to your face. His lip ring tickles wherever it touches you, leaving you to writhe and whine.

“Look at me”, he says once he is eye to eye with you.

You follow instantly, cupping his cheeks because all you needed was to hold him.

“You did so well for me”, he praises, smiling softly, “but I’m not done with you.”

You whimper, arching your back.

“You made me hard and you gotta be my good girl and take care of it. Yeah?”

You nod your head vigorously.

“That’s my good girl, I knew you wouldn’t deny me”, he says and brushes his thumb over your cheek, “can I get comfy and then you ride my cock? Mhm baby? Can you do that for me?”

“Yes, Koo”, you say, trembling in anticipation.

“Thank you, baby. You have no idea how happy this makes me”, he says and rewards you with a kiss.

You moan deeply, hooking your arms behind his head just to make sure he can’t escape. He tastes like your orgasm. Sweet and intense. You want to lick it off of him. He tastes so good. Holy fuck, you need this kiss to never stop.

Jungkook is halfway on the sun bed this way. With one foot he is standing on the ground, while he has the other pulled up on the sun bed, resting his knee between your legs and grinding you against his skin. You’ve got him all sticky and wet like this. Jungkook gets off on the feeling like an addict.

“Koo”, you whimper and wiggle away, “Koo, it hurts. Too sensitive.”

“Hurts?” he lessens the pressure, “I’m sorry, baby. How’s that?”

“Good. Doesn’t….Kook, please fuck me.”

“So needy”, he teases and smiles cockily, “fine, let’s switch places.”

Your places are swapped within seconds. The sun bed is big enough that it can house Jungkook and you comfortably. Your knees have enough space to rest beside his hips and you could even spread them wider if you wanted to. Soft cushioning gives you enough knee support as well. The black fabric has been warmed up by the sun, but it feels comfortable on your skin. 

Jungkook falls back and yelps up.

“What’s wrong?” you gasp.

“Ponytail. Uncomfy. It’s poking my literal brain”, he says and sits up. You have to be honest, all you did was stare at his toned abs as he did. They were bulging and shifting like crazy. They still do, because Jungkook opens his ponytail with both hands, using his abs to keep himself lifted.

He is the sexiest man alive.

You reach out and run your fingers over the ridges of his abs. The scorching sun and your body made his skin burn up. The faintest layer of sweat has collected in the valleys of his abs, now sticking to your fingertips and getting spread all over his silken skin.

Jungkook watches you with hungry eyes, lifting himself just a little bit more to make his abs bulge even harder. You gulp, grinding your pussy down on his thick thigh. You are so wet, Jungkook can feel it. Adorable, he thinks, you aren’t even aware of how much you stare.

You dance your fingers down his abs until you reach his happy trail. Jungkook has never been a hairy man. He has his healthy amount of leg and arm hair, can grow out his pits and always keeps his bush well taken care of. But other than that, he has never been one particularly hairy fellow. So his happy trail is faint and you like to call it pretty, but it’s there. Even if just a little bit, it’s there and you are currently dragging your nails through it and Jungkook feels himself shiver at the sensation. You add more fingers once you reach his pubes, burying them deep in them just so you can scratch along his skin. His cock throbs because of you, leaking desperately.

Your eyes finally flit up. They are burning in fiery hunger for him. Your fingers still play with his hair, scratching him just above his cock. He smirks cockily.

“I wanna bounce on your cock till you’re begging me to stop”, you rasp and grab the base of his cock.

His smirk drops as his lips part in a gasp. Jungkook writhes because of how harshly you hold him. The pressure goes straight to his balls, keeping them from leaking any more precum for you.

“Fuck. Sweetheart”, he moans and throws the hair tie to the side. He finally drops down, gripping your thighs to the point where his fingertips dimple your flesh. His hair spreads on the cushion messily. Strands of it fall into his face.

You lift yourself and position your pussy over his cock. You give your clit a soft spank with it, sending a jolt through Jungkook’s legs.

“Ready?”

“Uh...yeah? What a ques-”

You sink down on him in one go.

Jungkook throws his head back and squeezes his eyes shut.

“-fuck!”

“Mhhm Kookie baby….you’re filling me up so well”, you moan and begin bouncing on him. You don’t need to get used to him. He fits you like no other. All you need is to fuck yourself senseless on him and steal his sanity while you’re at it.

Jungkook moans loudly, his hands slip to your waist to hold it. He doesn’t guide you. He doesn’t need to because you know what you are fucking doing, but also because he has no strength in him to tell you what you should do. Once he’s on his back and got you on his cock, he is your fucking slave. If you want it fast and rough? Jungkook is happy to get wet and sensitive in your perfect cunt. If you want it slow and deep? Jungkook is more than happy to grow as big as he can and whimper your name. You want his orgasm quick? Jungkook just hopes that he can breathe between all the moaning he has to do. You want to drag it out? Fuck, he’s going to suffer but he’s not going to complain for even a second. He’s your little sexdoll and you can get yourself off as you desire.

“Holy fuck, holy fuck, holy fuck”, he chants, feeling his brain pound behind his skull.

“You’re so big Kookie baby, I can’t get enough of you”, you moan, leaning your weight on his tummy. You know that he can take it. His abs are rock hard under your palms, convulsing each time your cunt meets the base of his cock and your ass slams down on his thighs. “it’s like you’re made for me. My pussy can’t get enough of being drilled by you, baby.”

“Don’t please”, he begs, “either fuck me or talk, don’t do both”, he whines.

“Why?” you chuckle.

“Cause together is too hot”, he mewls, rolling his head to the side and squeezing your waist, “I’m getting fucked so good”, he keens with his voice pitched in utter pleasure.

“You’re adorable”, you say, sliding your hands up his torso until you can rest them next to his head. Like this your tits bounce all into his face, “open your eyes, Kook.”

Jungkook obeys and sobs your name, reaching for your tits instantly just to press them together and bury his face in them. He sucks and licks and kisses, using way too much spit for it which makes it all the more addicting. You know that once he is done, your skin will be covered in sensitive spots where he sucked for too long and your nipples will be throbbing. Just how you like it. You arch your back to smother him even further and stick out your ass. His cock curves in this position, grinding over your favourite spots inside with each movement.

“That’s it, suck my tits. You’re such a hungry little baby”, you taunt him as you wiggle your hips on him in a skilled rhythm. The kind which makes his toes curl and forces him to make the neediest little sounds into your tits, “so good baby, you’ve got the best fucking cock.”

He is stuck on your right nipple. You know that he has no control over it. You are scrambling his brain. He can’t think. Nor move. Sucking on your nipple is an instinctive, dumb reaction to getting his cock bounced on. This isn’t something he does willingly, it’s the only way he can take what you give him. And it’s starting to hurt. Jungkook sucks with such vigour that it’s getting uncomfortable.

You tug him away with a harsh grip on his hair. His spit drips all over his lower face, his eyes open. There are tears sitting on his pretty, dark lashes. His cheeks are flushed pink, his gaze just that little bit droopy.

“I have another nipple too, you know?” you say, “use your brain to think.”

His cock throbs inside you and leaks angrily. He squeezes your waist, curling his toes.

“You’re so mean”, he presses out and arches his back.

“I am? Oh baby, I’m sorry”, you coo, “you know that I don’t mean it.”

Jungkook whimpers and opens his mouth, sticking out his tongue. You know that he is asking for your nipple. But you are in a teasing mood.

You lean down and lick his tongue before you wrap your lips around it to suck on it to the point where he moans into your mouth and scratches up your back. The sensation leaves a slight burn behind and forces you to growl into him like a needy animal. 

Jungkook swears that he is going to pass out. You are messing with him way too much. He expected anything but this. Maybe he should have expected it. He is married to the nastiest, most amazing sex goddess after all.

You release his tongue with a purr, claiming his lips next. The kiss is deep and messy. Tongues dance with each other in an unidentifiable rhythm, teeth manage to clash together every so often which results in you giggling and moaning into the other and your lips can’t seem to get enough of feeling the other’s. His cock feels a million times better now that you are kissing him. You don’t feel the need to give him ruthless bounces anymore. Just deep grinding. The kind which shifts his cock inside you and always keeps it pressed to your favourite spot. Your clit grinds against his tummy this way as well. The pressure and his warmth are enough to send a constant stream of electricity through your veins.

Air is sparse in your lungs. You gotta breathe. You break the kiss. Both of you pant for air. Just ten seconds of distance. He uses the time to hold onto your shoulders, you use the time to twist his hair. His lips call you back. You kiss him, concentrating your attention on his lip ring area. Your tongue traces the metal ring, your lips kiss and suck it and you even dare to tug on it with your teeth as carefully as possible.

“Holy fuck”, his talking forces the piercing to slip from your lips.

“What’s wrong? Hurts?” you ask.

“That feels incredible”, he says.

“Mhm. Yeah?” you flick your tongue over it, “not gonna lie, kinda obsessed with it.”

“Just kiss me, mommy”, he whines and hooks his fingers behind your head.

“Did you just call me-”

“Shut up”, he interrupts you and pulls you down into the kiss. He keeps you close with his nails scratching over your scalp and his puffy lips chasing your kiss. He props his feet up on the sun bed and thrusts up into you.

You squeak, falling to your elbows this way. Your tits squish against his chest, rubbing against his nipple piercings and making him whimper. Your sweaty skins melt together. He took over, now slamming his cock into you in a deep and hasty rhythm. You convulse on top of him and break the kiss just to hide away in the crook of his neck and wail his name.

He hugs you against his chest, burying his nose in your hair.

“I love you”, he growls, “holy fuck, I love you so much.”

“I love you too”, you squeak, “Kook, Kookie, Jungkookie oh god baby.”

“I fucking love this pussy”, he grips your ass and uses the leverage to move your hips on his cock, “shit, you feel so good.”

“Oh god”, you sob, “Kook, this making me cum.”

“Yeah? Good”, he spits and moans squeakily. Despite his rough fucking and harsh grip, he moans cutely. His voice is all pitched and breathy, barely wanting to come out from how messed up you got him. The contrast is making your head pound.

“Holy fuck, I’m close”, you get out, “fuck, your cock’s so good. Fuck baby, fuck.”

“Same, fucking same”, he growls, “don’t hold back, baby. Whenever you’re ready.”

“Deeper.”

Jungkook tenses his thighs and fucks his cock as deep as he can go.

“Yes!” you wail, starting to convulse on top of him as your body prepares for the messiest high, “yes! Yes! Yes!”

“That’s it baby, take my cock. Take my fucking cock, you’re doing so good. Oh fuck, I’m gonna nut so hard”, he is rambling. He always does that when he gets too lost in you and his mind is running on nothing but you, “gonna fucking cream your sweet little pussy, god I want you so bad. Fuck baby, you drive me insane.”

“Koo, I’m cumming”, you mewl and break apart, clutching him for dear life as your veins fill with fiery ecstasy.

“Yes baby, fuck holy fuck”, Jungkook’s voice changes in pitch, he barely gets the words out, “oh fuck, you’re squeezing my cock like crazy. God, I love you. My princess, keep cumming, that’s it.”

You have to be honest, you barely take in what he says. You know that he is talking and it’s making you so wet that he barely manages to stay inside, but his words don’t really stay in your brain. You are so far gone in the blissful embrace of your orgasm. He makes you feel just way too good.

“Oh god, baby I can’t hold back anymore”, he mewls and squeezes you tightly, “___!”

His hips drop and still, his cock throbs inside you and the loudest squeaks leave him. You can feel how his hot cum shoots up your pussy and how it’s leaking out of you because you’re milking him like crazy.

Still delirious from your own orgasm, you grind on him messily and without any sort of rhythm. You just want to make him feel good and be with him for as long as possible.

Your bodies naturally slow down. You know each other so well that it is your bodies’ instinct to stop once it turns from pleasurable to uncomfortable. Messy grinds turn into barely there rocks of your hips, these turn into the occasional clench of your walls until even that stops and you are resting atop his chest while both of you are panting for air.

You don’t need to talk – hell, neither of you could – as recovering with each other is already enough to comfort you.

Once those seconds turned into minutes and Jungkook’s softened cock naturally slipped out of you, you are the one to finally break the comfortable silence.

“So that just happened.”

“Yeah”, Jungkook lets out a breathy laugh, rubbing his palm up and down your back, “fuck.”

“Yeah, fuck”, you agree, “that was amazing.”

“It was fucking incredible”, he says and laughs again.

You join him because it feels good to laugh with him. Especially after sex.

“So uhm”, you say, nudging his neck with your nose, “wanna talk about the M-bomb you just dropped?”

“Shut up”, he whines, “I had your tits in my face and you were so sexy, it slipped outta me.”

“No don’t apologise, it was hot as fuck. You just never said that before”, you say and giggle, “you’re cute, baby.”

“Mhhm, it’s ‘cause you messin’ wit’ me”, he lulls and hugs you tightly, “always makin’ me feel so good.”

“Yeah same. You make me feel so good too”, you say and lift your head just so you can finally look at his face. He looks as ruined as you feel. It’s the sexiest look on him, “I’m already obsessed with the lip ring.”

“Yeah same”, Jungkook says, licking over it, “now I gotta think of techniques to use it on you when I eat you out.”

“Mhhm that sounds like fun”, you say, tracing it with your finger, “I can’t wait to explore it with you.”

He smiles, scrunching his nose up. He is so happy when he’s with you. You feel the same. He’s the best thing in your life.

[witchywithwhiskey]

Hey hey! How about...

16. trying something new

With...😏

first-time plant parents

pairing: husband!ari levinson x female reader

warnings: domestic fluff, referenced smut (not really 18+ but i'd always rather minors do not interact!), kissing, little bit of dry humping, non-graphic sex, pet names (sunshine)

word count: 1,500ish

a/n: thank you for sending in this prompt Navy!!! i have no excuse for this except i just think starting a vegetable garden with ari would be neat 🤷🏼‍♀️ this is so so so so self-indulgent but i hope y'all enjoy ♡♡

You were surprised by how good it felt to get your hands dirty, your fingers sinking into the rich soil as you scooped some up and patted it down around the tomato seedling you’d just planted. Sitting back on your heels, you looked down the row of tomatoes you’d finished planting, a sense of accomplishment settling deep into your body and making you smile to yourself. 

But it seemed you weren’t the only one to take pride in your efforts, as a warm, familiar voice called, “Lookin’ good, sunshine,” from the other side of the small vegetable garden you and your husband had set up in your backyard. 

Lifting your eyes from the row of tomato seedlings you’d carefully planted, your gaze collided with that of your husband, Ari Levinson, his brilliant blue eyes sparkling in the bright spring sunshine. His grin was wide as he used a hand to push his golden brown hair back from his face, pride and affection shining in his gaze as he looked at you. 

Your smile widened in return, and you raised a hand to shade your eyes so you could see his progress. “How’re the herbs coming?” you asked, your eyes skimming along the basil, rosemary and mint you’d decided to plant. They were in their own planter boxes to ensure they didn’t overrun the garden, and it looked like your husband was done with the task. “They look good.”

You’d never had a vegetable garden before—at least, not one of your own. Your grandmother had one when you were little, your father taking you into the impressively large garden to show you where they’d planted spinach and tomatoes and green beans and rhubarb. 

But with that garden long since gone and both your grandmother and father having passed, you’d told Ari you wanted to try your hand at growing some veggies of your own. Your husband had been excited to try it, even though he had less experience than you.

But he’d jumped into it as eagerly as you, digging up a little plot in your backyard and setting up a fence so that the animals didn’t get to your herbs and veggies. The garden was bigger than the meager crop you’d decided to plant that first year—just the herbs, your tomatoes and some spinach—but Ari said the two of you would grow into it.  

“Do they look as good as your husband?” Ari asked teasingly, drawing you out of your thoughts and back into the moment. 

You couldn’t help but smile as you got to your feet, brushing your hands off on your shorts and picking your way across the garden to your husband. You bent down to look at the planter boxes, making a show of assessing his work in planting the herbs. When you’d drawn it out long enough, you stood back up and looked to your husband, having to stifle a laugh when you saw he’d somehow managed to get streaks of dirt across his forehead.

“They look better than you,” you said, barely contained laughter making your voice waver as you reached up and tried to brush the dirt from Ari’s forehead, asking, “How did you manage to get dirt here?” However, since your hands were also covered in dirt, you only managed to make things worse. Ari laughed at your wince of apology. 

“I think you’ve got a little something, too,” he said playfully, brushing his dirty fingers over the tip of your nose. You were certain you didn’t have any dirt on your nose, which meant he’d just gotten you dirty for no good reason.

Gasping in mock outrage, you jumped back as he reached for your face again, knocking his hand away. “Don’t get me more dirty than I already am!” you cried, but you were laughing as you fended off your husband’s filthy, reaching hands. 

You danced around the garden, trying to avoid Ari and your plants, but after a few moments, you decided to go on the offensive. “Let’s see how you like getting dirty!” you yelled, darting close to your husband and swiping your fingers across Ari’s cheek, leaving behind a new streak of dirt above the line of his beard. 

However, Ari didn’t let you escape, wrapping his strong arms around your waist and hauling you up against his chest. “Do your worst, sunshine,” he challenged, laughing right along with you. 

Since his hands were busy holding onto you and yours were free, you brushed even more dirt on his cheeks, giggling as you got him even dirtier. But it wasn’t long before your giggles died down and the two of you were left pressed against one another, your chests heaving as you caught your breath and stared into each other’s eyes.

You could feel your body warming, which seemed to be a natural reaction to your husband’s closeness, your nipples tightening and heat sinking low to settle in your core. Squirming in Ari’s arms, you could feel your expression change, your eyes turning pleading as an aching need built up in your body.

“Stop looking at me like that, sunshine,” Ari rumbled, a gruff warning in his tone. You could feel his body responding to you, his arousal digging into your belly and making your legs tremble beneath you. “Or I’m liable to take you right here—garden be damned.”

Ari’s words sent new tendrils of heat curling through your body, even as they knocked some sense into you and you managed a playful gasp, pressing a hand to your chest as you pretended to be scandalized. “Not in front of the plants, Ari,” you scolded, your tone more flirtatious than chastising. 

Your husband grinned, squeezing you tighter, and ducked down to capture your lips in a searing kiss that had you melting against his chest. Your fingers dove into Ari’s beard, clinging to him and holding him close while you devoured each other. When you whimpered into the kiss and rocked your body against Ari’s bulge, he pulled away with a groan.

“Sunshine,” he rasped, pressing his forehead to yours and drawing in deep, heavy breaths that pushed his chest against yours in the most delicious way. “If you don’t want our little seedlings exposed to our dirty deeds so early in their lives, you’re gonna have to let me take you inside now,” he murmured in a serious tone, but you could see the corners of his mouth flickering with his need to grin. “Because the idea of seeing you blissed out and satisfied in the garden we made is sounding better by the second.”

“Then take me inside, husband,” you said huskily, a smirk tugging at the edges of your lips, “because you are not fucking me the dirt.”

Wrapping one of his hands around the back of your neck, Ari held you still while he kissed you again, his tongue plundering your mouth until your mind was fuzzy and you’d mostly forgotten where you were. You knew that had been Ari’s intention when his lips trailed along your jaw, nipping and kissing your skin until his mouth brushed the edge of your ear.

“What if I made love to you in the grass?” he rumbled teasingly, bending down to grab your leg and hitch it over his hip so he could press his bulge into the apex of your thighs. His grunt was loud in your ear, but it didn’t drown out the low, filthy moan that slipped from your lips.

Still, you weren’t so far gone that you’d let Ari have his way with you just anywhere. “What about the shower?” you countered, your voice high-pitched and breathy, making your husband chuckle as he kissed down your neck. 

Then you were shrieking in surprise and delight as Ari hauled you off your feet and threw you over his shoulder, carrying you into the house to finish what you’d started. He took you in the shower, the two of you laughing as much as you kissed, taking turns washing the grime of dirt from each other’s skin before sinking into the familiar rhythm of your bodies coming together.

Later, when you were both sated and clean and the sun was sinking lower toward the horizon, you stood in the grass outside the fence of your humble little vegetable garden. Ari stood at your back, his arms circling your waist and holding you close as you both took pride in the work you’d accomplished that day. 

“Do you think we’ll be good first-time plant parents?” you asked softly, your fingers trailing idly through the hair on Ari’s arms. Tilting your head to the side, you wondered if you’d watered the newly transplanted seedlings enough to make the transition easier for them.

“I think we’ll do our best,” Ari murmured, curling his body around yours and pressing a kiss to your temple while he squeezed you tighter in his arms. “I think we’ll give them all the love they need, and I think they’ll flourish because of it.” 

A pleased smile curved your lips and you hummed in agreement, leaning back further against Ari, knowing your husband spoke the truth. After all, you’d done the same with each other—you’d given each other all the love in your hearts and both of you had flourished. Ari was your partner, your husband, the love of your life, and you wouldn’t want to be first-time plant parents with anyone but him.

[deathxfawn]

this morning i harvested some of the last veggies from our garden. it got me thinking about how people hate on Elain for not...growing a whole vegetable garden when they were human and starving. it also got me thinking that these critics have probably never grown a thing, ever, which explains why they think it's so easy.

vegetable gardens are HARD. these little shits do everything to die, and everything tries to kill them.

Elain would have to grow everything from seed. she didn't have a lowes hardware garden center to buy seedlings lmao. my husband and i grow around 150 plants a year, mostly peppers because he likes to make spicy dry rubs and jams. but we grow a variety of beans, berries, tomatoes, and cruciferous veggies too for canning and salsa.

our growing season starts in late May, but we start seeds in March or earlier so they're hardy enough for the ground after the last freeze. our basement is full of grow lights, heated pads, dirt, scattered seeds, fertilizer, fans to prevent mold, you name it. it's like a meth lab but with plants.

many seeds don't even grow. Elain would need a lot of seeds and hope that some sprout. seeds need tremendous warmth to grow. they need to be babied. they are needy.

once they're ready for the ground, the real fun begins. this is when every living being within a 5 mile radius flocks to your plants to try and kill them. birds, invasive beetles, deer, SLUGS (holy hell S L U G S), chipmunks (??? they like to dig up plants), aphids (the biggest enemy this year), and an indescribable amount of other bugs that love veggie flesh.

have you ever stayed up late, strapped a flashlight to your head and gone out under the cover of darkness to crush hundreds of slugs?? it sucks!! they're gross!! slugs can wreck EVERYTHING in a matter of nights. i hope Velaris doesn't have mf slugs.

Elain did not have the preventatives that we have today. no insect repellants. no fence to keep out the deer. no local garden centers to buy ladybugs to knock out aphids.

then there's the water. these things THIRST. i water them every morning before i clock into work, and often again in the afternoon depending on how hot it's been. Elain would have to haul ass to the river multiple times a day just to keep these things alive.

don't get me started on the types of soil. not enough phosphorous? dead. too much phosphorous??? dead. no potassium?? you get no fruit. enjoy leaves. we have nice balanced fertilizer available to us now, but Elain didn't have that.

some veggies like sun. some veggies hate it. Elain had a small crusty patch of dirt in front of the cottage to try growing something. expecting her to grow enough vegetables to feed 4 adults?? lmfao.

flowers are different. i have flowers growing in the cracks in my driveway. i have a pot of flowers in front of my house that haven't been watered in weeks and they're thriving. don't get me wrong, flowers can be hard to grow too. it's an art. each type of flower has different needs and maintaining a flower garden is backbreaking work. but saying "Elain grew a few flowers surely she can grow an entire vegetable garden to sustain 4 adults including a grown man" is nuts.

[gardeningloverfamily]

🌱 How Do You Start a Vegetable Garden from Scratch? 🌱

Starting a vegetable garden may seem overwhelming, but it's easier than you think! Here's a simple step-by-step guide to help you grow your fresh veggies at home:

1️⃣ Pick the Perfect Spot: Choose a sunny spot with good drainage. Most vegetables need at least 6 hours of sunlight daily.

2️⃣ Prepare the Soil: Healthy soil is key! Loosen it up, remove weeds, and mix in compost or organic matter for better fertility.

3️⃣ Choose Your Veggies: Start with easy crops like tomatoes, lettuce, or carrots. Pick what grows well in your climate and season.

4️⃣ Plant Your Seeds or Seedlings: Follow the instructions for depth and spacing. Keep the soil moist but not soaked.

5️⃣ Water & Maintain: Water regularly, especially in dry conditions, and watch for pests or weeds.

6️⃣ Harvest & Enjoy!: Nothing beats the taste of homegrown produce. Harvest when your vegetables are ripe and enjoy the fruits of your labor! 🍅🥕🌽

Gardening is rewarding and a great way to connect with nature. Ready to dig in and start growing? 🌿

[britcision]

So we started watching Dungeon Meshi

It’s fantastic, I love it, 10/10 recommend and thus far super faithful to the manga (started reading it afterwards but partner has finished it)

They just said one thing in the episode that super fucking bugged me when eating the killer plants

They said the fruit is delicious as a lure to bring in animals so the plant can eat them - which is probably true at least partially

But the actual literal whole point of fruit from a botanical perspective (and is actually how we define what counts as a “fruit”, like tomato and squash) is that it’s a high energy seed wrapping

Fruit is the only part of the plant that the plant specifically wants you to eat - so that you’ll take its seeds with you and disperse them somewhere else, preferably (to the plant) when you poop so they come with fresh fertiliser

Fruit is tasty and enticing because the plant specifically wants you to take it with you and leave! There’s no point in only depositing their seeds where they already live, and will be competing with the seedlings for resources

Now the parasitic plant that lays its seeds under your skin, that one probably doesn’t put as much effort into nutrients in the fruit - you’re not eating it, and really it only needs a nice smell or bright colour to pull you in enough to grab. Plenty of plants manage that with flowers alone

But it is Super Important for it to let you go at some point because again, if it holds you the whole time and all the seeds germinate literally next to the parent plant, they’re probably not gonna be able to outcompete a grown adult for sunlight, water, or food

If the plant also has parenting behaviours like killing extra animals or people specifically to feed its seedlings, that’s another story altogether and they can spread by slow, incremental growth, but the larger the outlying plants get the less likely the original parent plant in the center is to get food directly

And HERE we can have mycelium networks, interlaced root structures, and all kinds of super cool plant and fungal anatomy! (Or the vines can pass corpses into the middle, but that’s actually less cool)

You do also run the risk of accidental monocultures if your monster plants can outcompete other plant life in the area, but on the whole so long as the bodies decompose naturally there will be opportunities for other plants around them to take advantage of the nutrients too

The big ol’ digestive plant is only sharing with its own root network, so that’s the least cooperative plant, although others can still parasitise that root network or form other symbiotic relationships to cooperate

Clearly none of them have enough of a dominant advantage to outcompete other plants in the area (I do wonder if any of them steal from the fertilising plant), but if the “fruit” really is just a lure and not a seed dispersing method, it’s actually more an edible flower, and we did clearly see some seeds inside the prepared fruit from the fertilising plant and the parasitic plant - which is strange, since its seeds were stated to be inside the vines

(Laios wanted to plant the fertilising plant above ground with them - he specifically is exactly what the plants want to attract)

Anyway, plants are cool, monster plants are cooler, and if they are cooperating through a root structure and sharing food they are also technically communicating and could inform plants along the same root network when adventurers are close even more efficiently than acacia trees releasing pheromones into the air to let other trees know giraffes are coming

There’s also the possibility of some form of plant elitism, where the plant only wants its seeds to be dispersed by a creature strong enough to escape it, and therefore more likely to be strong enough to spread the seeds a really long way

It might not exactly be conscious thought, but it’s fun to think about plants judging you and deciding you’re a bitch

[thestudentfarmer]

Hello and Welcome to the garden!

Today I have a bit of a smallish and short post~

The pumpkin is developing pretty good, the one on the trellis is a little smaller than this one. I'm starting to see new flowers on the vine, but I think I'll be picking them to use for stir fry/fried rice varient, ommlettes, or salad.

The first planting of the velour beans is starting to get what I think might be the end of their cycle, a few more flowers arrived but the plants aren't really b taking off to much in growth or producing. If I recall right I got around 48 oz of beans. (Their being crowded out by the sunflowers now.)

I'm gonna leave them in and jsut see how long/well they do.

Starting at the far left, sunflowers+ velour beans and pumpkin

2nd in from left. Starting closest to us. The broccoli and nasturtium. I'm gonna pick some of the broccoli leaves this week for pan fried veggies. Broccoli leaf+rice (not sure if blanching, pan fry w/garlic+butter or a cheese/broc soup.)

3rd row from left starting closest. The eggplants, who have some flowers but I've not seen any eggplant yet. Cabbages (2), they've got little heads coming in. I have not yet sprayed down with the tea but I haven't seen much more pest issue. And last the cucumbers. One is pretty much done, the other has teeny lil cucumbers coming in, but I don't expect too much more growth from them. If they do I may just let it go to seed and see if it does better next year in a different spot.

Edit to add, I forgot the last row!

4th row from left, second planting of velour beans, with the surviving cabbages and carrots. I picked a few of the carrots this morning

Close up of the dying/dead and the hanging in there cucumbers.

Finally got down to the hardware store. We got wood, pipes for extending the garden fence, dirt and some time.

We got 2 boxes made up. So next step is to get the fence panels made up to extend the garden space and protect it from the stray/feral cats.

I got peppers, tomatoes seed started this week, though im hoping I didn't lose a tray of peppers due to a watering malfunction. (Always check your seedlings daily!) I also got some garlic in the ground and some ginger root too.

Thats it for my update for now :)

🌱🌻Happy Homesteading and gardening! 🌻🌱

12 18 2023

[southernsolarpunk]

Garden update!!!

YEAH BABEY I GOT (at least) THREE NATIVE PASSIONFRUIT IN MY YARD!!! ILOVE NATIVE PLANTS!! (Really interesting side note, it’s amazing how quickly you can pick out certain plants after studying them- the yard is a bit overgrown so I was actually surprised how I managed to see them!)

I also have a wing leaf sumac growing as well! I might have to make sumac lemonade :)

My fig tree is starting to leaf out, I thought I killed it over the winter so yay!

And!! Only one of my blueberry bushes flowered but it is producing blueberries! Just a handful but it’s only the second year I’ve had the plant so!!! I can’t wait for the future harvests!!

I planted out my biggest tomato seedlings! The other ones need to grow a bit more to be planted :)

And I don’t know if I mentioned it but I got a Catawba rhododendron! I love the flowers and so do native pollinators! (Peep the poison oak in the background yuck)

[the-ninja-legacy-whip]

For the ask game;

🥕 🍋 🍅 for Olivia!!

🌱 🍆 🥔 for Jesse!!

Pretty Please!

Well, since you asked so nicely~

Olivia-

🥕 [CARROT] How tough is your OC against certain situations? How weak are they against others? - Considering that dealing with making sure Garmadon doesn't kill her on a whim is the toughest situation she has to deal with right now, she can handle quite a bit more than the average person. Seems to crack when it comes to more social situations, however...

🍋 [LEMON] What is their kryptonite/ultimate weakness?- At this moment in time, it could be interpreted to be her pride, but I shan't say more than that for now...

🍅 [TOMATO] How misunderstood is your OC? In-universe or IRL. -People irl tend to forget she is the current antagonist, and does not necessarily have good things coming her way 😇

Jesse-

🌱 [SEEDLING] What new passions/hates is your OC discovering? - This is a little down the line from where we are currently, but, he gets more into music and singing via spending time with Cole, to the point that Cole wants to record him and make a few tracks with his voice for a set list (and then even later down the line Jesse starts mixing musical performances with his magic show for twice the extravaganza~)

🍆 [EGGPLANT] How are they used by others? How easily are they tricked into this? - You'd think he'd be easily duped into doing something given his initial disposition, but he's too paranoid to just go with something without thinking over all possible consequences. Technically, the only person able to outright use him would be Miranda :d (........and Skylor on a technicality)

🥔 [POTATO] What do they have that others see as a flaw, but they don't care about? - His paranoia, actually. People tend to think it stops him from taking risks and doing the things he wants to (which is still true), but they also fail to see how it also protects him from unnecessarily getting into bad situations or making needless mistakes as well (see: above). He knows he's overly paranoid about small things, but he himself has never treated it like a flaw (he has plenty of other things he considers to be shortcomings instead snksnkfgsd)

. . .

Questions from This List

[turtlesandfrogs]

Seed Starting for Beginners- another class I taught Pre-pandemic, edited down for posting here. 

Seed Basics:

Anatomy: seeds basically consist of seed leaves (aka cotyledons), an embryo, and a seed wall. The cotyledons are food storage, and usually the first leaves that emerge and photosynthesize*. Seeds are dormant, but they are still alive and they are still exchanging gas (breathing) and using up energy stores. Ideally, most vegetable seeds are stored somewhere cold and dry. The colder and drier a seed is kept, the slower it’s metabolism, and the more vigorously it will sprout once conditions are correct (though, as this is biology, there are plenty exceptions- pawpaws come to mind). I keep my seed packets in a closed glass jar with a silica packet in my freezer. If you want to nerd out, here’s a link to a pretty famous seed vault, where seeds are kept below 0 degrees fahrenheit: https://www.croptrust.org/our-work/svalbard-global-seed-vault/ 

Sprouting/germinating/breaking dormancy: For most vegetables, all that is needed for seeds to sprout is warmth and moisture. Some will germinate better in the dark, some will germinate better with light (the package will tell you what is needed). For fruits, herbs, and flowers, sometimes they will need additional steps, such as cold stratification, or breaking the seed wall. 

Basics of Seed Starting:

Step one is to decide what you want to grow- vegetables, herbs, flowers?

Important questions:

What do I actually (want to) eat? (Ie, don’t just grow radishes because they’re easy- will you actually eat/enjoy it?). What would I eat more of if it weren’t so expensive? Make a list. 

What grows well here? What Hardiness/heat/climate zone are you in? Do you have microclimates to account for? What are they? Connect with your local extension office (in the US) to find out what grows well where you are and keys to success

Step two: Figure out when to start your seeds:

First, check the seed packet/website description and find your last frost date. Some plants, like broccoli, have a wide general time range to plant them in, but some varieties are meant for spring, or summer, or to overwinter. It’s best to get the specific variety’s information if possible.

If not that, then using a seed starting calculator like Johnny’s is next best. 

Or, go to a regional planting chart like Tilth’s. Or find your local extension office, they probably have a planting calendar.

Keep track of which ones are sown indoors, sown directly, and when the switch happens. For example, you can sow cucumbers a week or two before your last frost indoors, or a week after the last frost directly into the ground. Also note when plants started indoors should be transplanted outdoors

Consider the “winter sowing” technique- Basically, sowing seeds in mini greenhouses (aka, cloches), usually made from used plastic containers, and letting the seeds come up when they will. Makes very sturdy plants, might not get as early as a start.

Step Three: How?

Containers: Please use standard plastic tray, newspaper pots, peat plugs, used food containers, etc. that have a decent amount of space and adequate drainage.

Why not egg cartons/eggshells? Because they a) do not have enough space for seeds to do much more than sprout and b) the egg cartons tend to dry soil out very quickly.

Medium: Seed starting mix, potting soil, whatever, do NOT use garden soil without killing the weed seeds first. If you use a seed starting mix, keep in mind that it won’t have enough fertility to support the seedlings for very long. It is meant to be used to germinate seeds, and then have those seedlings transplanted into a richer mix to grow on. Also, I recommend NOT using coffee grounds as part of your seedling mix, because they have been shown to inhibit germination.

Which do well with transplant, which do not: (paper pots are great for those that don’t like transplanting)

Take well to transplanting: brassicas (think broccoli family), nightshades (tomato family), leafy greens

Fussy and need help to transplant well: Squash, cucumbers, melons, etc

Just don’t: carrots, beets, other root crops.

If they don’t transplant well, focus on direct sowing. The above IS NOT an exhaustive list.

Light: Give them as much as possible, a south facing window, or indoor grow lights. If you’re using a light, look for one that says full spectrum, daylight, or says it is over 5000 kelvin.

The warmer you keep the seedlings, the brighter the light they need. Warmth determines their metabolism, and light is their fuel/food, so you can keep them from etoliating/stretching out by keeping them at cooler temperatures. Slower growth at the same light intensity yields sturdier seedlings. Keeping seedlings at cooler temperatures can help you get stocky, sturdy, vigorous plants. This is a really big key, so pay attention. A lot of people struggle with weak seedlings that have stretched out in their search for light, and that can be avoided if you match temperature to light levels.

Actually doing it:

Fill your container(s). Tamp down soil- movement of water depends on capillary action, which depends on the soil particles being close enough together. Consult package on depth, or use 3x diameter of seed. Plant. Water. Wait. 

Watering: keep evenly moist, do not let them dry out. Not so much that it’s soggy though- so after you water they shouldn’t be sitting in a puddle of water an hour later. I prefer to bottom water. To do that, put your container in a tray of water, and let it soak up. If you’ve tamped it down properly, you’ll see the surface moisten. 

So they’ve sprouted, now what? 

If you’re using a peat or commercial seed starting mix, it likely doesn’t have enough fertility to support growth beyond the first few true seed leaves. That means that as soon as you see true leaves coming out, you have two choices: either use a water-soluble fertilizer, or gently transfer the seedlings to a more fertile soil mix. 

The big day: planting outside! 

Harden off first! The wee ones have been indoors, in very gentle conditions, and need to adapt to the outdoors environment before you transplant them out there. If you don’t, the cold can harm them, and they can also get sunburnt, or even damaged by wind. Acclimate them by putting them outdoors for an hour the first day, a few hours the next, gradually increasing the amount of time they spend outdoors until a week or so has passed. DO NOT transplant out frost tender plants (nightshades, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, etc) until the danger of frost has passed (unless you have a tunnel or greenhouse).

Transplanting, general: Water plants well the day before. Pick a moderate time of day if it’s been hot. Prepare the hole- bigger than the pot was, and deeper if tomato or brassica. If it’s one that needs extra fertility, thoroughly mix in some compost (I use one to two shovelfuls of rich compost). Loosen the plant in the pot by gently squeezing or tapping, make sure the roots aren’t circling (if they are, gently tease them apart), and put in hole. Back fill hole and press down. Water thoroughly.

For sensitive plants: all the above, but “mud in” the plant, that is, water enough that water sits on the surface for at least 15 seconds. Cover- if it’s hot, a cardboard box or light sheet to shade, if it’s cool a bucket to hold in extra warmth. 

Success through the summer: 

Provide fertility: some plants, like potatoes and kale likely won’t need much additional fertility beyond what’s already in your soil. Some crops, like corn, squash, and broccoli need a lot more fertility to make a decent crop. Either way, if you notice your plants aren’t growing very well, it’s likely a matter of fertility- or watering. 

I prefer to provide this fertility through composts & cover crops. You can also just use a balanced fertilizer,  but look into mycorrhizae before you decide how to go about it. Whether it’s organic or not, it’s generally a good idea to follow the package directions for best results. It’s just as easy to over fertilize and burn your plants as it is to under fertilize and get stunted growth.

Learning More:

Visit community gardens, visit the Master Gardener demonstration gardens, your local extension office for local information, here’s the link to Washington States: http://gardening.wsu.edu/

Facebook groups can be very helpful, gardening forums as well. 

Useful websites in General:

https://www.johnnyseeds.com/growers-library/seed-planting-schedule-calculator.html seed sowing date calculator- put in your last frost, get general dates for everything. Honestly, poke around their growers library in general, they've got some cool stuff. 

https://davesgarden.com/guides/freeze-frost-dates/#b for last frost dates (and a lot more).

https://garden.org/apps/frost-dates/Olympia%2C+Washington/ another last frost date site

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/05/150515111628.htm Gardening in a polluted paradise: Is it safe?

Seed Companies I use:

Based in Western Washington:

Uprising Organics (All Open Pollinated)

Based in Western Oregon:

Adaptive Seed (All Open Pollinated)

Territorial Seed

Nicole’s Garden Nursery

Based in B.C.:

West Coast Seed

Based elsewhere:

Fedco Seeds (Co-op)

Johnny’s Selected Seeds (Employee Owned)

There are, of course, many more, but those tend to be my go-to.

 

*Some seed’s cotyledons stay in the soil, and the embryo is the part that emerges. Examples include snow peas, beans, and corn. Others have their seed leaves emerge as their first leaves, e.g., broccoli and sunflowers.

[wiredawake]

Support Families in Northern Gaza through Rooftop & Home Vegetable Gardens

"My name is Laila El-Haddad. I'm an author and advocate for Palestinian rights and food justice. Many of you might know me as the co-author of The Gaza Kitchen: A Palestinian Culinary Journey. I'm also an avid gardener and though I am from Gaza City, I'm a farmer at heart!  Farmers represent the deep rootedness Palestinians have to the land.  For Palestinians, farming, especially during a time of genocide and ecocide-is an act of deep faith and the very embodiment of Sumood- the Palestinian concept of steadfast perseverance.

Background

Once known for its lush apple orchards, strawberries, and citrus, northern Gaza is now completely cut off from the rest of Gaza.  

As part of its policy to make Gaza unlivable, Israel has destroyed 50% of Gaza's trees and farmland, and severely restricted the entry of food and aid, especially to the north. The scale of damage and destruction is catastrophic. Israeli forces have leveled agricultural land, 90% of all greenhouses, olive groves, and poultry farms. The entire population is now facing a forced starvation policy and experiencing extreme hunger. 

Your Donation Will Help Change This Reality by Providing Rooftop, Home, and Urban Vegetable Gardens through seedling and seed distribution for Vulnerable and Displaced Families in Northern Gaza who are subsisting on 245 calories a day. 

What and Why?  

I'm organizing this campaign to help support farmers and families in the areas of northern Gaza most impacted by Israel's ongoing war to start their own rooftop and home gardens-a small step towards self sufficiency and food sovereignty. All international and local aid agencies have had to evacuate from the north, leaving the population especially vulnerable, and whatever limited amounts of fresh produce and aid are available are sold astronomical prices. 

How?

I spent months researching and consulting with agricultural experts in Gaza and abroad on the most secure and effective way to give Palestinians sustainable access to fresh produce.  Next, I partnered with with the Gaza Palestinian American Association and the Middle East Children's Alliance, both accredited 501(c)(3)  who are taking 0% overhead, as well as a team of community based partners in Gaza, who will be sourcing the supplies needed to start the home gardens locally and managing the project.  

Our team on the ground has been working hard to source and start growing local seedlings to distribute to families, and other materials needed to provide them with the resources they desperately need to start their own home, rooftop, patio, and community vegetable gardens, depending on the spaces they have access to.  We will roll out the project in several phases, which each phase targeting 100 families.

Each family will receive:

* At least 30 assorted seasonal vegetables seedlings (Palestinian summer squash, hot peppers, eggplant, cucumber and tomatoes, depending on availability)

* 80 grams of local seeds (dill, mulukhiya, chard), 

* Compost, soil, and amendments 

* Plastic planters, irrigation cans, where needed

* Training and follow up by agriculture experts

Your donations will also help fund the purchase of several solar panel systems to power  community wells that communities rely on to drink and irrigate their gardens and farms with (currently, municipal access to water is limited to once every ten days, and well motors are inoperable due to an Israeli ban on the entry of fuel).

With your support, we can help Palestinian families sow the seeds of a brighter future, cultivate hope and grow some of their own food again!

Your donation is tax deductible and zakat eligible!  100% of the proceeds will go towards the project in Gaza!  

Together, we will help families in the north grow healthy food for themselves, their neighbors and their friends!

[moss-coated-lady]

Basil

- Botanical Name: Ocimum basilicum

- Plant Type: Herb

- Sun Exposure: Full Sun

- Soil pH: Slightly Acidic to Neutral

- Bloom Time: Summer

- Flower Color: Pink, Purple, White

About Basil:

- Aromatic herb in the mint family (Lamiaceae).

- Warm-weather annual herb planted above 50°F.

- Common types: Sweet basil, Purple basil, Lemon basil, Thai basil.

Growing Conditions:

- Needs 6-8 hours of full sun daily.

- Soil should be moderately fertile, moist, and well-draining (pH 6.0-7.5).

- Suitable for containers or raised beds for better drainage.

- Avoid insecticides and grow away from pollutants for culinary use.

When to Plant Basil:

- Start seeds indoors 6-8 weeks before transplanting.

- Transplant outside when soil is at least 50°F.

- Nighttime temperatures shouldn't drop below 50°F.

Planting and Spacing:

- Sow seeds 1/4 inch deep or transplant seedlings 10-12 inches apart.

- Mulch with compost or leaves for moisture retention and weed control.

- Basil pairs well with tomatoes in the garden.

How to Grow Basil:

- Keep soil moist, use mulch in hot areas, water during dry periods.

- Prune above the second set of leaves after six leaves have developed.

- Repeat pruning when branches have 6-8 leaves.

- Fertilize sparingly with 5-10-5 fertilizer.

- Pinch off center shoot after 6 weeks to prevent early flowering.

Harvesting:

- Start picking leaves when plants are 6-8 inches tall.

- Harvest in the early morning for the juiciest leaves.

- Regular picking encourages growth throughout the summer.

- Even if not needed immediately, pick leaves to keep the plant thriving.

How to Store Basil:

- Best method: Freeze leaves in airtight bags.

- Alternative: Dry basil in a well-ventilated, shady area or in the oven at low heat with the door slightly open.

[justfacilitatinglife]

Small Container Veggies for Table Decor

Hello and welcome back to Just Facilitating Life! Today, I’m excited to share a creative and practical idea that blends my passion for gardening with my professional life as a restaurant manager.

Transforming Our Patio Space

Like many businesses, our restaurant had to adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic. One of our most significant changes was setting up a spacious and inviting outdoor patio. It looks fantastic, but I wanted to add a touch of decor that would align with our brand’s emphasis on fresh, healthy, and local food.

The Initial Idea: Flowers

My first thought was to adorn the tables with flowers. They’re beautiful and add a pleasant ambiance, but maintaining fresh flowers can be quite a task. Cut flowers would need replacing every few days, which seemed impractical.

The Epiphany: Edible Decor

Then it hit me—why not grow vegetables as table decor? It would perfectly complement our farm-to-table concept. But the challenge was to do it in small, aesthetically pleasing containers.

Experimenting with Mason Jars

Initially, I considered using mason jars for a hydroponic setup. However, mason jars require a covering to prevent algae growth in the nutrient solution, which didn’t fit the rustic look I envisioned.

The Perfect Solution: Rustic Metal Milk Containers

A stroke of luck came when I visited a 99 cent store that was closing down. I found charming rustic metal milk containers labeled "Flower and Garden." They were perfect for our decor theme, and they were on sale! I bought every single one.

Overcoming the Leaky Containers

Excitedly, I brought them home, only to find that they leaked. Not ready to give up, I inserted food saver bags inside the containers, securing them with mason jar lid rings. This improvised solution worked perfectly, making the containers watertight.

Planting the Seedlings

With my containers ready, I planted a mix of lettuce seedlings. The result was adorable table decor that grows right before your eyes. I also planted a cucumber and placed it on a shelf in our patio area. The cucumber thrived, even producing fruit! I left one on the vine a bit too long, and it started to turn yellow, but that just added to the charm.

The Kratky Method: Low Maintenance

For these setups, I used the Kratky method, a simple form of hydroponics that doesn’t require pumps or electricity. Once set up, I didn’t have to refill the nutrient solution for the entire six-week lifecycle of the lettuce. It was incredibly low maintenance.

Rotating the Crops

Today, I’m refreshing our decor by replacing the lettuce with bok choy, dwarf tomatoes, and ornamental Thai chili pepper seedlings. These new plants will not only enhance our patio’s aesthetic but also spark conversation among our guests about our commitment to fresh, local produce.

Final Thoughts

Creating these small container veggie displays has been a rewarding experience. It marries my passion for gardening with our restaurant’s ethos, providing a unique and sustainable touch to our outdoor dining space. I hope this inspires you to think creatively about how you can incorporate plants into your decor, whether at home or in your business.

Stay tuned for more gardening tips and stories from my journey. Until next time, happy growing!

[ryanscabinlife]

I can't believe it's been a month since I posted the May garden update. A lot of things has happened. Loads of wins and also plenty of failures. I guess I'll start with the progress of the ones I featured last month.

The hardneck garlic that overwintered are just about ready to be harvested. According to online sources, garlics can be harvested about a month after the scapes emerges. I was delighted to see the scapes as I was taking pics this morning. Can't wait to collect and make something out of them.

Oh tomatoes. I talked about how our weather has been awful many of times on this blog. After the dry May, they started showing some damaged on their leaves, and since they barely saw the sun this month, they did not grow very much. I panicked so I bought 30 more roma seedlings and 6 more cherry tomatoes. After a few days of sun, all of them are bouncing back to life and looking very healthy. Now I'm stuck with 60 romas and 12 cherries. Not the worst problem to have, really. All corners of the garden have tomatoes planted in them.

The beds where the trellis is sitting is now filled with plants. All of the beans and peas are looking great. The snow peas are about 4 ft tall and there's plenty of beans on the ground. The luffa that I was so excited about, none of them showed up. I bought a packet of 10 seeds for a whopping $4.99 and only 1 germinated. I'm currently babying it and waiting for the perfect time to transplant it. The cucumber is the other one I'm totally having hard time with. So far I've already used up the whole packet, and so far I have seen none. I planted the last 6 seeds yesterday but I'm not holding my breath. We have a neighbour (I'm using the word neighbour very loosely here, they're about 5km from us) who have a small road-side stand and in the summer they sell cucumbers. I think I'm just gonna have to rely on them for cucumbers.

The potatoes (all 30ft row) are doing extremely well. Some of them suffered from light frost and their early leaves died but they all bounced back. I think next year, I'll plant them even earlier.

It looks like the apple or crabapple (I still don't know) tree had a couple of successful pollinations. I think the reason for the lack of blooms is because the tree has been neglected and unkept for a long time. I've already been researching and watching a ton of videos on how to properly prune apple trees so I can prune it next spring in hopes that it will put out more blooms next year.

The border is looking a bit sad. Something to be expected on the first year due to the fact that most of the plants I have in it are perennials. I think they'll live though, I can only hope that they come out stronger next year. Looking closely, the wildflowers that I broadcasted are out. I see hundreds of them. I've added two smaller beds, I'm hoping to fill them up with the annual seedlings I'm currently growing. No progress at all on the potted garden in the background.

The brassicas are my favourites but also the main cause of my headaches. Thank god I have seeded a good amount of extras because these bitches have plethora of enemies! The first to attack was slugs. They destroyed a handful of seedlings (100% my fault coz I decided to plant them too young). I battled this with non-stop weeding and slug hunting. So far it's been working, I just go in early in the morning, remove all of the slugs and the weeds they hide into. Then the rabbits. I did not plan to build a fence this year but after the rabbit attack that ate almost half of the original plants, I decided to build a fence around the garden. Again, so far it's working. Then just when they start actually growing, the damn flea beetles happened. Yesterday, I ordered some food grade diatomaceous earth. I'm aware that it will kill all of the insects it will come across with whether they're good or bad but I guess I'll just have to be careful not to put it on any of the flowering crops so it doesn't kill the pollinators. Next year, to avoid using such measure, I plan to install netting on all of the leafy veggies. I don't wanna do that now because it will just trap in the ones I already have in.

Speaking of flea beetles and brassicas, these godforsaken creatures killed all of the arugulas and boy choy I planted at the end of April. I then replanted them a couple of weeks ago and lo and behold, all of them are damaged again. I'm leaving them on the bed for now to hopefully serve as food for the pests and in hopes that I'll be able to trap and kill them once the diatomaceous earth arrives. I'll try to grow them again in the fall when the temperature starts going down with netting. But for now, I planted some of my extra tomatoes to keep this spot occupied.

To my surprise, the asparagus are doing exceedingly well. Can't wait for 2025 when I can finally harvest some.

I have 3 tomatillos that survived and they're doing well. They're planted with the original cherry tomatoes and celery.

3 weeks ago, I though these celery plants were dead, but they managed to come back.

Peanut, another big failure. I planted a whole row of peanuts parallel to the row of potatoes. 30 ft of it and roughly 40 seeds, 3 germinated, 2 out of those 3 got devoured by slugs. So now I have ONE peanut plant. I scattered few sage and pepper seeds in the area as replacement. Let's see what happens.

After the small radish harvest yesterday, these is what's left. I'm gonna give them a week or so until I pull them all out. In preparation for their departure, I have okras and eggplants growing in between rows. I've already replanted the okra and eggplants a couple of times because slugs and birds keep on eating them. To avoid that, I just covered them with recycled plastic cups as protection for now.

On the same bed as the radish, okra, and eggplants are the softneck garlic. It's more or less an experiment. I was just curious if they actually produce garlic bulbs at the end of growing season. The garlic cloves I used are from Costco. They're not looking too bad.

Next bed over (where I have the failed arugula and bokchoy) are onions. I bought a pack of a hundred bulbs and shoved all of them in this bed. They just started emerging.

Next bed after that (my biggest one) are corn, zucchini, and butternut squash. The corns are doing alright. I dealt with poor germination with both of the squashes and when they show up, birds eats them. Nothing much I could do other than keep replanting seeds and protecting the seedlings with plastic cups. Looks like the ones I have at the moment are gonna make it.

Next bed after that are carrots. I planted these back in April, and this is what they look like now. They sure to take their sweet time to germinate.

25-Jun-2023