Friday Fabulous Fruit - diversity on display

Squashes, pumpkins, and the like belong to one of only 4 species of Cucurbita.  There is a surprising amount of diversity on display in terms of fruit color, size, and shape for just 4 species, and TPP is not certain that all 4 species are displayed here.  Still in makes for a pretty eyeful. There may also be some gourds included too.  Here's the link to Homestead Seeds should you want to grow some of these.

Botany within your reach - 4. bean seeds

Once again those wonderful people over at the Botanist in the Kitchen blog have beaten TPP to the punch, to the pulse. So here you go Botany within your reach - 4. Bean seeds.  As my colleagues note this is International year of pulses.  Hmm, thought it was the Year of the Monkey?  Ah, that's the ticket, time for a plant astrological calendar.  2016 -year of the pulse (old name for a bean or legume).  TPP will have to think about this for a time. And believe it or else this is exactly what TPP was working on for his next offering.  Maybe we should coordinate our efforts.  In his defense TPP has been way too busy giving presentations on tree ID in the winter and evolutionary thinking. Guess when you're giving it away the price seems right.  So, soak up some beans, peas, and lentils and have a go at this month's botany lab.  And you can also compare parts with whole roasted peanuts.  So now we ask the un-crucial question, are split peas split?