Gardening to-do

So, this month has comprised of a 200-mile, 2-day bike ride from Seattle to Portland, a wedding in Davis, Cali., a trip to the redwoods, searching for a new house, finding a new house, painting 2 rooms in that house, moving into that house (partially, still in the midst of it), a camp-out party with friends, and a funeral in Minneapolis, Minn. Needless to say, hectic and no time to blog.

I have harvested poppy seeds and onion seeds from my garden. The poppy seeds are easy. If dead-headed, they keep blooming, but when not dead-headed, the flower petals drop off and when the stalk is dry, the seeds easily fall out of the dried bulb. Have envelop on hand, clip off the top, and tip it upside down into the envelop.

I plan to transfer raspberries, salmon berries, mint, lemon balm, my marigolds and maybe my cosmos, and some baby trees that grow fast and furious and bloom from late summer through fall (first white flowers and then purplish red flowers) that I've yet to identify. I need to remember to harvest some more poppy seeds as well, because not all of the pink stalks were dry enough yet to harvest.

Also, I'm not a big fan on my dwarf asters. I don't think I'll get them again next year. Nasturtiums need work as well; they seem sun-burnt and are not flowering hardly at all.

Tobacco Mosaic Virus

I'm worried that my petunia has Tobacco Mosaic Virus due to the mottled discoloration on both the leaves and the flowers. I think that I may need to throw out this plant to prevent it from spreading to other plants, especially to my tomatoes, which fortunately are far away from both this plant and the ashtray that was sitting next to it! I will no longer be keeping an ashtray near my plants. Also, I need to remember to wash my hands after picking up cigarette butts/smoking.