Harvesting seeds

 Here is one more baby step I just took in my hope to be a better gardener. 
I planted some marigold seeds this spring,  I got them as a freebie when I signed up for a sample of a cereal. 
They grew so tall and bloomed but they were really too big for the pots they were planted in. 
Well,  it is very hot here and I think they were about through for the summer.  Many of the old blooms were brown and dry as the desert. 
It occurred to me that there should be a way to save the seeds and replant them next year.  So I did search "how to harvest marigold seeds"  and found out.

 Inside the dry flower are many many seeds,  you just pull off the dry petals and the seeds are under the petals. 

See how many seeds  were in just one flower? 

that is a sandwich bag packed with marigold seeds,  all ready for sharing and for planting next spring.

There are 2 kinds of zinnia in my yard that should harvest just about the same way as marigolds. 
Our portulaca/moss rose has lots of tiny seeds in their dry buds too.  I will harvest them when they get drier.
I looked at the petunias but could not seeds in the dry flowers on them. 

Seed harvesting is very frugal - can you imagine how much that many marigold seeds would cost if you bought them in the little pouches? 

so, do you any of you harvest seeds and have any advice for me? 

and if you want to harvest your own seeds,  you might want to do a search to get more details in case I left out something in this post.

Chocolate Icebox pie

My mom made icebox pies often. She almost always made them in the 13x9 size. Hers were usually chocolate but she also made lemon. She used a crust on the bottom, pudding in the middle and then the top layer was Dream Whip or Cool Whip or whipped cream, whatever she had. Mom says she liked them because they were easy to make a day ahead. I remember we all liked to eat them.

I made icebox pie just about like my mom did. My hubby is not crazy about whipped topping so I leave that layer off the dessert. But I do keep a can of aerosol whipped cream in the fridge and it is easy to add to the top of my serving and anyone else who wants it.

Super Easy Crust
1 Cup Flour
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup chopped nuts like almonds, pecans or walnuts - nuts are optional
Just mix these ingredients and pat into the bottom of a pie pan.
If you are making a big 13x9 dessert, double the crust ingredients.
Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until just lightly browned. cool

Chocolate pie filling - this makes enough for one round pie, if you want to make a big 13x9 then double everything.

3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions
1.In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, flour, and cocoa powder. Mix well. While stirring, slowly pour in milk. Mix until smooth.
2.Cook cocoa mixture over medium heat, stirring almost constantly. Continue until mixture thickens, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat.
3.In a heat safe bowl, slowly pour about a cup of the hot chocolate mixture into the beaten egg yolks , whisking rapidly until yolks are incorporated.
Whisk chocolate egg mixture back into the saucepan. Bring back to a low simmer and simmer for about a minute, stirring often.
Stir in vanilla extract and butter or margarine. Pour filling into baked pie shell. Chill before serving. Store in icebox-refrigerator.

If you don't want to make the pie filling, you could use a Jello type mix. I think the from scratch pudding just tastes much better.


and if you don't want pie, then how about cake?
This is Nina and her little sister in law, Hannah. Hannah likes manatees and Nina has been baking her a fancy birthday cake every year. So this year's cake a very big manatee and it says "happy birthday Hannatee" Aren't they clever?