Monday, February 11, 2013

Gardening Fail : (First of Many) The Incredible Hulking Cabbage

I knew it was a bad idea to try and use my empty Clorox Green Works container as a water spray bottle but I did it anyway - because of reasons.  I cleaned and rinsed it for nearly 3 days trying to remove the cleaner smell.  When I was satisfied that the trace amount of cleaner remaining was negotiable (I mean the stuff says it's "plant based" after all) I went ahead and filled it with water - like an ass.  I even had the foresight to move the bottle with the cleaner to another area, you know, just in case.

The Green Usurper
Well it didn't take but 30 minutes for me to grab the wrong bottle and spray Clorox Green Works directly into one of my seedlings.  I knew something was wrong when I saw bubbles on the surface of the dirt.  I cringed as realization dawned on me.  I immediately decided to try and flush out the cleaner with water.  It was a long shot and, in hindsight, rather stupid since I only sprayed one plant and deluging it with water only served to spread the cleaner to the other tubes by osmosis.  But at this point, I thought, why not? 

Fast forward to yesterday and wouldn't you know, the tainted cabbage was the first to sprout.  I saw one peeking out when I was watering and I was happy, encouraged even.  This morning not one, but all of the cabbage seeds have sprouted.



I never thought they would survive.  Now they are not only sprouting earlier than their predicted 7 days, but all at the same time.  Did I unintentionally Hulk-out my cabbage seeds by spraying them with some radioactive, genetically modified plant based cleaner which also happens to be green?  Great.  I've created a monster. 

I still can't bring myself to throw away the tainted sprouts.  Especially now that they have thrived despite the odds being stacked against them - or sprayed directly on them as it were.  Since their ultimate destiny is to become sauerkraut I'm confident the fermentation process will negate any residual contamination.

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