I kept meaning to summarize my results but life was just too busy. I ended up getting some unexpected results; however the overall take-home for the experiment was that germination seemed to be pretty high regardless of the method (other than nicking). Update to my latest baobabery: To reiterate the setup-- 7 seeds nicked at the crest, soaked in boiling water 6 seeds not nicked, soaked in boiling water 6 seeds not nicked, soaked in epsom salt cold water 6 seeds not nicked, soaked in cold water All the seeds were placed between wet paper towels in plastic baggies and put near a light (my heat mat broke so this was my best source of heat). A nicked/boiled seed was the first to sprout (day 5); however the remaining nicked/boiled seeds were rotten by three weeks into the experiment. The germination rates were: Nicked/boiled: 1/7 Boiled: 5/6 Salt/Cold: 4/6 Cold: 4/6 So overall (not including the nicked seeds) I got 72% to germinate. I should note that by two months into the experiment the boiled (5) and the cold (4) seeds had finished their sprouting, however only 1 of the salt/cold seeds had germinated. I assumed the salt/cold seeds were dead at this point and tossed the baggie into a pile of trash. Earlier this week I was cleaning up stuff and noticed that 3 more of the seeds in the salt/cold bag had sprouted (4 months!) so I removed them and planted those as well. The bag hadn't been sealed to the paper towel was almost totally dry. Other things to note: When the seeds sprouted I found that the best method was to remove about half of the seed coat manually (without damaging the embryo). Total removal worked but was difficult and probably didn't help the little guy too much. In almost every case where I didn't remove the seed coat, the leaves got stuck in the coat and I had to chop them in half to free them otherwise they tore and began to rot. Chopping the leaves had no ill effect on the plants. After a few of the seeds got moldy from I tried peeling them (they had not germinated at this point) and shockingly two of them grew although one died after a few days so I didn't count that as a successful germination. Many more of the seeds sprouted than I had anticipated so I quickly ran out of space and small pots. Initially I was using these biodegradable pulp pots and shockingly all of these seedlings eventually wilted and (without intervention) died. The seedlings placed in plastic pots (even 3 oz plastic shot glasses w/o drainage holes) all thrived. i was able to save two of the wilted guys by replanting them but I ended up losing many of them. All in all I have 8 healthy plants at the end. I still have a ton of seeds left so if anyone wants to trade or just wants some let me know. I didn't count them, but my bag of seeds is about 9oz so there are several hundred and I have no space for a forest. Maybe I'll go Johnny-Appleseeding around the city :) I'll attach some photos in another...

The green shoulder gene used to be not uncommon, even on red tomatoes, but it is no wonder that commercial breeders bred it out, since it sure seems to confuse a lot of people. A healthy tomato will ripen all the way through, all at the same time, no matter whether the shoulders appear green or not. If you wait for green shoulders to disappear, you will never be able to eat them, since the green generally doesn't. Personally, I like green shoulders. It doesn't affect the taste, but to me, it kind of says, "old style, homey, heirloom." Rather than some commercial piece of junk. Also, I know that Cherokee Purple and Cherokee Chocolate are supposed to be exactly the same tomato, with a minimal skin coloration difference, but, to me, they taste quite different. I really DO prefer the Cherokee Chocolate. However,I wonder if the difference might actually be in their level of ripeness when I eat them. Perhaps I am more affected by color than I think and I eat the Cherokee Chocolate either riper or less ripe than the Cherokee Purple. If so, it is a sign that color can even affect me, when I eat so many different colors of tomatoes that I thought it made no difference to me. For people who don't think they like certain tomatoes, I would strongly encourage you to grow your own, and then taste it early in it's ripeness, in the middle, and then again at the end, when it might be approaching too ripe. I think you will find that the flavor, and the complexities of that flavor will change quite markedly. And there are definitely certain types of tomatoes that I prefer when they are just ripe, but absolutely don't like when they are VERY ripe. Or vice versa. I guess I am saying that there really is no ONE standard of ripeness, just like there is no one standard of taste. Ripe is what you say it is, and levels of ripeness definitely will affect how much you like certain tomatoes. So always keep that in mind, and try different stages of ripeness.

Okay, so I showed this thread to my husband and said, "SEE! I AM normal!" My bedside table holds the following: chapstick lamp with bright flourescent bulb for reading eye drops a box of tissues (since I am STILL getting over the flu) cough drops (ditto) some dust dinosaurs (they are really big and have been around forever) and a few books: The Return - Hakan Nesser Life Class - Pat Barker Coming up for Air - George Orwell - gotta read this so I can discuss it with Martin The Book of Air and Shadows - Michael Gruber Empire Falls - Richard Russo Sarah Canary - Karen Joy Fowler - gotta read this to discuss with Vicki Love in the Time of Cholera - GG Marquez The Houses of Children - Coleman Dowell The Portrait - Iain Pears Never Go Back - Robert Goddard Mademoiselle de Maupin - Theophile Gautier The Book on the Bookshelf - Henry Petrosky The Glass Bead Game - Herman Hesse The Age of American Unreason - Susan Jacoby. Yea, I know... my husband says he fears that one morning, he will wake up to find me squished under the bedside stacks. PAM

Chiming in again, since I guess that I started the whole shampoo bar thing here. Before I went on the Camino last year I trialed several bars. I rather liked the Grapefruit bar from Sweetsnthings, but I had also bought a bar made by Tree Hut at a local store. It was their 4 in 1 Mango bar. I really loooooved how it made my hair feel, and it smells yummy, so that's what I took on the Camino with me, and I liked everything about it. It's got more, for want of a better word, "chemically" ingredients, more like a traditional liquid shampoo, but worked better for me than the other bars, especially since I have hard water at home, and wasn't able to do an ACV rinse on the Camino. When I returned home from Spain I went to buy some more, but discovered that it had been discontinued! I managed to find 3 bars on clearance, which I am hoarding for my next Camino walk. (this summer, yay!) But now my search was on to find a replacement. I've been usingthis one from another Etsy vendor, LakeSuperiorSoap, and it leaves my hair soft and silky. The scent is nice, but pretty strong. I have also tried this one from GetLathered on Etsy. I like it too, but not quite as much. Neither shampoo leaves any kind of residue in my hair. After shampooing I use a quick swipe of this conditioner bar through my hair to make it easier to comb, but it hasn't been that hard to comb without it. The conditioner bar has lasted forever.