Happiness Project:: Post 5

Pumpkin flower

Two weeks ago I had the chance to join my 4YO on her preschool field trip to the pumpkin patch farm. This farm we've been to at least three times now, so I figured I wouldn't learn anything new. Luckily, I was proven wrong, quite happily.

Do you know how to tell the difference between a male and female pumpkin flower? I didn't. I was so excited to learn the difference.

Pumpkin flower

Turns out the top photo is a male. The bottom photo - where you can see the round bulge of a baby pumpkin below the flower - is a female. Seriously, how cute is that? Momma flower has a cute baby bump.

The bees fly into the male flower, gather the pollen and then fertilize the female flower. It's just so beautiful to me. If, the female flower isn't producing, you can do some in-vitro for the pumpkin flowers. You take a fine, good quality paint brush and gently gather some pollen from the male flower, and then open up the female flower and swirl around the pollen.

I can't get over how cool this is.

Last time at the farm we learned about lanolin from wool - this time we also learned about how similar human organs are to pigs. Apparently we're more similar to them than monkeys. Transplanted organs usually come from pigs for us. Also - whatever we eat, they can eat... even bacon. With the way I keep house on some days... I'm much more closely related in a slovenly fashion than I realized.

Learning...always, keeps me happy.