Gone to Seed

The garden is filled with interesting seeds and seed pods. Here Chinese forget me not seeds have captured milkweed seeds. I'm afraid this is one plant we will wish we had deadheaded. If we brush up against them  the little round seeds are so sticky that Ed and I have to take turns picking them off each others clothes . These seeds are made to stick to any critter that passes by.

New England asters have pretty soft brown seeds.

All of the  poppy seeds are long gone. Some eaten by birds and some planted by the wind. I know when the ground warms next spring my pink poppies will return.

I really can't see that there are any seeds left in this bee balm seed head. It still makes an interesting picture.

These sumac seeds will attract birds to the garden this winter.

Most of the hollyhock seeds are gone. They have been either eaten or planted.

I would not want to have to count the tiny seeds on the stinging nettles. Some might think that allowing stinging nettles to grow here is foolish, but Ed and I both recognize the plant when we see it and it is the food plant for Red Admiral butterflies and others.

The sunflowers have been stripped clean by the birds, but birds are messy eaters and I'm sure the sunflowers will be back too.

For the first time in my memory every black locust tree you see here  has seed pods this year. With all the rain the pods seem to have a black mold on them even as they remain attached to the tree.
 

 Ed has been clearing the beds preparing them for spring planting. No seeds are visible here, but I know they are there waiting for spring and their chance germinate.