A little twist

- Bluebonnet pods -

Did you know that bluebonnet seeds pop open? I only learned that this week, drying pods I had gathered from Hobbs Cemetery, where they are abundant after the flowers bloom.

I had them sitting in a bowl in a sunny window, where I kept hearing a tick now and then. I thought it was the sound of a dirt dobber nest falling or a cricket jumping, but then I realized it had to be the seeds. Fascinating!

As the pod dries, it twists to force the seed out.

I put another bowl on top to keep the seeds from ending up all over the floor. This seemed to make them pop more because of the enclosed heat.

I think I'll try stopping on a roadside that is full of pods and see if I can hear them popping. That'll be a new experience that has been not so quietly happening nearly in my own back yard all my life. I wonder what other things I haven't noticed? I have a feeling there's a lot to learn.