Foliar feeding is the term used to indicate the addition of nutrients to plants via the leaves. Yes, I did say addition of fertilizer through the leaf itself. We commonly think of most plant nutrition entering from the soil and traveling from the roots through the rest of the plant. Leaves, as we know, are responsible for photosynthesis and transpiration, or water returning to the atmosphere. But, the stoma, cuticle, and epidermis can also accept fertilizer and be beneficial, but under specific conditions.
In the 1950's researchers at Michigan State University under the direction of Dr. H. B. Tukey, demonstrated leaf absorption of fertilizer by using radioactive isotopes and tracking feed travel through the leaves. They found that plant nutrients move at the rate of about one foot per hour through the plant. And, fertilizer manufactures jumped on the news and began hyping the use of foliar feeding as a general practice.
But, the general practice of soil amendments is still the desirable way to feed plants. The usual addition of  Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium in some combination is quite enough for many plants. The cover photo shows my cantalope with healthy leaves and the forming melons, and that suggests that no added nutrients are needed. The value of foliar feeding becomes evident with those plants that require trace elements like iron, boron, magnesium, and other chemicals not found in most soil. Many growers have discovered that fertilizer made with kelp, which does have many trace elements, to be a very effective leaf treatment.
I am adding two links for further reading. The first is a discussion of some of the myths concerning foliar feeding here. The second is an experiment that is inconclusive but interesting and can be found here. I am planning some experiments using fluorescent dye to track the travel in plant leaves. Meanwhile, I wait for the cantalope...

I have always considered birdseed to be non-viable and not really a good candidate to grow at all. But, as usual, curiosity got the better of me and I decides to try a little experiment. I had a bag of birdseed that was fairly inexpensive, and I wondered why the cost was lower than what I usually purchase. And now, I know why, but more about that in a minute. There were the four varieties shown in the photo and it also had cracked corn. But, the corn was so small that there were no kernels to plant so it was excluded from the experiment. I planted 5 seeds of each variety in potting mix. Although 5 seeds is not statistically significant, it was not the percentage that I was interested in, but the actual viability. So, from the photos below it is clear that birdseed will grow and is somewhat viable. As to the cost? From the research I discovered that the  Milo seed has almost no nutritional value for birds and is used as a filler. It is almost 40% of the seed that I have. That is why it is cheaper than the better seed. So, check the contents for Milo and buy accordingly. The time from planting to the second photo is 16 days. Time to tweet!

It seems that periodically I have a sudden infestation of moths, and this is just another year of the pesky little creatures. I have previously identified them as Indian Meal Moths, but on further research, I was mistaken. (The photo is from Wikipedia). This year I looked more carefully at the habit, appearance, and morphology. And although it seems that a moth is a moth is sometimes valid, when they become an infestation, it is more important to identify the species so that remedial action can be taken. Of course I know that all moths are in the Order Lepidoptera, (Butterfly's  and moths) but, despite their appearance, all moths are different. It seems as if my memory is faulty as every year that they show up I think that they have flown in from outside. Not so at all. They have been inside my home all of the time!

These are the ones that I captured and made inanimate for the photo. It turns out that they are Almond moths and have the same habits as the Indian Meal moth. The female lays her eggs in flour and wheat grains and cereals. They also like pasta! The eggs hatch in anywhere from 2 to 14 days, and the larva can take from 30 to 300 days to mature, depending on the temperature. The moths, when grown, then fly around the house. They are nocturnal and fly continuously at night, seeking light as most moths seem to do. In the daytime, they land on a wall and show signs of so sort of torpor. They are easy to catch at that point and can be moved outdoors. And while traps may seem appropriate, they really do not work well.
The only effective remediation is to locate the source of the larva and remove that material. I checked all of my cereals, pasta, and flour products and found them in a partially empty bag of flour. Needless to say, I said goodby to the flour and the moths. I just hope that I remember all of this the next time that I see more than one moth of the same type. Maybe there is a blog entry that will remind me...Good hunting!