Anyone try to grow Chia Seeds?

Yeah I bought 2 CHIA Herb Gardens last winter. They grew exactly as the instructions said they would. At first. Then they died.

All of them reached 2 inches in height within a few weeks as predicted. The Chives were the only thing (of 6 plantings) that survived to reach

Any attempt to do any thinning or separate anything from the CHIA "growing sponge" also killed it. Immediately. Everything.

Later I planted some leftover CHIA seeds in window boxes. They lived a little longer, but were always overgrown and shaded-out by store and ebay-bought seeds long before they reached maturity or produced anything useful. Long before.

I'm thinking who my worst enemy is to give them the remaining Herb Garden for Christmas. Somewhere in the instructions it clearly said "special hybrids". Yeah. Specialized to grow quick and die quicker.

I've seen Chia growing in the wild.

Might be best as an outdoor plant?

Thanks Guys for the responsees.

I did a little digging this morning and found that the chia has grown wild as far north as Mondocino county in CA. I live in Sonoma. right next door, so it appears I am in the right place. Very important, once it starts to grow it needs no more water.

There is lots of info at the link:

RF

They want to be dry sometimes but don't tolerate freezing. They were a staple of the Tribes of inland southern California (Luise=F1o, Gabrieli=F1o, del Rey, etc.) who still grow and collect them. It grows wild along my hillside & we gather them sometimes. Tasty, especially roasted!

Yes, that is where I saw it. In California. :-)

We used to live there.

down." -- Steve Rothstein

Urkle. (Removing foot from mouth)

I misconstrued the question as a sneaky advertisement for the "brand" name CHIA, and had no idea there is an actual plant by that name... (Californian I am not)

... Apologies all~~

You mean you missed the "chia pet" craze? :-) Mom had a pottery lion with the ridges for the chia seeds forming the lion's "Mane". It was really cute and she'd just trim the sprouts for salads.

C'est la ve. :-)

Predating the Chia Pet craze by decades, I remember, in the late 50's, having a pottery head of Alfred E. Newman, the Mad Magazine character. There was a hole in the top of his head, to add water I guess, and there were grooves all around where his hair would be, to put the seeds in. Don't know what seeds were supplied.

That ancient?

Yes, mom's Lion had a hole in the top of his head. Generally, chia pets were glazed except where the ridges for sprouting were. The seeds are mucilaginous so stick to where you plant them when they are wetted.

Chia.

Mom had her chia pet in the late 60's, early 70's.

Predated the "Craze". Not the item, evidently.

Dunno. I was a tyke. I seem to remember that the whole head was unglazed, but, I can't really remember a detail like that.

Did she get it from Doctor Who? Could you imagine a Dahlek as a chia pet?

And I thought this was a .garden.edible newsgroup????

Are you guys cannibalizing your pets?

Just messing with ya. ;-)

We used to watch Dr. Who on Sundays when we lived in Colorado. It'd run 5 episodes, 2 1/2 hour special.

We made Bean and Cheese nachos and Margaritas.

Wonderful memory...

I miss my mom.

Heh!

Chia pets ARE edible plants!

Sprouts on a special clay planter, shaped usually like an animal of some sort.

The sprouts grew on the surface making it look "fuzzy":

Huh. Looks like there are still a good variety available:

Same as alfalfa sprouts.

Snip and eat. ;-d

Hi Omelet.

Funny, I have never heard of an Omelet eating seeds ;-)

Do these seeds do the same as flax seeds do to many people =>

Send them to the bathroom very frequently.

RF

Seeds go IN the Omelets.

Especially sunflower and poppy...

No idea. :-) To us, it was just a salad item.

Om, you seem to be attracting an odd crowd;-)

WEll, on a regular basis anyway.