| Abraxan
Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Perth, AU (GMT +8)
Posts: 25,070
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Jasper Hart
Graduated
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As the blackboard moved into place, Seren flicked her wand at the chalk sitting on its ledge and watched as it began to write up instructions in neat cursive writing. SPOILER!!: Responses Quote:
Originally Posted by nups21  The first thing that came to Ira's mind on hearing the question was dragon hide gloves, thick ones! She certainly didn't want to burn her hands! But seeing that others' had already said so, she thought something else.. What else is required?
Ah yes, manure! She raised her hand up and answered, "Professor, manure will be required for good growth of seeds, right? But is there a special kind of manure for this, seeing that it is a fire seed?" "You're on the right track, but no we don't use manure for these seeds. Not until they're grown and even then only a minimal amount is required." Quote:
Originally Posted by Anna Banana Sierra nodded back toward the professor, but she really only gave Hollingberry a mere glance. That hadn't been an offer for friendship. Nope, not at all. Well, maybe it'd been a peace offering. Or something. Sierra still hadn't questioned her own motives, really. She could have just wanted extra points, which was a big possibility, too.
Well, everyone was saying something about gloves, so Sierra decided to steer off the track and chime in with something a little different. "I think we need to be careful where we plant the seeds," she suggested, raising her hand. "Sure, it's just a little seed now, but one day it'll be a big Fire Seed Bush, so we don't want to plant it next to something that it could catch fire to on down the line somewhere."
Location was everything when it came to plants.
Well, Sierra still thought her location answer was pretty good, but apparently that hadn't been what the professor was asking about. HMPH, Bentley. She'd just try again. "I was thinking that maybe the fire would get extinguished if we smothered the seed with dirt?" she suggested, raising her hand. "So maybe there's a different way of planting these seeds, since they're made of fire? Maybe we just leave them wide open to the air rather than covering them with dirt..." She thought for a moment then added, "Or maybe there's a spell to use that keeps the fire from being extinguished..." Seren nodded, yes obviously location was important for a number of reasons... but it wasn't quite what she was looking for, until.. "Ahh yes, certainly, the key is too keep the seed hot enough beneath the ground." Quote:
Originally Posted by tomewitch So those seeds would be pretty dangerous then. It could burn anyone who wouldn't wear the necessary and proper gear. Hence, the answers that immediately shot out when the next question was asked by the Herbology Professor.
Aside from that, what are other precautions? Beezus thought hard and finally raised her hand, "Professor Seren, aside from wearing the proper attire, we should also take note of our behaviors. Excessive chatting must be minimized since it might distract us from what we're doing." she said. That was a precaution right? Erm.. "Well, yes, those are important, but I was asking about plant care not people safety." They had rules in place for that. Quote:
Originally Posted by Starbreeze When prompted with another question, Eino raised his hand. "Perhaps the Glacius Charm could prove useful since the flames are supposed to be strong enough to hatch a dragon's egg, and that is quite hot." It would be much easier to use some advanced charm-work to move the fire seeds, but the younger students wouldn't be able to perform some of the charms, so manual labor it was. Quote:
Originally Posted by sevensnared That was... Confusing. Hades mumbled to himself as he tried to differ them as what Professor Bentley said. "Uhm... We should use the Glacius Charm before collecting the seeds?" said Hades, trying to make sure it was correct. He thought he had read it somewhere before. Not sure where though. "It's generally a good idea to cool the seeds down before handling it, but in this case it would just place the seed at risk of not germinating." Quote:
Originally Posted by Team ronmione "Maybe we should use some water charm, such as Aguamenti to extinguish the fire before we get started, Professor." He answered. It made sense, as everyone was answering, to have DragonHide Gloves. Maybe it would be more prudent, as to not catch the glove on fire, but to first have it out, but still use them nonetheless. Extinguish the fire?
Seren eyed her prefect. "Uhhh no, I wouldn't recommend that, the seed needs to be alight in order to survive and grow.... putting out the fire will only kill it." Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie What could they do for the fire seeds? Kurumi blushed and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment for misunderstanding the question - but it seemed like many others had followed her in that as well. Take two?
"When planting, one usually waters," Kurumi said as she raised her hand again. Which, sort of had her confused for a just a moment. She wasn't entirely sure about the magical properties behind fire seeds, having never handled them before, so Kurumi followed up with another question. "Professor Bentley, is there some sort of special liquid required to water fire seeds? Or is regular water just fine?" You know, so the flames were not entirely put out. The reaction from using a Freezing Charm and water could be entirely different.
"Ahh good point Kurumi, we most certainly do use water, but there's a trick to it, which we will get to," she said with a wink. Quote:
Originally Posted by cheeseStrings Care, not Safety.
Janice repeated the words in her head, trying to recall those basic things that helps plants grow. Once she got the answer, she shot her hand upwards and answered the question.
"Fertilizers, for their food, and water."
Yup, those very, very, very basic things that you need. "You're on the right track, we don't actually fertilise fire seeds until they have germinated, and as for water, there's a special trick with that," she replied brightly. Quote:
Originally Posted by Yourenodaisy It as pretty neat back here in the deepest part of the greenhouse. And just a little bit spooky too, what with all the strange plants. A botanical ghost story would be pretty cool right about now. Thinking a moment about the needs of the seeds, Em raised her hand. "Well, they are fire seeds right? That means water would put them out, so they probably need something else to um, 'water' them. Maybe something like fire whiskey or something else thats flammable." "Sort of... we do use water, but there's a trick to keeping the seed active." Quote:
Originally Posted by MyPatronusIsaMoose The baby elf did what now!?!?! Was this the same baby elf that they were naming? Oakey closed his mouth as he had noticed that it went wide open at this tale.
Professor I believe some safety goggles would be appropiate. he started. We don't want our eyebrows to be burnt off from the seeds.
He took one finger from both hands and pointed them both at his eyebrows. "Mm yes, that's why we have classroom rules, but I was thinking more along the lines of caring for the seed..." because plants were more important than students? Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverDragon "Well," said Silvia after raising her hand, "since these are fire seeds, we have to make sure that the flames aren't completely extinguished when we plant them, or else it will die and the seed won't grow, right? Meaning we have to be careful with any liquids or spells we use that might weaken the flames too much."
She wasn't quite sure how one would actually go about watering a fire seed. "Yes, excellent!" Quote:
Originally Posted by meganelizabeth Care, not Safety.
Christopher turned the words over in his mind, thinking about what the fire seeds would need to survive. Slowly raising his hand, Christopher asked a little timidly, "To "water" the seeds, would we need to use something like oil or gasoline, rather than actually water, so it doesn't put the fire out?" Hopefully he didn't sound too foolish to the professor and his fellow classmates, but he found it to be a rather valid question. "That's an interesting... and seemingly logical thought, though no, we do use water." Quote:
Originally Posted by FireboltAvis88 Alyssa thought for a moment and then raised her hand,"Professor, like any seed that we have the opportunity to work with, we should take care that we handle them gently, that we do not drop them on the ground or on anything that is flammable, and most importantly, that we follow your directions as instructed when we are ready to plant them." At least that was what Alyssa remembered when they were taught how to plant the Puffapod seeds.
"Yes, that would be a very good idea..." following rules was sort of essential to not being kicked out of the classroom... but it still hadn't really answered her question. "I was asking more for what would benefit the seeds." Quote:
Originally Posted by Jessiqua
Zhenya had a quick think. It was a bit hard thinking of how to care for the fire seeds, as she really didn't know much about them, apart from what Professor Bentley had gone over, which was actually quite a lot. She took a bit of a guess, raising her hand, "Professor, as with other seeds, I would be careful not to damage them by squeezing them or stepping on them or something. I mean, it might do more harm to me than the seeds, but I still wouldn't want to damage the seed itself," she said.
"Yes, I'm sure fire seeds... like others wouldn't appreciate being stepped on."
... Interesting response. Quote:
Originally Posted by KayKay Gwen made a quiet "Hmpf" sound, trying to find a good answer to the Professor's question. "Do the seeds prefer a certain temperature? If they do, we might have to take that in to consideration, so they don't get damaged."
She really didn't know what else to say. Besides, they were fire seeds, so maybe they liked hot temperatures. "Yes very good, temperature is something we definitely need to consider with these beauties." Quote:
Originally Posted by nogoodforyou Okay... how to care...
"Maybe we should pay attention to the place we are planting them?" Nora spoke as she raised her hand. "I mean... we shouldn't plant them near the lake, for example." So they wouldn't just... you know, not burst into flames, which is what Nora expected them to do. "Yes, place is important, obviously fire seed bushes prefer dark, damp and more enclosed places." Quote:
Originally Posted by Devina Wellheart Justin thought for a moment about the question and said, " Professor, I think it'd be wise to make sure that you're wearing Dragon scale gloves when planting Fireseeds. That way you don't get burnt." ... clearly. Or had the child not read the class rules before? "I was asking for from a caring for the seed or plant perspective." Quote:
Originally Posted by Orla Her hand creeped up how else could you care for it other thab being gentle "Calm you should always considerate that the seeds may drop and catch fire on somone or somthing," Another SAFETY issue... "well yes dear, but I was asking how do we care for the seed or plant... not what's around it." Quote:
Originally Posted by sarahlooo ... Huh. How would you care for a fire seed? Normal plants needed water to grow, but water would put the fire out, would it not? At least it would cool it down, but this wasn't a cool-seed plant. Obviously.
"Do you water it.. with fire?" ... Well that was dumb. Water and fire were completely different things. "By water, I mean... nourish. Like, using Incendio or something?" Meh. It was just a guess. "That's an interesting point, but no we do use water... only there's a trick to it." Which they were going to learn today... obviously. Quote:
Originally Posted by jujune29th "We're probably in this really dark area for a reason, aren't we, professor?" why else would they have to be in the darkness if it wasn't to protect the plants/seeds/whatnot? "Maybee... to be planted and grow well, the seed needs the opposite of what "regular" plants need. Like, instead of a warm soil, a cold one, instead of the sunshine, the darkness, instead of water... she stopped to think a little. "um... I don't think it's fire... I don't know what it could be, though." that was all Sophie could guess for now. "You're sort of on the right track. Certainly the fire seed benefits from the darkness, but warm soil is essential for it to grow, as is water." Quote:
Originally Posted by Steelsheen
Vickers pushes his glasses up his nose as the pots started to line up from the corner of the greenhouse. He shifts his eyes back to the Herbology Professor as she asked her next question. Care requirements? For fire seeds? Would it be safe to assume that one of them isnt water? "Would they be needing... a medium for growth Professor? Like... soil thats conducive to the growth of a fire seed bush.. or perhaps something else like saw dust or pieces of wood or coal?" he answered tentatively as he raised his hand.
"Not a bad theory, but surprisingly, no, fire seeds need little nourishment." Quote:
Originally Posted by Quick Quotes Quill Gwen tried really hard to focus, but somehow, she managed to get lost in the mist. Err... planting fire seed bushes? Are you kidding me?! I can't even plant normal flowers. Psh, the Ravenclaw thought. 'Since they must be on fire to live, maybe we have to make sure the flames don't go out?' Duh. Perhaps I should have just shut up... at least that way I won't risk loosing points.
Why did they need to grow these, anyway? Fire seeds weren't so useful- were they? Hmm... "Yes! precisely, maintaining a high enough temperature for the seed to remain active is crucial to its growth." Quote:
Originally Posted by Lady Marmalade Oh no. Kacie thought when the professor told about her research shed had caught on fire last term. She could only imagine how upsetting that must have been for her, but it was a good thing no one was hurt; especially the house elf who had seemingly caused the fire. Kacie followed Professor Bentley further into the greenhouse. She didn't have any questions at the moment so she just listened as others asked their questions.
Kacie felt herself getting excited all over again the closer they got to getting ready to plant the fire seeds. It wasn't everyday she would have an opportunity to plant something like this. She thought carefully as she tried to think of something that would help care for a fire seed plant. Well if was fire after all so she didn't want to say water because if its growing water would certainly put it out. It would probably need to be something that would help fire grow. Hmm... All plants needed soil so that was an obvious answer, but maybe fire seeds didn't need as much soil because they didn't want to smother it. That's when it hit her and her hand shot in the air.
"MULCH!!!!! That's what it needs," It was a guess, but Kacie felt that it was probably the best way to care for this type of plant. She was so happy about her answer that she could barely sit still as she continued to support why she believed mulch would be good, specking a mile a minute because she was so excited. "Perhaps more mulch then regular soil. I can't remember everything about mulch, but I'm positive it has everything that might help fire seeds grow, especially the wood chips. Hmm... but I do know mulch decays over time so we'll need to change periodically." Even if her answer wasn't right, she still felt that it was a great guess. "Not bad idea, but no... the fire seed requires very little nourishment." Quote:
Originally Posted by TakemetotheBurrow Ella thought about how she handled seeds with care at home. She remembered how careful her mother had been when showing her how to plant, she had been gentle too. "Professor, to ensure that the seeds are ready to plant, do we need to make sure they are cool enough?" ...or maybe the soil needs to be cool? Ella thought on that, waiting to hear her classmates' ideas "Nope, not in this case... we don't want to risk extinguishing the seed and thus killing it."
Quote:
Originally Posted by Magical Soul Care requirements? Care? Shouldn't they worry about themselves not to burn instead of worrying about a plant?! Not in Herbology, apparently. Louisa raised her hand slowly, "We should make sure not to move so fast with the seed in hand? You know.. for the flame not to fade out." It was like holding a candle. Or something like this. Seren smiled, amused by the idea. "I assure you dear the seed wouldn't be extinguished by moving too fast, the warmth radiates from within... it would take a lot more than a little bit of a breeze for it to burn out." Quote:
Originally Posted by mellamaet Care requirements? Flaming seeds have care requirements?
As the others answered, Cass scribbled down notes, inserting her own two cents into the matter once in a while. Then, finally thinking up of an answer that seemed good enough. "Make sure that the fire that keeps your plant alive stays lit?" She guessed, she wasn't sure though. All she knew was that fire keeps the thing alive - according to her book, anyway - and if the fire goes out, then she's going to bet that the plant wouldn't last long either. "Yes, very good." Quote:
Originally Posted by PhoenixStar Hannah raised her hand and stated "I think perhaps we may need a special kind of soil for them to thrive in." Surely it would be just any old soil considering it isn't just any old seed. "Yes, and no... it depends how you define special," she mused. Quote:
Originally Posted by fanficfanatict Selina rose her hand and said bluntly, "We should probably take care that we don't harm ourselves. Because if we get burnt we can't do anything for the plant.". Besides Selina got burned enough in potions. She'd rather avoid doing that in herbology to be honest. Yes, the plants were important but so was Selina's health. Resisting the urge to smirk, Seren simply nodded. "Well that is a good idea... I was asking more in terms of caring for the plant though." "Right so aside from the common sense, follow the classroom rules regarding safety... gloves, goggles etc. there are a number of things we need to consider when planting fire seeds. They are not particularly high maintenance, but there are a few crucial things to remember. The first, is temperature. You do NOT want to extinguish your seed using the Glacius Charm or by drowning it in cold water. Secondly, fire seeds do not require much, if any nourishment... so fertilising is not required." Seren paused to let this information sink in and plant themselves in the students minds. She had a feeling some of them would be pleased to know there wouldn't be any dung involved this lesson. "Now take a moment to read and note down these instructions, you'll need them soon enough," she said stepping to the side to let the light from the torches shine onto the blackboard. Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackboard 1. Charm pot to heat itself.
2. Fill half of pot up with soil and let it rest for several minutes to warm up.
3. Carefully take a single fire seed with dragon hide gloves and place on top of the soil.
4. Cover fire seed with soil, so that pot is filled. Pat the soil down a little (not too much, you don't want to suffocate it).
5. Water the fire seed with boiling water, without drowning it. After waiting a short while for students to write down these notes, Seren stepped forward to continue the lesson. "Now before I get you to start the process, you first need to know how to perform the Chaudensis Charm. This will charm the pot to heat itself." "Please DO NOT take out your wands just yet, I want you to practice the incantantion without the risk of blowing something up first..." she said eyeballing them all. "Repeat after me... Chaudensis... Chaw-den-sis..."
Seren observed and listened as the students practiced the incantation. OOC: Practice the INCANTATION ONLY. Lesson will resume in approximately 12 hours.
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