| Abraxan
Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Perth, AU (GMT +8)
Posts: 25,070
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Jasper Hart
Graduated
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|  ½ EagleBrain ♥ Creeperdoodle ♥ Raven Dor ♥ Berry ♥ ½ Team House Elf
You ask a bunch of kids to fertilise their jars of dirt... and they ask questions as if it were alchemy. Merlin. Did she have to do another lesson on fertilisers? Or a refresher course? SPOILER!!: Kendall Quote:
Originally Posted by SecretAdmirer  Kendall had practically held her breath as Professor Bentley had walked over to her little work area and peered down into her jar, half-expecting to hear that she was completely crazy and shouldn’t even try to be growing her butterfly orchids at all. Or maybe just be told that they weren’t going to be able to be grown with her other seeds, but then she hadn’t really said what plants she was trying to grow. She’d just said she was aiming for something like the Burren, like her home, but maybe the professor would recognize the extra seeds she’d still had out in their little piles next to her jar. Either way, she’d glanced up at her as she’d spoken. “Okay,” she said. Apparently she just had to wait until they move d on to the next step.
Which was done not too long after the professor had walked away from her, although it still hadn’t really answered her question. They’d been instructed to add fertilizer, but she wasn’t sure if there was anything specific she should use. She still stood up to start heading for the storage cupboard, but she raised her hand at the same time. “Um, professor? Is this the part where I add something to help my orchids grow? I still don’t really know what I’m looking for, or if there’s a specific fertilizer for those that’s different from the one I should use for my other plants.” She just knew all of those plants grew at home in Ireland, but that didn’t mean she’d ever actually grown them before. Wild plants didn’t need fertilizing. At least, she figured they took care of themselves, and either way, she was completely confused.
Seren nodded, yep, now would be the time. "Generic dragon dung will do, dear," she said smoothly. SPOILER!!: Sarah Quote:
Originally Posted by Princesspower Sarah watched West as he reached the shelf and took down the amount of fertiliser she required. She nodded as he brought it back to their workstation. "Thank you ever so much!" she said a smile.
She then scooped the ferteliser into her jar and patted it out evenly.
That was good, having fertiliser would increase the odds of her plants actually growing considering that she probably misplanted some of them.
"Professor" she said "my plants need some shade considering that they come from a woodland biome. Is there a spell one could use to imitate the effects of a tree's shade?" just thinking out of the box you know!
She took out her wand again,
"Aguamenti!" she casted again watering the jar a for a few brief moment before casting finite. She definately did not want to flood her jar
Ooohhh! Now there was a good question. Better than a dung question. "I like your thinking, though for the time being, keeping them in the castle on a window sill will be enough protection." SPOILER!!: Alyssa Quote:
Originally Posted by FireboltAvis88 Alyssa was about to add the pinch of fertilizer to her jar when she recalled what the professor said and got confused. The Professor had said to water and fertilize their seeds but then she had said for those with water biomes to add water and add two drops of moon calf solution for fresh water biomes. There was no mention of fertilizing it. So was the moon calf solution the substitute for the fertilizer?
Since hers was not a salt water biome, Alyssa hadn't picked up the saline solution. But that wasn't what confused her. Was she to add the pinch off fertilizer as well as the moon calf solution, or just the solution? Alyssa decided that she'd check first rather than guess and make a mistake by over fertilizing her seeds.
So she raised her hand and asked,"Professor I have a fresh water biome. I added the water, but do I need to add the pinch of fertilizer AND the two drops of moon calf solution or is the solution a substitute for the fertizer and I won't need any fertilizer?"
Goodness gracious... did this girl forget everything about fertiliser during her absence? "Remember... mooncalf solution is derived from mooncalf dung, which is a fertiliser.... we do not add solid fertilisers to water biomes, because that's just pointless, and because of the potency of mooncalf dung, two drops of the solution, which is essentially the dung mixed with water, is enough to fertilise the average tank of water."
Did that answer the girls question?
At any rate, the dung questions were sending her into madness. She ought to test them on it at some point. SPOILER!!: Desert Biome Dung People Quote:
Originally Posted by DecemberMoon Now that she had enough sand in her jar, she carefully pulled the cactus seeds from her bag and nudged them into the granules. She was about to add the rest of the random desert seeds she'd gotten in an assorted packet when she felt like she was missing something. What did she say? she thought, tapping her chin with her index finger as if that would somehow stir her thoughts back to the surface. Hm....seeds...jar...Oh, reducio!That's right. It would need to be a lot bigger of a jar if I put these in at regular size. They might grow right out of the top! She unplanted her seeds and sat them on the table, instead of in her palm as she wasn't so sure she wouldn't miss the little things when she cast. "Reducio!" she said while pointing at each of the seeds she intended to plant. That's better. Now they'll be all cute and small. She smiled a little to herself and poked them back down into the sand. How deep they needed to be though she wasn't sure.
And now Professor Bentley told them to add fertilizer and water their plants, but...How do we know they NEED fertilizer? And how much water? Will I kill my desert plants if I use too much? She needed some guidance in this area. She walked up to the professor quietly, hoping that if she was quick and polite - she wouldn't be too much trouble to help out for a moment. "Professor Bentley? I um, I chose desert plants and I was just not sure...how much fertilizer or water to give them. Will I drown them if I use too much?" She thought it was a good question, especially since she had no clue how to care for plants. Quote:
Originally Posted by Anna Valentina
Sierra had already thought to water her creation. As a seventh year, it was pretty much etched in her mind to water seeds after you'd planted them. She did need to add a pinch of fertilizer, though. "Professor?" she asked, and then she turned her gaze to a Ravenclaw girl who'd asked the same question she was about to ask. "I chose a desert biome, too, so...what type of fertlizer do I add?"
Was a desert biome even one of the options? She hoped so. Plus, if a Ravenclaw had done the same thing, it couldn't be bad, right? They were the smart ones.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lemon With a quick, "Aguamenti," her seeds had been watered. Alice wasn't sure what fertilizer to use, either, though. What type did cacti need? More importantly, was she supposed to know that? "I chose a desert biome, too, Professor. What type of fertilizer would I need for that?" She echoed the female Slytherin Prefect's question loud and clear as she tossed her hand up in the air. She was sure the desert biome had been an option, because the sandy soil was there and all, plus like three others were also planting cacti. So she couldn't have had made any mistakes, right?
She blinked at the professor, still awaiting an answer.
Merlin.
It was a good thing this was a lesson, or else those deserts would end up looking very un-desert like. "Deserts, owing to the fact that they lack nutrients, do not require fertiliser, so you're all set." Easy peasy, right? SPOILER!!: Mo Quote:
Originally Posted by Erndearment Oh, MER-LIN. Mo blinked a bit as the professor winked rather boldly at him before moving on with the class. Winked. At him. He tucked the sundew seed into the middle of his jar of dirt and wondered what that wink was supposed to indicate. Were they co-conspirators? That seemed likely.
Mo carefully lifted his jar back up on the workbench before returning the remaining soil in his bucket and retrieving fertilizer instead. The professor said to add just a pinch, but that was sort of imprecise and Mo wanted to give his baby seeds as much love as possible. Just a PINCH? The pinch was added, and then another, and then another. That was better.
After his fertilizer was added, Mo climbed up on the tabletop so he could point his wand down inside he jar and water his baby seeds. Not too much water, since these were plants that didn't like getting really wet and the soil would just wick most of it away anyway.
"Erm, Professor, what does the mooncalf solution do?" Not that he needed it, but he was curious.
Seren almost choked on her own saliva as she heard the Ravenclaw voice his question.
Bouncing.... Blueberries. Ok. "Well, mooncalf dung you see, is renown for having speedy growth properties, so it's a fantastic fertiliser both as a solid and as a liquid... so... mooncalf solution, is essentially, dung mixed with water."
Well...
With that painful endeavor out of the way, there was only a few more things left to do. "Alright class, we're almost done for today!" she announced, needing to hear the word herself to enjoy them. "Our terrariums are almost complete... for now... so I'd like you all to take a moment and shrink your jars back to normal size now please."
She did so on her own, uttering a non-verbal reducio. "Then you'll need to be paying close attention, and take notes, on your tasks for when you leave this greenhouse..." OOC: The lesson will continue in approx 17 hours (;
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