What are they and how did I get them ?

[SwampDonkey]

Well between Paul and I we've hit all the 'balsam', except one.

Fraser Fir seed? Once considered a variety of balsamea until the last few years. But it's native to the mountains in Va, TN, NC, and northern GA I think. But, it still isn't right for balsam as it should be more triangular in shape. I've never smelled much of an odor from softwood seed unless some pitch is attached. As I said earlier, she'd have to have mechanically removed the seed wings also, since they don't fall away as easily as spruce, tamarak, hemlock or pine. And that seed is two big for spruce, tamarak or hemlock.

Now anise seed (licorice) would be a good guess, but it resembles caraway seed, neither of which is pictured there.

She's having fun isn't she? What I wanna know is what she's using the seed for.

[sprucebunny]

Paul, you got the seed right with balsam.
http://www.rook.org/earl/bwca/nature/trees/abiesbal.html

It can't be any other fir as there are none in the area. As to the wings being missing, SwampDonkey, well .... that's the rest of the story

Anyone hazard a guess

[Paul_H]

I'll hazard a couple of guesses 

1. Young sapthirsty kid next door has a cruel streak and pull the wings off of defenseless Balsam seed.

2. Mice have harvested winter food and you came across the cache in one of your machines or camper.

[SwampDonkey]

Sure fooled me on the balsam. They look bigger and lighter colored than my fir pictured. So, you going into the Christmas* tree business?

[SwampDonkey]

The schooner, 'Blue Nose', on the dime is a Nova Scotia emblom. The balsam fir is the official tree emblom of New Brunswick.

[sprucebunny]

2. Mice have harvested winter food and you came across the cache in  your  camper.

Looks like you win a pint of balsam seed , Paul

The really amazing thing was that the little beasties stored the seed in a plastic bag. I looked in the cupboard and thought I'd left a bag of wheatberries 

A couple of weeks ago when I was there, I caught a mouse in the sink. That was the one that was running around my arm and I was yelling NO! at, like it was a bad dog

Besides the mouse having to collect the seed and chew the wings off, they have all been transported at least 50 yards because that's the closest balsam tree. That seems like a long ways for a little mouse!!!

So send me your address, Paul and I'll send you some balsam seed with a little mouse spit on it

I hope when Jeff gets back, he'll find some mouse smilies

This was fun. Thanks, everyone 

[Paul_H]

Thanks SB,that was a lot of fun here too. 

We have an old motorhome and during one Winter a couple years back we stored it in the equipment shed of a local farmer and in the Spring we found a lot of Oats cached everywhere imaginable.   

[Tom]

So......   What is that poor, defenseless mouse gonna eat this winter, huh?   Or, did you send his saddle home?

[SwampDonkey]

It sure is amazing how busy those little creatures are. I went out directly under the crown of a balsam tree I planted years ago and was looking for some seed that had fallen from the tree top. I tell ya, even getting down on my hands and knees those seed are some hard to find, even with a wing on them. The only honest to goodness ones I found were still attached by sap to the cone scales. Now just imagine a tiny mouse that has to crawl all through the wet grass, moss and leaves to find those things.    

[thurlow]

Well, does SB's story kind'a remind you of this? 

"A preacher visits an elderly woman from his congregation. As he sits on the couch he notices a large bowl of peanuts on the coffee table. "Mind if I have a few?" he asks. "No, not at all." the woman replied. They chat for an hour and as the preacher stands to leave, he realizes that instead of eating just a few peanuts, he emptied most of the bowl. "I'm terribly sorry for eating all your peanuts; I really just meant to eat a few." "Oh, that's all right." the woman says. "Ever since I lost my teeth all I can do is suck the chocolate off them anyway."

[SwampDonkey]

  Reminds me of a kind of tale my grandfather would tell.

[beenthere]

SD
Those mice finding da seeds is likely akin to us walking in a pumpkin patch and finding da punkins.

[SwampDonkey]

I dunno, the view is quite a bit different when your in the middle of pumpkin vines and looking down on the pumpkins, than it is in a forest or jungle of weeds trying to look through all the obsticles and not even sure what your looking for other than the fact anything will do to keep from starving to death.

[sprucebunny]

So......   What is that poor, defenseless mouse gonna eat this winter, huh? 

Casual math says that mice and squirrels have cost me about $10,000 in the last five years. The biggest expense being the truck that burned because of a mouse nest in the heater. It was not insured

Good story, Thurlow