Since last few days, I have a little, restless investigator visiting my compost bucket. She relentlessly pokes and turns the compost, spreading bits and pieces all around, messing up my balcony!
I wondered what she was looking for in the compost. Was it something to build her nest with? Was it food? I think, it was a bit of both!
Then I had an idea. If she was looking for food, I could offer her something better. I had saved a few cantaloupe seeds from the last time I relished the melon. I thought of offering these seeds to the little birdie.
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| Musk melon seeds are loaded with vitamins (A,C, E and K) and minerals like zinc and magnesium. |
It was such a delight when she pecked at them. There was another bird following her. Anya told me that was the baby. Soon, the Mom was feeding her baby with the seed too!
That was my aha moment. I had been discarding all watermelon, cantaloupe and pumpkin seeds. I did wash and dry them occasionally, but not always. Every time I threw them away, I remembered my childhood.
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| The goodness that you throw away, if you don't use the seeds! |
Summers meant vacations and melons. We would wash and dry the seeds of musk melons and watermelons and spend lazy hours chatting, peeling and relishing those seeds.
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| Watermelon seeds are rich in magnesium, iron, folate and fiber. |
The white and delicate seeds of musk melons were easier to crack than the black and hard seeds of watermelons. Both could be cracked by pressing between teeth in a certain manner.
I remember liking musk melon seeds better than watermelon ones.
It was hard and slow work to peel those seeds but quite rewarding.
Later, I got to know that these seeds are packed with nutrition.You can buy these kernels off the shelf. They are quite a delicacy and quite expensive too.
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| Don't throw in landfill what you can share with your winged friends. |
We all know the nutritional benefits of pumpkin seeds. They are packed with micro nutrients like potassium, magnesium, iron, zinc and copper. We literally throw away nutrition when we don't use these seeds.
Even if we don't use them for ourselves, we can offer them to our winged friends.
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| Birds would relish both the seeds and the stringy pulp. |
If you've a yard or a balcony, you can make a corner for birds. They love eating different fruits and berries. You can also offer them the whole gut of cantaloupe, pumpkin, squash etc. There's no need to separate the seeds out. They'll eat the pulpy strings and thank you for the treat.
Birds also love to peck at the leftover flesh of cantaloupe rinds. After they've cleaned the rinds, you can always toss the remains in your compost.
I've now decided never to throw away seeds or pulp of a melon, a pumpkin or a squash in the compost. If I want to use them for myself, I can dry the seeds. If I'm feeling lazy, I can leave the whole pulp and seeds for the birds.
Thank you little birdie and my compost, for the lesson of the day!
This lesson also subtly highlights the issue that we have with modern lifestyle.
We chuck away stuff (seeds) that come naturally packed (in a melon) to landfills (which emit methane) and then buy the same stuff (seeds) off the shelf (packaged in plastic) and again throw away the packaging in landfills (which cause leachates).
Thank you little birdie and my compost, for the lesson of the day!
This lesson also subtly highlights the issue that we have with modern lifestyle.
We chuck away stuff (seeds) that come naturally packed (in a melon) to landfills (which emit methane) and then buy the same stuff (seeds) off the shelf (packaged in plastic) and again throw away the packaging in landfills (which cause leachates).
Just because we don't have time or energy to do the former.
Just because we have a choice and can afford the latter!
Just sayin'!
Leaving you with that thought! Ciao!
Image Credits: www.pexels.com
