A Seed Saver's Garden

[ducks4you]

Don't you hate it when the Post Office just doesn't care?!?
My peach trees were sent UPS and arrived bare rooted and leafed out.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

And it seems to happen more and more often with each passing year. I fully suspect that DeJoy may be running some sort of intentional sabotage now, both by telling postal workers to try their best to screw up as many economy rate packages as possible (to try and strongarm people to spring for the most expensive services will all bells and whistles so as to maximize profits.) and then to screw up even THOSE ones often enough to get Congress get desperate enough that they will let DeJoy do and have whatever he may want (freedom to determine postal rates without Congressional approval, freedom to eliminate Saturday delivery, freedom to decide what routes the post office can run profitably and refuse service to those that don't, and, his ultimately dreams, to be declared an entirely private for profit company that still retains legal monopoly AND goverment non-sue-ability, and to collect a tax or fee from anyone using the internet to make up for lost postal business revenue.) just in order to keep the mail going!

Anyhow, back from another day of planting. Got the yellow lavender in (you were right, it DOES smell like pine.)

FINALLY noticed a few sprouts in some of the pots I sowed. There are a few in the sweet pea/vetch pot, a few in the Hooker's Chives pot and a few in the Korean mountain garlic pot). Can't really tell for some of the others, since they are plants at least semi-unfamiliar to me (noting in the assorted small flowery legumes pot LOOKS particularly leguminous at this time, but maybe they will later. And I wouldn't know what a Portuguese Crowberry seedling looked like even if I saw it.

minor bean (mung/urd/mothe) sown and out, as is the soybean pot (with our rabbits, in a pot up off the ground is the safest place for soybeans.)

Also got in my Lobelia rivieras moved the orange pansy out of the circle garden to the main where it belonged, so as to keep the black blotched yellows pure for seed production (some of them DO already have pods)

Did up one more hanging pot in the back with an interesting petunia I found earlier today.

Think's that's about all I can do until we can turn over the stump and put the corn in, or something else in the indoor greenhouses is ready to go out (like the other cucumbers, or the third group of tomatoes.)

 

[Zeedman]

Don't you hate it when the Post Office just doesn't care?!?
My peach trees were sent UPS and arrived bare rooted and leafed out.

Haven't had any trouble with the PO, but FedEx has been terrible. A box clearly labeled "FRAGILE" on all sides looked like it had been used as a basketball. DD had a similar experience.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

I've had UPS deliver boxes TWICE where the bottles inside where opened in transit and the boxes were literally leaving a trail of wet drops all up and down the path......and the driver never even noticed! (I mean, I can see him not noticing the drops behind him, but in both cases there must have been a huge puddle under the box in the truck, how could he have missed that!)

Oh, and I once got a package from Sweden where it was clear the truck hand RUN OVER the package (lucky for me, it was tomato seed, and therefore not affected.)

Or when they delivered one that was totally ripped open and empty.

Plus all the times they sent it to the wrong town, the wrong state, or the wrong country!

 

[heirloomgal]

It was a mighty tough decision but I finally decided on growing 'Rootbeer' popcorn this year; I planted all the seeds in small pots Saturday. I'm impressed with how much seed they sent me, more than 100 kernels for sure. I picked out the prettiest deep brown kernels and reminisced happily about my childhood and the A & W bear. (I actually googled that first to see if those were in the US and indeed they're from there, lol!) Somehow rootbeer and that bear (and the restaurant) were all intertwined in memory. I don't think I've drank a root beer since I was at A & W as a child. Up until about 10 years ago I still had the bear plushie.

I have not planted the bean seeds yet, though all the many starter pots are filled with soil and ready. It was raining a bit today and I didn't want to risk it, but tomorrow they'll probably go in. I'm excited!

For anyone who is a fan of lemon verbena, this is for you. I've grown the plant and LOVE the scent, but that scent just did not translate out of the plant into taste in a meaningful way IMO. Same with lemon balm. Smells great, doesn't taste like much nor is it as potent as verbena. For the last few years, for whatever reason the plants are not available at the greenhouses and I don't think* it's easy to grow from seeds. I've not ever seen seed for it offered anywhere. BUT, I have found something that is quite like lemon verbena and is easy to grow from seed. Ocimum americanum, 'Lime Basil' is nearly 6 inches now and smelling and tasting fantastic. I know there is an Italian type basil called 'Lemon' as well as one called 'Lime' - this is not those, which are Ocimum basilicum. It has such a similar scent profile to the verbena I'm shocked and there is a nice taste in there too, it'll probably make a great tea herb. So happy, now the *lemon verbena* shortage is over!

Saw what looked like lettuce seedlings growing in my perennial flower garden in the front yard today? Can't be I thought? Then I remembered blowing out the lettuce seed chaff from the bowl at the edge of the driveway this fall. Ha! I guess the seeds are viable! Front yard lettuce?! Maybe I should leave it be...

Huh, I always thought A & W stood for Albert and Walter? Looks like I was wrong!

 

[Pulsegleaner]

Huh, I always thought A & W stood for Albert and Walter? Looks like I was wrong!

Once, when I was on the phone to the credit card company, they asked me to confirm my bank as Manfacturers and Traders. I almost said "no" before realizing that that was what M&T (the name I knew it as, and the name printed on everything) stood for!

 

[heirloomgal]

Interesting.

Electroculture Gardening Techniques for Beginners - Elevate your garden

Electroculture is the an ancient practice of increasing yields utilizing certain materials to harvest the earth's atmospheric energy. This was presented in 1749 by Abbe Nollett, in the 1920s by Justin Christofleau, and 1940s by Viktor Schauberger. This energy is always present and all around us...

cultivateelevate.com

 

[Alasgun]

I’ll be looking this over more closely and give it a try.
My wife is familiar with a number of “energy related subjects” and has very positive opinions about this sort of thing. Me; im just a left brain man who dont know if he should wind his butt or scratch his watch most of the time, however this sort of thing IS interesting to me!
I’ll get something going and give it an honest evaluation then share an opinion.
Who knows; i may just pick up where Jefferson or Tesla left off Or just Take a trip and never leave the farm!

 

[digitS']

Ocimum americanum, 'Lime Basil' is nearly 6 inches now and smelling and tasting fantastic. I know there is an Italian type basil called 'Lemon' as well as one called 'Lime' - this is not those, which are Ocimum basilicum.

Well, that set me off on a little research. We always have basil started and ready to go for the Spring. Always a sweet Italian and a Thai sweet. Frequently, others -- including one called Lime.

Not finding an open seed packet, I am a little unsure but doubt if it is Ocimum americanum. I like how Wikipedia calls this name "misleading" since it is from Africa. Looks like some seed companies have followed through with not telling their customers that "Lime" is also misleading when it can refer to 2 different species. Oh well, I like it. However, as a tea ingredient - I do not . A different species makes me curious about the unknown .

Two new-to-me basils are in the greenhouse and ready to set out. One is a named variety of Lemon, Mrs. Burns. We always have Siam Queen but will be able to try one simple call Cinnamon in our noodles this year .

Steve

 

[digitS']

Oh, Good Heavens!

Now I see that there is a hybrid between those 2 species -- and, commonly called "Lemon Basil."

Oh, the complexity!

digitS'