Garden 2018 wishlist and offerings
Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2017 10:05 am
I know, its too early. As the wind howls and its -15 or so, the days are getting longer. Goats are showing, had to break a broodie a little while back. Spring will take its merry bloody time, but it will arrive.
And I can't stop myself. Thinking and planning and maybe going to order some seeds.
But before I order seeds, I thought I would like to see what anyone here might consider for trades.
I think I know where I can get some sweet potato shoots. I always have poor luck with them. I passed along some of my Egyptian Walking onions to some that swore they would send me some seeds, and I have never heard from again. (You know who you are.) You just can't trust some people, but out of the generosity of my warm wonderful sole, I am offering to be taken advantage of again.
Unique and not regular stuff I can get on any seed rack. I do like my root vegetables and squashes. I am pretty good for potatoes. Unique tasting beans are desirable, but not so much for drying. I already grow lots of salad stuff, but suggestions are always welcome. I did discover (for me at least) Red Russian Kale. Don't let the name fool you, it doesn't even seem to be related to curly kale which I don't like mostly because of the texture. The Russian red is early and produces all year with very little bolting, use like lettuce or spinach, salads, stirfries etc. I also have wild mustard greens that I love but the farmers hate. It is prolific and needs a lot of it hoed out. Dill is well established in my garden and gets hoed out and used from where it doesn't belong. Okra will be grown, we like it in soups and stews, I like the red better than the green, doesn't go as woody as quickly. Okra can be grown just for the flowers too, its very pretty, even though I am not much on flower growing.
So to share from me this year:
1. Seeds from one volunteer squash. Looks like a cross between a pie pumpkin and a Butternut squash. Butternut coulour, pumpkin shape, small seed cavity and tasty orangish flesh. Only had the one, but saved the seeds. Want to try it again and see if it comes through second generation. Would like to share geographically, ie Easten Ontario and Torontoish are, see if they do better or worse in another area, and in case I have a disaster of some sort and someone else doesn't, I might want seeds back. Quantities are limited, but I could get 10 seeds or so to about 6 or 8 others.
2. Red okra seeds. They work better of started in trays (egg cartons) and put out about the time the soil is warm enough for beans.
3. I have found a strawberry I really like. Sweet, smells wonderful, doesn't ship so it never grown commercially. Mara du bois is the name, and I could dig some crowns at the right time. Everbearing.
4. Rapsberry called Polka. Primocane fruiting, so mow them down in the fall they come back next year. Good flavor, everbearing, start producing about the first of August.was picking them into November even after a couple frosts. Again, I can send some roots if someone wants.
5 An OP sweet corn called Tophat a guy in Oregon developed. I am not crazy about this one, its ok but not great, but has neat multicoloured kernels.
My wishlist:
1. A tomato that is really tasty for sandwiches. One that gets big and misshapen and cracks as it ripens on the vine.
2. A wild thorny blackberry that bears heavy so the vines droop down that I can sort of let grow wild.
3. A good non grafted wild grape.
4. Anybody got a unique wildish or ancient apple? I would maybe get some scion wood and graft it and see what it is like in a few years.
5. Just about anything that will sort of grow wild and take care of itself after it is established interests me, long as it is not invasive and takes over. Kind of like the dill above or the mustard greens, prolific but easy to kill out.
Anyone is interested, add on here as discussion or PM me.
And I can't stop myself. Thinking and planning and maybe going to order some seeds.
But before I order seeds, I thought I would like to see what anyone here might consider for trades.
I think I know where I can get some sweet potato shoots. I always have poor luck with them. I passed along some of my Egyptian Walking onions to some that swore they would send me some seeds, and I have never heard from again. (You know who you are.) You just can't trust some people, but out of the generosity of my warm wonderful sole, I am offering to be taken advantage of again.
Unique and not regular stuff I can get on any seed rack. I do like my root vegetables and squashes. I am pretty good for potatoes. Unique tasting beans are desirable, but not so much for drying. I already grow lots of salad stuff, but suggestions are always welcome. I did discover (for me at least) Red Russian Kale. Don't let the name fool you, it doesn't even seem to be related to curly kale which I don't like mostly because of the texture. The Russian red is early and produces all year with very little bolting, use like lettuce or spinach, salads, stirfries etc. I also have wild mustard greens that I love but the farmers hate. It is prolific and needs a lot of it hoed out. Dill is well established in my garden and gets hoed out and used from where it doesn't belong. Okra will be grown, we like it in soups and stews, I like the red better than the green, doesn't go as woody as quickly. Okra can be grown just for the flowers too, its very pretty, even though I am not much on flower growing.
So to share from me this year:
1. Seeds from one volunteer squash. Looks like a cross between a pie pumpkin and a Butternut squash. Butternut coulour, pumpkin shape, small seed cavity and tasty orangish flesh. Only had the one, but saved the seeds. Want to try it again and see if it comes through second generation. Would like to share geographically, ie Easten Ontario and Torontoish are, see if they do better or worse in another area, and in case I have a disaster of some sort and someone else doesn't, I might want seeds back. Quantities are limited, but I could get 10 seeds or so to about 6 or 8 others.
2. Red okra seeds. They work better of started in trays (egg cartons) and put out about the time the soil is warm enough for beans.
3. I have found a strawberry I really like. Sweet, smells wonderful, doesn't ship so it never grown commercially. Mara du bois is the name, and I could dig some crowns at the right time. Everbearing.
4. Rapsberry called Polka. Primocane fruiting, so mow them down in the fall they come back next year. Good flavor, everbearing, start producing about the first of August.was picking them into November even after a couple frosts. Again, I can send some roots if someone wants.
5 An OP sweet corn called Tophat a guy in Oregon developed. I am not crazy about this one, its ok but not great, but has neat multicoloured kernels.
My wishlist:
1. A tomato that is really tasty for sandwiches. One that gets big and misshapen and cracks as it ripens on the vine.
2. A wild thorny blackberry that bears heavy so the vines droop down that I can sort of let grow wild.
3. A good non grafted wild grape.
4. Anybody got a unique wildish or ancient apple? I would maybe get some scion wood and graft it and see what it is like in a few years.
5. Just about anything that will sort of grow wild and take care of itself after it is established interests me, long as it is not invasive and takes over. Kind of like the dill above or the mustard greens, prolific but easy to kill out.
Anyone is interested, add on here as discussion or PM me.
that reminds me! 
) Farrier, I will get some goodies out to you :) I will be sorting seeds very shortly in preparation for starting peppers. 