Our first dusting of the year
We have placed our first seed order of the year, with Fedco for a change (our usual supplier having been swallowed up by Monsanto).
Seed from Maine may present a few problems as we are in the Pacific Northwest, but its worth a try until we know better where we can safely order locally. We have quite a lot left over from last year, especially corn, beans, runner beans, and peas, but we're also (we hope) getting in packets of: Boothbys Blonde Slicing Cucumber Black Zucchini Golden Zucchini Burpees Butterbush Winter Squash Connecticut Field Pumpkin Scarlet Nantes Carrot Shin Kuroda Golden Detroit Beet Cherry Belle Radish Bordeaux Spinach Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce Hyper Red Rumple Waved Lettuce Gator Perpetual Spinach or Leaf Beet Graffiti Cauliflower Pingtung Long Eggplant Diamond Eggplant Early Jalape Hot Pepper Revolution Sweet Pepper Rutgers Tomato Yellow Brandywine Tomato Aunt Rubys German Green Tomato Amish Paste Tomato Sun Gold Cherry Tomato Mammoth Grey Stripe Sunflower Andover Parsnip Purple Top White Globe Turnip Early White Vienna Kohlrabi Fruit trees, bush fruits, and potatoes we will seek out locally.
We've got lots of potatoes, but they are going to sprout too early, methinketh. It snowed about two inches here last night. Much more in some parts of Eugene; and the roads aren't improving. We expect maybe 16 degrees F tonight; I'm running a lightbulb in the pumphouse and another in the chicken shed. Everyone be careful out there!
I got pictures from YoungSon this am. Apparently, he has about 3 inches! Hurray for you guys! :) We only have about 4, and I have family in Pendleton and they have 8!!!
ReplyDeleteBe safe and stay warm.
Have you considered buying seed from Nichols Garden Nursery in Albany?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nicholsgardennursery.com/Aboutnichols.htm
They have *many* OP and heirloom varieties and I've had great results for several years.
I keep hearing that Nichol's has either been bought by Monsanto or, like Territorial, offers a lot of Seminis seeds, which means Monsanto. Hence my hesitation to continue ordering from them.
ReplyDeleteHave you got better information? I, for one, really miss Territorial -- they're right down the road.
I'm a member of Seed Savers, but their catalog is running late.
risa b
Hello Risa,
ReplyDeleteI have been enjoying reading through your blog for some time now so I thought I would tell you about a homesteading, emergency preparedness, and survival forum that I am a member of, www.PreparedSociety.com. It has a ton of great information on simple and frugal living, green living, financial insight, gardening, livestock, food storage including canning and preserving, natural health and medicine, and much more!
I'm sure the members of the forum would love to hear from you! It's free and easy to sign up.
Hope to see you there!
Jack
www.PreparedSociety.com
Yesterday it was 60F. Here, in New England, in the middle of December! today it's 20 F lower, and we're expecting snow any time. The sky is teetering on that edge: very beautiful and foreboding.
ReplyDeleteI should be buying seeds too, but it is my first time and it's quite daunting. I'm nervous about waiting, though, as I heard some seed companies have already sold out on many seeds.
Would you say that list, those and that many seeds would get a family of 2 adults and one toddler through the year?
Oh, my, I wouldn't depend on me. We tend to plant what we like, and while we don't buy a wide variety of groceries, we're not 100% independent.
ReplyDeleteIt helps, too, that we have a large (for 2 people) flack of chickens, ducks and geese, and a number of fruit trees. We've had sheep, goats and a steer in days gone by but that was on a bigger place.
I recommend Carla Emery as the best reading if you're recently getting started.
Beautiful view!
ReplyDelete