* Originally by Bill Smith * Originally to All * Originally dated 13 Feb 1992, 17:50 Just discovered a GREEAAT (!) specialty catalog I feel would be of interest to users of this echo. It is properly titled "1992 Garlic Catalogue & Research Catalogue" from FILAREE FARM. The address is Route 1, Box 162, Okanogan, WA. 98840. I am VERY impressed with it and wanted to inform all of its existence. Contains approx. 60 varietal descriptions with 50 more being available (upon request I suppose from a SERIOUS grower of the stuff). This is very detailed with growing instructions, classification of species, varieties, etc. It shows a breakdown of a "family tree" so to speak of the various families, species, etc. Seems pretty much a must if you're looking for a good source to order from. Don't know much about prices, but I assume they are competitive with others. They seemed reasonable to me, but I'm not much of a comparison shopper - if I see something I like I'll go ahead and get it. Typical male attitude, huh ladies ?! Cost is $3, but very much worth it. HAPPY GARLIC GROWING TO ONE & ALL !! --------*-------- Subject: Seeds of Change Organic Seeds Date: 23 Jan 92 06:16:55 GMT Just got a seed catalog in the mail today that I don't remember seeing on some of the recent lists. The company is: Seeds of Change 1364 Rufina Circle #5 Santa Fe, NM 87501 505-438-8080 They sell certified organic seeds, raised in New Mexico and Oregon, and the literature says that the varieties can be grown thoughout the U.S. There are some real unusual greens, root vegetables, grains, beans, 1 page of chiles/hot peppers, herbs, flowers, and fiber plants. (Some examples: 4 types of sorghum, 3 types of sesame, 10 varieties of quinoa) This is a very "Politically Correct" looking catalog, with recipes and articles interspersed. I've never ordered from these folks (hadn't heard of them till today) but will probably order something just to get their catalog next year. Anyone out there dealt with them? Subject: Re: Seeds of Change Organic Seeds Date: 24 Jan 92 03:49:33 GMT I purchased several packets from them through a Gardner's Supply insert (which I haven't seen in any of the GSC catalogs this year). All of the plants that I got in the ground did well. I particularly liked the Burbank slicing tomato. The funniest thing related to the "marigold" seeds. I ordered the "rare, nematocidal Mexican marigolds" that supposedly repelled soil nematodes. The ad and the packet both said (Height 6' - 9'). I assumed that that was a typo - who ever heard of 6 foot marigolds! Well I certainly can't sue them for truth in advertising. Those suckers ended up growing about 7 feet talk and effectively blocked the light for tomatoes and peppers. Next year they go in the BACK of the garden! Subject: Re: Seeds of Change Organic Seeds Date: 25 Jan 92 07:02:59 GMT Yes, my gardening colleagues and I have had very good success with those folks out in Gila. The Seeds of Change show up in your mail-box quickly and germinate with better success than any other company's. Several varieties of their lettuce are very very good (I keep giving in to temptatation, like tonite and eating my intended seed-plants). Also good are their tomatillos, mexican sunflowers, and ezapote (wormwood). From: Bob Batson Subject: Re: Maza Corn Date: 27 Jan 92 22:39:47 GMT DA> I would like to grow the kind of Corn which is ground DA> for making tortillias, maza harina, tamalies, and the DA> like. I would like the leaves which wrap the ear to DA> be large enough to wrap tamalies. Where do I find DA> seed for the traditional mexican maza corn? The type of corn that is best suited for this purpose woulds be a type called a FLOUR CORN. Kernals of flour corn are easier to grind than flint or dent corn, milling easily to a soft flour. It's grown primarily in the Southwest and the Northern Plains. It's available with kernals that are either blue/purple, multi-colored, red/pink, white, yellow, and black. I'll give you the names of the yellow varieties plus some sources. HOPI YELLOW MANDAN YELLOW PAPAGO TEXAS SHOEPEG SOURCES Abbreviation(s) CAT - catalog ABUNDANT LIFE SEED FOUNDATION CAT - $1 P.O. Box 772 Port Townsend, WA 98368 NATIVE SEEDS/SEARCH CAT - $1 2509 N. Campbell Ave. #325 Tuczon, AZ 85719 PLANTS OF THE SOUTHWEST CAT - $1 930 Baca St. Santa Fe, NM 87501 Article 4757 (13 more) in rec.gardens: From: Tom McNeal Subject: Re: Catalog addresses (was Re: Burpee address) Date: 6 Jan 92 18:03:53 GMT I got some of this from the net a while back, so it's worth publishing again. I haven't heard of 'Pepper Gal', but I recommend a magazine called 'Chile Pepper'. Good info and good receipes. Alberta Nurseries & Seeds, LTD. Box 20 Bowden, Alta. Canada TOM OKO Burgess Seed and Plant Co. 905 Four Seasons Road Bloomington, IL 61701 Burpee Seed Company 300 Park Avenue Warminster, PA 18974 D.V. Burrell Seed Company Box 150 Rocky Ford, CO 81067 Caprilands Herb Farm 534 Silver Street Coventry, CT 06238 Henry Fields and Company Box 600 Shenandoah, IA 51602 Friends of the Trees P.O. Box 1064 Tonasket, WA 98855 Gurney Seed and Nursery 110 Capital Street Yankton, SD 57079 Harris Moran Seed Company 3670 Buffalo Road Moreton Farm Rochester, NY 14624 H.G. Hastings and Company Box 4274 Atlanta, GA 30302 Heirloom Gardens Box 138 Guerneville, CA 95446 Horticultural Enterprises Box 810082 Dallas, TX 75381-0082 Jackson and Perkins Box 1028 Medford, OR 97501 Johnny's Selected Seeds 310 Foss Hill Road Albion, ME 04910 J.W. Jung Seed Company 335 South High Street Randolph, WI 53957 Laval Seeds 3505 Saint Martin West Ville de Laval, Que. Candada H7T 1A2 Le Jardin du Gourmet West Danville, VT 05873 Le Marche Seeds International Box 566 Dixon, CA 95620 Orol Ledden & Sons, Inc. Center and Atlantic Avenues Sewel, NJ 08080-0007 Liberty Seed Company P.O. Box 806 New Philadelphia, OH 44663 Long Island Seed Company 1368 Flanders Road Flanders NY 11901 Earl May Seed and Nursery Company Shenandoah, IA 51603 Mc Crory's Sunny Hill Herb Farm Star Route 3 Box 844 Eustis, FL 32726 Mellinger's 2374 W. South Range Road North Lima, OH 44452 Michigan Bulb Company 1950 Waldorf, N.W. Grand Rapids, MI 49550 Moon Mountain Wildflowers P.O. Box 34 Morro Bay, CA 93442 Nichols Garden Nursery 1190 N. Pacific Highway Albany, OR 97321 Ontario Seed Co., Ltd. Box 144 Waterloo, Ont. Canada N2J 3Z9 Otis S. Twilley Seed Company, Inc. P.O. Box T65 Trevose, PA 19053 Park Seed Company Box 31 Cokesbury Road Greenwood, SC 29647-0001 Peace Seeds 1130 Tetherow Rd. Williams, OR 97554 Pinetree Garden Seeds New Gloucester, ME 04260 Porter & Sons Seedsmen Box 104 Stephenville, TX 76401-0104 Sandy Mush Herb Nursery Rt. 2 Surrett Cove Td. Leicester, NC 28748 Seed Savers Exchange Rt. 3, Box 239 Decorah, Iowa 52101 Seeds Blum Idaho City Stage Boise, ID 83707 Seedway, Inc. Box 250 Hall, NY 14463 Shepherds Garden Seeds 7389 West Zayante Rd. Felton, CA 95018 R.H. Shumway P.O. Box 777 Rockford, IL 61105 Southern Exposure Seed Exchage P.O. Box 158 North Garden, VA 22959 Stokes Seeds 28 Water Street Fredonia, NY 14063 Sunrise Enterprises P.O. Box 10058 Elmwood, CT 06110 Thompson and Morgan Box 1308, Dept SP6 Jackson, NJ 08527 Otis Twilley Seed Co. Box 65 Trevose, PA 19047 Vermont Bean Seed Company Garden Lane Fair Haven, BT 05743 Vesey's Seeds York P.E.I. Canada COA 1PO Well-Sweep Herb Farm 317 Mr. Bethel Rd. Port Murray, NJ. 07865 Wyatt-Quarles Seed Co. Box 739 Garner, NC 27529 Subject: Re: Seed Savers Exchange Date: 11 Jan 92 00:47:16 GMT The Seed Savers Exchange is a non-profit orgn which links home gardeners, farmers, scientists and other interested individuals to help preserve open-pollenated varieties of food crops (including many heirlooms). SSE is not a seed company - members share seeds by dealing directly with one another, using the SSE publications as a kind of trading post. Members are encouraged to grow out their seeds using proper seed-saving techniques, and reoffer the next generation of seeds through the program. The idea is that the more people who grow a given variety and collect seeds from it, the less likely that variety is to disappear. I could give you frightening statistics about the number of vegetable varieties that become extinct every year. I think a one-year membership is $25 for US residents, $30 for Canadians. For this you get 3 thick books, mailed separately throughout the year, filled with information about seed-saving and gardening in general. I have found these books to be amazingly informative. One of the books (usually mailed in January) contains an enormous list of the members' seed offerings. You can get a lot of varieties through SSE members which are no longer available from ANY commercial seed company, and apart from the annual membership fee, you only pay for postage. The address is: Seed Savers Exchange RR3, Box 239 Decorah, Iowa 52101 May I also recommend a Canadian seed exchange which operates the same way as SSE. They also publish excellent, informative info and coordinate seed-swapping among members. Heritage Seed Program RR3, Uxbridge Ontario, Canada L9P 1R3 My info says: Canadian membership $12, fixed income $9, supporting member $20, U.S. & foreign $17. Subject: Re: Seed Savers Exchange Date: 11 Jan 92 21:02:10 GMT The Seed Savers Exchange (known hereafter as the SSE) is a not-for-profit, tax exempt, pubically supported organization. Annual membership dues are $25, $30 Canadian (or Mexican) and $40 Foreign. Lifetime membershhips are $350 (pledge payments of $30/month for a year are available). Membership is open to all. For a comprehensive brochure about the SSE, send $1.00 (US) to: SEED SAVERS EXCHANGE Rural Route 3, Box 239 Decorah, Iowa 52101 U.S. of America ALSO: For a free catalog, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: THE PEPPER GAL 10536 119th Ave. North Largo, FL 34643 From: Kay Klier Subject: Great strange plants... Date: 27 Jan 92 23:59:42 GMT Just started to mark up my copy of the Nichol's Garden Nursery catalog (herbs and rare seed specialists) 1190 North Pacific Highway, Albany, OR, 97321. Haven't seen this catalog for years, and I guess I forgot all the lovely strange things they carry: For instance: Nepeta mussini, a low-growing rock garden catnip that my cats seem to think is the cat-equivalent of Acapulco gold. Coriander or Cilantro: a slow-bolting form Epazote: Chenopodium ambrosoides Good King Henry: Chenopodium bonus-henricus Anise hyssop: Agastache foeniculus. Licorice-scented leaves, nice blue flowers the bees love (no, you don't get licorice flavored honey). Tagetes lucida: a 3' marigold that makes a pretty good substitute for tarragon. Sweet Woodruff: for Mai-wine and potpourri Pyrethrum: grow your own. Some things I think I recall people asking about/talking about recently: Fraxinella (gas plant) Hops (for flavoring beer and ale) (yes, they are the other genus in the Cannabinaceae (or Cannabaceae, take your pick) -- anyhow, first cousin to marijuana Saffron crocus bulbs Walking onions Elephant garlic yellow potatos (bintje is great in potato salad!) yard long beans (no, green, not purple) celtuce miniature sweet corn (advise picking no more than 5 days after silks appear) jicama tomatillo 11 cvs hot pepper 12 cvs sweet pepper (incl. pepperoncini) Oddities that caught my eye: black radish (black skin, white flesh) Oregon Spring and Santiam tomatoes, two determinant types that are parthenocarpic. In poor growing conditions, fruits will be seedless. About 10 days *earlier* than Early Girl. Lion's ears (Leonotus nepetifolia): a 3-5 ft mint plant with whorls of orange flowers. The hummingbirds like this South African native. Lobelia 'Compliment Scarlet': a tetraploid cross between L. fulgens and L. cardinalis. Should be large (1-1.5") bright red flowers that hummingbirds ought to find irresistible. Chinese lantern plant (Physalis alkakengi): "husk tomatoes" with bright orange husks. Made about $100 one year selling that to florists on $1 worth of seed... Bushel gourd: a lageneria with fruits to 20" across. also LOTS of oriental veggies.... From: Kay Klier Subject: Nichol's and Liberty phone # Date: 29 Jan 92 19:11:43 GMT Nichols Garden Nursery 1190 Pacific Coast Highway Albany, OR 97321-4598 phone (503) 928-9280 fax (503) 967-8406 mainly herbs and veggies, esp. oriental veggies Seeds seem to run about $0.70-$1.50 packet, mostly around $1. Free catalog, I think. $1.25 handling charge per order. Liberty Seed PO Box 806 New Philadelphia, OH 44663 phone (216) 364-1611 fax (216) 364-6415 lots of "mainstream veggies" and a fair amount of wildflower and ornamental seeds. Interesting plants for drying. Prices about 1/2-3/4 of "rack" prices for packeted seeds (Burpee, NK, etc.) around here. Also will sell largish quantities of seed to ordinary people at wholesale prices (usually 25-50% off). (e.g., 4 oz beets $2.45, but 1 lb for $5.35) $1 handling per order east of Rockies. Add $0.20 per pound rest of Rockies. From: Kay Klier Subject: More strange plants... Date: 28 Jan 92 00:09:18 GMT 'Nother neat catalog: Liberty Seed Company, PO Box 806, New Philadephia, OH 44663. Lots of good, basic seeds, including 34 cultivars of sweet corn, and some FUN seeds like: Ornamental wheat for weaving and bouquets: black heads and black awns white heads and black awns white heads and white awns and 'Gigas': 3 1/2" heads with 1" long spikelets (HUGE!!) and grey or black awns. Podcorn: like a regular ear of field corn, but with "husks" surrounding each kernal. Broomcorn: not a corn, but a sorghum with long infloresence branches. It's the stuff real "cornbrooms" are made from. Since the tips of the inflorescences are covered with shiny yellow, red, brown, mahogany or black "seeds", they've apparently been considered decorative by the florists. Subject: Re: where are epazote seeds? Date: 11 Jan 92 00:00:26 GMT Nichols Garden Nursery 1190 North Pacific Highway Albany, Oregon 97321-4598 Plant a handful of epazote plants, and you'll never have to buy seed again. They happily reseed all over, and grow like--um, weeds. Which, if you didn't know what they were, is what you'd think of them. Mine are currently a gorgeous maroon color, tinged with scarlet, by the way. Their last gasp of the season. Subject: Re: where are epazote seeds? Date: 10 Jan 92 20:33:17 GMT SP> A recent issue of Fine Gardening contained an article about Mexican SP> culinary herbs, including catalog sources. I believe it mentioned SP> epazote. SP> I think it was the last issue (December). Epazote seed is available from the following source: HORTICULTURAL ENTERPRISE P.O. Box 810082 Dallas, TX 75381-0082 While this company specializes in chilies and sweet peppers, they also sell the seeds of some Mexican herbs and vegetables. The catalog (actually a price-list) is free and they will mail seeds to Canada also. Subject: Re: slow bolting cilantro TW> I want to grow cilantro for the leaves here in southern Wisconsin. TW> Every variety I've tried goes to seed almost immediately. They're meant TW> to produce coriander I guess. There are some varieties that are meant to TW> produce leaves, but I can't find them. Any suggestions? You might try growing a variety called `Large Leaved'. It's a relatively slow flowering type which produces large quantities of young leaves for vegetable use. It's available from the following source: EVERGREEN Y.H. ENTERPRISES P.O. Box 17538 Anaheim, CA 92817 They offer a good selection of oriental vegetable seeds, over 50 varieties. Their catalog is $1.00. You could also try growing a variety of Cilantro called `Santo' (aka Slow Bolt, Long Standing, & Leafy). This is a new strain of Coriandrum sativum that produces lush vegetative growth through several cuttings and is relatively non-bolting. Although it is slow to bolt to seed, it's best to make succession plantings every few weeks to ensure a continuous harvest. "Most productive in cool weather." Some sources are: NICHOLS GARDEN NURSERY Cat. - free 1190 North Pacific Hwy. Albany, OR 97321 REDWOOD CITY SEED CO. Cat. - $1.00 P.O. Box 361 Redwood City, CA 94064 SUNRISE ENTERPRISES Cat. - $1.00 P.O. Box 10058 Elmwood, CT 06110-0058 TERRITORIAL SEED CO. Cat. - free P.O. Box 27 Lorane, OR 97451 PS. There's a tropical plant with coriander-flavored leaves called Cilantro peperomia (Peperomia maculosa). Subject: Re: slow bolting cilantro Date: 29 Jan 92 17:37:54 GMT >I want to grow cilantro for the leaves here in southern Wisconsin. >Every variety I've tried goes to seed almost immediately. They're meant >to produce coriander I guess. There are some varieties that are meant to >produce leaves, but I can't find them. Any suggestions? I've never experienced the problem you describe, but here's what the Ortho book "All about Herbs" says about Coriander: Direct seed coriander in early spring or late summer through fall... Sowing the seeds in late spring or summer is futile because the short nights wil make plants flower and set seeds precociously, when they are tiny. Plants will withstand quite cold weather.... Subject: Suttons seed in England. Date: 11 Feb 92 18:57:53 GMT About 10 years ago I visit London and bought some interesting seeds I have never seen since. Could anoune check for the following? Tomato: "French cross" Pea: "Purple podded pea" About the same time, I also joined a meeting in Mosbach, Germany. I bought there a very good variety of Brussel sprout which I saw Thompson & Morgan offered one or two years ago, but they were out of stock when I wrote them: "Rubine" A violet/purple variety which was very frost-tolerant and gave much better taste on the sprouts. Subject: Re: Seeds missing in 1992 Thompson & Morgan catalogue Date: 8 Feb 92 22:14:06 GMT AC> To my greatest displeaure I have seen that the French climbing bean AC> Purple Podded Climbing bean has been removed from the lists. I got some sources for you out of the book _CORNUCOPIA: A Source Book of Edible Plants_ by Stephen Facciola (ISBN 0-9628087-0-9), but before I list them, here is a list of abbreviations used. CAT - Catalog CC - Credit Cards ENGL - English Language Catalog M.O. - Minimum Order OVER - Overseas PC - Personal Checks R & W - Retail and Wholesale RET - Retail AC> Could any of you check if some american seed resellers has listed this AC> bean in their catalogues? A pole bean called PURPLE POD is listed on page 9 in the 1992 catalog for: HENRY FIELD'S SEED & NURSERY CO. 407 Sycamore Street Shenandoah, IA 51602 (605) 665-9391 CAT FREE, R & W, PC/CC - - - - - - - - - - There is no listing for a bean called Purple Pod in the book _CORNUCOPIA_, but there are the following purple-podded pole snap beans: BLUE COCO, DOW PURPLE POD, LOUSIANA PURPLE POD, PURPLE PEACOCK, TRIONFO VIOLETTO, VIOLA CORNETTI, and VIOLET PODDED STRINGLESS. If you are interested in any of these pole beans, let me know my e-mail and I'll send you the appropriate address(es). AC> My mother also has for long times missed the tomato 'Tiny Tim'. Is it AC> available AC> in US? If so, which reseller do sell it abroad? The following tomato seed supplier sells to overseas customers. TOMATO SEED CO., INC. P.O. Box 323 Metuchen, NJ 08840 (201) 548-9036 CAT FREE, RET, PC, OVER - - - - - - - - - - AC> Another plant is a herb growing on Madagascar in Africa. It is the only AC> representative of the family in Africa, all others (and also the same AC> species) grows in Southern America. I have seen sometime the American AC> name, but have forgot it. In Madagascar it is called 'Anamalao'. It's AC> latin name is 'Spilanthes oleracea'. Could any of you check if some AC> seed resellers sell this spice/herb? `Spilanthes oleracea' (a.k.a. Spilanthes acmella `Oleracea') Para or Brazil cress has two sources, both in the US. PEACE SEEDS 2385 S.E. Thompson St. Corvallis, OR 97333 (503) 752-0421 CAT $3.50, R & W, PC/OC, OVER - - - - - - - - - - SEEDS OF CHANGE 621 Old Santa Fe Trail, #10 Santa Fe, NM 87501 (505) 983-8956 From: Kay Klier Subject: Cream Peas FOUND!!! Date: 17 Feb 92 01:03:02 GMT Browsing through the Park's catalog while I was home with strep throat: lo and behold, CREAM PEAS on p. 15 of the spring catalog. These are indeed what I learned to call southern peas, cowpeas or fieldpeas in agronomy classes, and they list several cultivars: 'Banquet' (p. 15) 5226-3 $1.25 pkt 1.95 4oz 3.15 8oz 'Hercules' (p. 111) 5232-6 all cultivars same price 'Mississippi Silver' (p. 111) 5224-9 'Purple Hull' (p.111) 5228-7 'California blackeye' (p.111) 5222-5 Park's Seed Cokesbury Road Greenwood SC 29647-0001 Liberty Seed Company PO Box 806 New Philadephia, OH 44663 offers 'California Blackeye #5', 'Mississipi Silver' and 'Purple Hull Pinkeye' for $0.95/pkt or 2.15 for 8 oz. Subject: Re: can you plant "food" beans Date: 18 Feb 92 01:28:51 GMT > I buy pinto beans and lima beans and lentils and etc. and was thinking > about growing some type of bean of that nature this year. I was perusing > the catalogs and said how come pinto beans cost $.40/pound to eat but $.95 > per 2 oz. to plant them. My husband said why don't we just plant some of > the ones we buy to eat. Well, that seems like a great idea, certainly a > lot cheaper than buying seeds, but I figured that was too obvious and > might not work. The reason you might pay $0.95 for bean seed is that you should be getting plants that are true to their variety, and shouldn't have seed-borne diseases (beans have several, most of which are readily apparent). If you plant the grocery store stock, they'll grow just fine, and produce, but they may not be just like the ones you planted. They may be F2 segregates of hybrid stock, or they may be accidental hybrids. If you can tolerate some strange- looking beans, go for it. Some companies also inoculate their bean seed with Rhizobium bacteria to help the plants fix nitrogen. You may want to inoculate grocery store seed with a commercial legume inocculant (Nitragin is one brand that comes to mind, but there are others). Don't bother to inoculate though, if you use nitrogen containing fertilizer on your beans anyhow. They won't fix nitorgen under those conditions. Kay Klier Biology Dept UNI Subject: Re: German Ivy Date: 16 Feb 92 21:54:47 GMT ja> Does anyone know where I can get German Ivy. I tried all the local ja> nurseries and they say that they are getting some but haven't for about ja> a year. A friend of mine love s this plant and desperatley wnats one. ja> A mail order company would be nice but anyplace is better than none. You might try the following mail-order company. IVIES OF THE WORLD P.O. Box 408 Highway 42 (2 miles East) Weirsdale, FL 32195 (904) 821-2201 or 5322 (telephone) This company's catalog is $1.50 and they have a $20 minimum order. Offers more than 200 cultivars of ivt, mainly rooted cuttings; plants are grouped by type and well described. This nursey was formerly Tropexotic Growers and before that The Alestake of Elkwood, VA. PS - They also accept telephone orders paid by credit card. This information is from _Gardening by Mail: A Source Book_ by Barbara J. Barton (ISBN 0-395-52280-3), 3rd edition. * Forwarded from "Home and Garden" * Originally dated 31 Mar 1992, 16:58 > I am in the process of starting an herb garden, and > would like addresses for companies that sell seeds or baby > plants....I am mainly interested in finding herbs other than > those commonly considered as "cooking herbs", they have been > easy to find.... I hope you can get the Herbs'n'Such echo... but if not, here are two herb sources... I haven't written to them yet, so I don't know what they offer, but I got this list from my local paper this week... WOODRUFF FARMS, RFD 2, Whitehalll, NY 12887... Flowers, vegetables and herbs; packets usually have fewer seeds than more expensive packets. SHEPHERD'S GARDEN SEEDS, 6116 Highway 9, Felton, CA 95018... Excellent herb and vegetable seeds and recipes. Since I've started, here is the rest of what was listed in the article, from Scripps News Service: COMPANIES FURNISHING MAIL-ORDER GARDEN CATALOGS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ AMERICAN DAYLILY AND PERENNIALS, PO Box 7008, The Woodlands, TX 77387... A specialty grower that features day lilies, iris, and other plants that may be hard to find. BOUNTIFUL GARDENS, 5798 Ridgewood Road, Willits, CA 95490... For organic gardeners, with more than 200 varieties of open-pollinated seeds, cover crops, seed-planting guidelines and supplies. BURPEE, 300 Park Ave., Warminster, PA... Annuals, perennials, shrubs, trees, vegetables, and garden plans. CARROLL GARDENS, PO Box 310, 444 Main St., Westminster, MD 21157... Roses, shrubs, perennials, trees and vines. HARRIS SEEDS, Moreton Farm, 3670 Buffalo Road, Rochester, NY 14624... Flower and vegetable seeds, many developed by a research organization. HASTINGS, 1036 White St., SW, PO Box 115535, Atlanta, GA 30310-8535... Seedsman for the South; most vegetable and flower selections will grow in the Midwest. J.L. HUDSON, SEEDSMAN, PO Box 1058, Redwood City, CA 94064... Offers directions for hardy annuals, tender annuals, hardy perennials, biennials, hardy trees and shrubs, tropical plants and trees and palm seeds. JOHNNY'S SELECTED SEEDS, Foss Hill Road, Albion, Maine 04910-9731... Organically produced seeds. LIBERTY SEED CO., PO Box 806, New Philadelphia, OH 44663... An old, reliable firm offering many Ohio favorites. PARK SEED CO., Cokesbury Road, Greenwood, SC 29647-0001... Annuals, perennials, bulbs, trees, shrubs, vines and vegetables. PEACEFUL VALLEY FARM SUPPLY, PO Box 2209, Grass Valley, CA 95945... Supplies such as earthworm castings and cover crop seeds for organic gardens. STARK BROTHERS' NURSERIES, Louisiana, MO 63353... Specializes in fruit trees. STOKES, Box 548, Buffalo, NY 14240... Dozens of varieties of tomatos, with in-depth descriptions; also a wide range of vegetable and flower seeds. WAYSIDE GARDENS, 1 Garden Lane, Hodges, SC 29695-0001... A colorfully illustrated catalog of shrubs, vines and trees. WHITE FLOWER FARM, Litchfield, Conn., 06759-0050... Provides several colorful catalogs and updates annually, describing fine varieties of perennials and shrubs. Subject: Buena Creek Gardens Date: 6 Mar 92 17:52:35 GMT The following is the name an address of a local mail-order nursery that specializes in hybrid daylilies, irises, perennials, rare subtropicals, and drought tolerant plants. The name of the nursery is Cordon Bleu, but the mail order business in Buena Creek Gardens. Buena Creek Gardens 418 Buena Creek Rd. San Marcos, CA 92069 Steve Brigham (619)744-2810 I went by a couple of weeks ago and they have some very unusual plants. They specialize in daylilies, but there weren't too many in bloom. Most are well suited varieties for California or the south (evergreen varieties). They also had a lot of irises, many of which they claim will rebloom in our climate. They are preparing for a large iris show in April. The original property had some very unusual plants on in it (many not for sale). There were full sized specimens of unusual cacti. They also had a lot of Australian and south African plants. Lots of plants had naturalized over the years. In many of the shady areas, they had Lenten roses in bloom. Also they had a drought tolerant lily-family member plant that grows well under eucalyptus. It had pale yellow colored flower spikes and succulent looking foliage and blooms in late winter to early spring. The property next door is Judy's perennials (619-471-8850) and is set up more in an English Garden style. She keeps weird hours, so is best call before going. She carries some of the new alstroemeria hybrids and true geraniums. She also uses clear soft yellow munnemannia fumarifolia (Mexican tulip poppy) in her gardens. It is related to the native California poppy and supposed to be easy to grow from seed, but I have had no luck with it. Hopefully she will have some of these plants for sale this year. Subject: Re: edible roots Date: 12 Mar 92 23:50:37 GMT >Does anyone have the complete address. Do I need to send a SASE with >the $1? J.L. Hudson, Seedsman P.O. Box 1058 Redwood City, CA 94064 SASE not required... Hudson's catalog is too big for a standard envelope. Add an extra dollar for a one-year subscription to his rare seeds supplement... comes out 2-3 times a year, and lists seeds that have recently arrived and may not be available in large enough quantities to be listed in the main catalog. His catalog is _great_ reading... it always leaves me with a very bad case of acreage-lust (I want enough garden space to grow two of _everything_). Nice folks, too... I usually enclose a letter with my order letting them know how my previous year's plants turned out, and I've always gotten a note back in response (usually from Hudson himself). The Zapotec Collection contains some very interesting varieties... I really love the Manzano Amarillo chile (fuzzy leaves, apple-shaped green fruits turning yellow/orange when ripe, flavorful, and VERY HOT). Another interesting edible-root plant is the "Chinese Yam" or "Cinnamon vine". At least, it _sounds_ interesting... perennial, pretty much pest-free, productive, easy to grow, and the (inconspicuous) flowers smell like cinnamon. The biggest disadvantage (according to the Seeds Blum catalog) is that the tubers go _deep_ into the ground and aren't suited for mechanical harvest... you must go after them with a garden-fork. However, they can (it says here) be left in the ground indefinitely; the tubers get larger and larger but don't get tough or woody. I can't swear to any of this... mine are still at the seedling stage and I won't know until autumn whether I really like them. I got the bulblets from Seeds Blum (tried last year but they were out; they say they have a good supply this year) and I've gotten 100% of the bulblets I planted to sprout. Seeds Blum Idaho City Stage Boise, Idaho These folks get #very# badly backlogged in the spring. I usually get their catalog right around Christmas time, and I've learned to send in the order immediately... one year I waited until the end of February to order, and my seeds took over eight weeks to arrive. They're a good source of heirloom and traditional vegetable varieties... no F1 hybrids at all. Subject: Re: Parsley seeds Date: 17 Mar 92 14:10:47 GMT > I am looking for a source for parsley seeds. Please help! This year, I ordered herb seeds (Italian and "curly" parsley included) from: Pinetree Garden Seeds Lewiston Road New Gloucester, Maine 04260 You could send away for their catalog; its free. Here are some other sources: W. Atlee Burpee Co. 300 Park Ave. Warminster, PA 18974 (free catalog) Well Sweep Herb Farm 317 Mt. Bethel Road Port Murray, NJ 07868 ($1 catalog) Jude Herbs Box 563-CJ Huntington Station, NY 11746 ($1 catalog) Sandy Mush Herb Nursery Rt. 2, Sorret Cover Road Leichester, NC 28748 ($3.95 catalog) Subject: Re: edible roots--unusual beets Date: 18 Mar 92 01:53:20 GMT For unusual beets, have I got a seed catalog for you! The Cook's Garden P.O. Box 535 Londonderry, VT 05148 These guys specialize in heirloom and unusual vegetables. This year, I'm trying Chiogga, an heirloom variety that is supposed to be very sugary and have a root consisting of pink and white rings, giving a candystripe appearance. They have golden beets, carrot-rooted beets, beets grown for their tops, etc... All sorts of interesting varieties. (You should see their selection of salad greens!! Or eggplants!) Subject: Australian plants Keywords: catalogs, seeds I have recently read through a number of books which are either directly or indirectly about Australian plants. Does anyone know of seed catalogs which might specialize in the Australia/New Zealand area? I have such catalog gems as J.L.Hudson and The Banana Tree, and have ordered from them. But they only offer a smattering of goodies from down under. A summary will be posted if requested. Thanks. Subject: Re: creeping thyme source? Date: 31 Mar 92 18:48:47 GMT A good source of thymes is the nursery someone posted yesterday: Companion Plants, 7247 N. Coolville Ridge, Rd., Athens, Ohio 45701. Phone (614) 592-4043. Most of their thymes are prostrate ("creeping"). My favorite thyme is orange-balsam. It has a warm, almost nutty, citrus scent. It is one of the more upright growing thymes. Subject: Re: creeping thyme source? > Maybe I am not shopping at the right places, or getting the right > catalogues, but I have yet to find a place that sells creeping thyme > in any shape or form. If you know a source, please clue me in. Try any of the following sources. COMPANION PLANTS [CATALOG $2] 7247 North Coolville Ridge Road [MINIMUM ORDER] Athens, OH 45701 [$15 Plants] (614) 592-4643 [$5 Seeds] ----- THE SEED SOURCE [CAT $4] Rte. 68, Box 301 [M.O. $25] Tuckasegee, NC 28783 NOTE: Has seed of more than 7,000 unusual plants. Previously known as Maver Nursery. ----- WELL-SWEEP HERB FARM [CAT $2] 317 Mt. Bethel Rd. [M.O. $5] Port Murray, NJ 07865 [NO telephone orders] (201) 852-5390 --------------------------------------------------------------------- The above information is from _CORNUCOPIA: A Source Book of Edible Plants_ by Stephen Facciola (ISBN 0-9628087-0-9) BTW, you might also try: NICHOLS GARDEN NURSERY INC. [CAT FREE] 1190 North Pacific Hwy. Albany, OR 97321 (503) 928-9280 Re: Fern Society, sources for fern spores. Subject: Re:Spore source wanted, also associations Date: 5 Dec 91 19:21:17 GMT >Does anyone know of a source for fern spores. Parks, etc occasionally offer >mixtures, but I want to know what is growing when something starts. >Additionally I've gotten some strange looking hybrids out of the mixture >method of growing fern. Also are there National Associations offering spore >and seed libraries for their members? If so, can anyone offer addresses/phone >numbers? You might try contacting either/or the following societies. AMERICAN FERN SOCIETY Dept. of Botany, Univ. of Vermont Burlington, VT 05405-0086 Membership does not include the more scholarly "Fmerican Fern Journal", which costs an extra $15 (plus $4 overseas). Spore exchange has fresh spore available by exchange or at nominal cost to society members. Membership is by calendar year only. Also publishes "Pteridologia" (irregular basis); write for information. Annual Dues --- $8 (in USA) -------------------------------------------------------------------- LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL FERN SOCIETY P.O. Box 90943 Pasadena, CA 91109-0943 Has a spore program and round-robins on various subjects. Also holds educational programs. Annual Dues --- $15 Subject: Seed Savers Exchange (was: Wish List) Date: 10 Apr 92 20:33:18 GMT I thought I should give a plug for the Seed Saver's Exchange, address Rural Route 3, Box 239, Decorah Iowa 52101. Annual membership is $25, ("optional reduced fees $20, $15") and you get a Yearbook containing members addresses and varieties of heirloom plants offered. This year they list 14,780 kinds of rare vegetables, grain, a few fruit and misc. These folks also run a 140 acre Heritage Farm, and are doing a great job of preserving a diverse gene pool - a critical endeavor which will someday be appreciated. CA Du D (me/us) are listed this year for the wonderful dry-bean variety _Tarahumara carpinteros_, a 90 day drought tolerant vigorous plant with gorgeous black and white beans (like Holsteins). email if interested... Subject: Source for camellia 'Pink Perfection' Date: 29 Apr 92 15:39:07 GMT Camellia 'Pink Perfection' is listed in the current CAMELLIA FOREST nursery catalog. CAMELLIA FOREST 125 Carolina Forest Road Chapel Hill, NC 27516 919-967-5529 $1 catalog price I purchased a few plants from Camellia Forest and was very satisified with size, quality, packing etc. The camellia selection is huge. Also many unusual asian trees and shrubs. The catalog is well done and quite informative. Subject: Re: edible roots Date: 12 Mar 92 23:50:37 GMT >Does anyone have the complete address. Do I need to send a SASE with >the $1? J.L. Hudson, Seedsman P.O. Box 1058 Redwood City, CA 94064 SASE not required... Hudson's catalog is too big for a standard envelope. Add an extra dollar for a one-year subscription to his rare seeds supplement... comes out 2-3 times a year, and lists seeds that have recently arrived and may not be available in large enough quantities to be listed in the main catalog. His catalog is _great_ reading... it always leaves me with a very bad case of acreage-lust (I want enough garden space to grow two of _everything_). Nice folks, too... I usually enclose a letter with my order letting them know how my previous year's plants turned out, and I've always gotten a note back in response (usually from Hudson himself). The Zapotec Collection contains some very interesting varieties... I really love the Manzano Amarillo chile (fuzzy leaves, apple-shaped green fruits turning yellow/orange when ripe, flavorful, and VERY HOT). Another interesting edible-root plant is the "Chinese Yam" or "Cinnamon vine". At least, it _sounds_ interesting... perennial, pretty much pest-free, productive, easy to grow, and the (inconspicuous) flowers smell like cinnamon. The biggest disadvantage (according to the Seeds Blum catalog) is that the tubers go _deep_ into the ground and aren't suited for mechanical harvest... you must go after them with a garden-fork. However, they can (it says here) be left in the ground indefinitely; the tubers get larger and larger but don't get tough or woody. I can't swear to any of this... mine are still at the seedling stage and I won't know until autumn whether I really like them. I got the bulblets from Seeds Blum (tried last year but they were out; they say they have a good supply this year) and I've gotten 100% of the bulblets I planted to sprout. Seeds Blum Idaho City Stage Boise, Idaho These folks get #very# badly backlogged in the spring. I usually get their catalog right around Christmas time, and I've learned to send in the order immediately... one year I waited until the end of February to order, and my seeds took over eight weeks to arrive. They're a good source of heirloom and traditional vegetable varieties... no F1 hybrids at all. Subject: Re: creeping thyme source? Date: 31 Mar 92 18:48:47 GMT A good source of thymes is the nursery someone posted yesterday: Companion Plants, 7247 N. Coolville Ridge, Rd., Athens, Ohio 45701. Phone (614) 592-4043. Most of their thymes are prostrate ("creeping"). My favorite thyme is orange-balsam. It has a warm, almost nutty, citrus scent. It is one of the more upright growing thymes. Subject: Re: creeping thyme source? > Maybe I am not shopping at the right places, or getting the right > catalogues, but I have yet to find a place that sells creeping thyme > in any shape or form. If you know a source, please clue me in. Try any of the following sources. COMPANION PLANTS [CATALOG $2] 7247 North Coolville Ridge Road [MINIMUM ORDER] Athens, OH 45701 [$15 Plants] (614) 592-4643 [$5 Seeds] ----- THE SEED SOURCE [CAT $4] Rte. 68, Box 301 [M.O. $25] Tuckasegee, NC 28783 NOTE: Has seed of more than 7,000 unusual plants. Previously known as Maver Nursery. ----- WELL-SWEEP HERB FARM [CAT $2] 317 Mt. Bethel Rd. [M.O. $5] Port Murray, NJ 07865 [NO telephone orders] (201) 852-5390 --------------------------------------------------------------------- The above information is from _CORNUCOPIA: A Source Book of Edible Plants_ by Stephen Facciola (ISBN 0-9628087-0-9) BTW, you might also try: NICHOLS GARDEN NURSERY INC. [CAT FREE] 1190 North Pacific Hwy. Albany, OR 97321 (503) 928-9280 Subject: Re: Maza Corn Date: 27 Jan 92 22:39:47 GMT DA> I would like to grow the kind of Corn which is ground DA> for making tortillias, maza harina, tamalies, and the DA> like. I would like the leaves which wrap the ear to DA> be large enough to wrap tamalies. Where do I find DA> seed for the traditional mexican maza corn? The type of corn that is best suited for this purpose woulds be a type called a FLOUR CORN. Kernals of flour corn are easier to grind than flint or dent corn, milling easily to a soft flour. It's grown primarily in the Southwest and the Northern Plains. It's available with kernals that are either blue/purple, multi-colored, red/pink, white, yellow, and black. I'll give you the names of the yellow varieties plus some sources. HOPI YELLOW MANDAN YELLOW PAPAGO TEXAS SHOEPEG SOURCES Abbreviation(s) CAT - catalog ABUNDANT LIFE SEED FOUNDATION CAT - $1 P.O. Box 772 Port Townsend, WA 98368 NATIVE SEEDS/SEARCH CAT - $1 2509 N. Campbell Ave. #325 Tuczon, AZ 85719 PLANTS OF THE SOUTHWEST CAT - $1 930 Baca St. Santa Fe, NM 87501 Subject: Re: Catalog addresses (was Re: Burpee address) Date: 6 Jan 92 18:03:53 GMT I got some of this from the net a while back, so it's worth publishing again. I haven't heard of 'Pepper Gal', but I recommend a magazine called 'Chile Pepper'. Good info and good receipes. Alberta Nurseries & Seeds, LTD. Box 20 Bowden, Alta. Canada TOM OKO Burgess Seed and Plant Co. 905 Four Seasons Road Bloomington, IL 61701 Burpee Seed Company 300 Park Avenue Warminster, PA 18974 D.V. Burrell Seed Company Box 150 Rocky Ford, CO 81067 Caprilands Herb Farm 534 Silver Street Coventry, CT 06238 Henry Fields and Company Box 600 Shenandoah, IA 51602 Friends of the Trees P.O. Box 1064 Tonasket, WA 98855 Gurney Seed and Nursery 110 Capital Street Yankton, SD 57079 Harris Moran Seed Company 3670 Buffalo Road Moreton Farm Rochester, NY 14624 H.G. Hastings and Company Box 4274 Atlanta, GA 30302 Heirloom Gardens Box 138 Guerneville, CA 95446 Horticultural Enterprises Box 810082 Dallas, TX 75381-0082 Jackson and Perkins Box 1028 Medford, OR 97501 Johnny's Selected Seeds 310 Foss Hill Road Albion, ME 04910 J.W. Jung Seed Company 335 South High Street Randolph, WI 53957 Laval Seeds 3505 Saint Martin West Ville de Laval, Que. Candada H7T 1A2 Le Jardin du Gourmet West Danville, VT 05873 Le Marche Seeds International Box 566 Dixon, CA 95620 Orol Ledden & Sons, Inc. Center and Atlantic Avenues Sewel, NJ 08080-0007 Liberty Seed Company P.O. Box 806 New Philadelphia, OH 44663 Long Island Seed Company 1368 Flanders Road Flanders NY 11901 Earl May Seed and Nursery Company Shenandoah, IA 51603 Mc Crory's Sunny Hill Herb Farm Star Route 3 Box 844 Eustis, FL 32726 Mellinger's 2374 W. South Range Road North Lima, OH 44452 Michigan Bulb Company 1950 Waldorf, N.W. Grand Rapids, MI 49550 Moon Mountain Wildflowers P.O. Box 34 Morro Bay, CA 93442 Nichols Garden Nursery 1190 N. Pacific Highway Albany, OR 97321 Ontario Seed Co., Ltd. Box 144 Waterloo, Ont. Canada N2J 3Z9 Otis S. Twilley Seed Company, Inc. P.O. Box T65 Trevose, PA 19053 Park Seed Company Box 31 Cokesbury Road Greenwood, SC 29647-0001 Peace Seeds 1130 Tetherow Rd. Williams, OR 97554 Pinetree Garden Seeds New Gloucester, ME 04260 Porter & Sons Seedsmen Box 104 Stephenville, TX 76401-0104 Sandy Mush Herb Nursery Rt. 2 Surrett Cove Td. Leicester, NC 28748 Seed Savers Exchange Rt. 3, Box 239 Decorah, Iowa 52101 Seeds Blum Idaho City Stage Boise, ID 83707 Seedway, Inc. Box 250 Hall, NY 14463 Shepherds Garden Seeds 7389 West Zayante Rd. Felton, CA 95018 R.H. Shumway P.O. Box 777 Rockford, IL 61105 Southern Exposure Seed Exchage P.O. Box 158 North Garden, VA 22959 Stokes Seeds 28 Water Street Fredonia, NY 14063 Sunrise Enterprises P.O. Box 10058 Elmwood, CT 06110 Thompson and Morgan Box 1308, Dept SP6 Jackson, NJ 08527 Otis Twilley Seed Co. Box 65 Trevose, PA 19047 Vermont Bean Seed Company Garden Lane Fair Haven, BT 05743 Vesey's Seeds York P.E.I. Canada COA 1PO Well-Sweep Herb Farm 317 Mr. Bethel Rd. Port Murray, NJ. 07865 Wyatt-Quarles Seed Co. Box 739 Garner, NC 27529 Subject: Re: Seed Savers Exchange Date: 11 Jan 92 00:47:16 GMT The Seed Savers Exchange is a non-profit orgn which links home gardeners, farmers, scientists and other interested individuals to help preserve open-pollenated varieties of food crops (including many heirlooms). SSE is not a seed company - members share seeds by dealing directly with one another, using the SSE publications as a kind of trading post. Members are encouraged to grow out their seeds using proper seed-saving techniques, and reoffer the next generation of seeds through the program. The idea is that the more people who grow a given variety and collect seeds from it, the less likely that variety is to disappear. I could give you frightening statistics about the number of vegetable varieties that become extinct every year. I think a one-year membership is $25 for US residents, $30 for Canadians. For this you get 3 thick books, mailed separately throughout the year, filled with information about seed-saving and gardening in general. I have found these books to be amazingly informative. One of the books (usually mailed in January) contains an enormous list of the members' seed offerings. You can get a lot of varieties through SSE members which are no longer available from ANY commercial seed company, and apart from the annual membership fee, you only pay for postage. The address is: Seed Savers Exchange RR3, Box 239 Decorah, Iowa 52101 May I also recommend a Canadian seed exchange which operates the same way as SSE. They also publish excellent, informative info and coordinate seed-swapping among members. Heritage Seed Program RR3, Uxbridge Ontario, Canada L9P 1R3 My info says: Canadian membership $12, fixed income $9, supporting member $20, U.S. & foreign $17. Subject: Re: Seed Savers Exchange Date: 11 Jan 92 21:02:10 GMT The Seed Savers Exchange (known hereafter as the SSE) is a not-for-profit, tax exempt, pubically supported organization. Annual membership dues are $25, $30 Canadian (or Mexican) and $40 Foreign. Lifetime membershhips are $350 (pledge payments of $30/month for a year are available). Membership is open to all. For a comprehensive brochure about the SSE, send $1.00 (US) to: SEED SAVERS EXCHANGE Rural Route 3, Box 239 Decorah, Iowa 52101 U.S. of America -------------------------------------- ALSO: For a free catalog, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: THE PEPPER GAL 10536 119th Ave. North Largo, FL 34643 From: Kay Klier Subject: Great strange plants... Date: 27 Jan 92 23:59:42 GMT Just started to mark up my copy of the Nichol's Garden Nursery catalog (herbs and rare seed specialists) 1190 North Pacific Highway, Albany, OR, 97321. Haven't seen this catalog for years, and I guess I forgot all the lovely strange things they carry: For instance: Nepeta mussini, a low-growing rock garden catnip that my cats seem to think is the cat-equivalent of Acapulco gold. Coriander or Cilantro: a slow-bolting form Epazote: Chenopodium ambrosoides Good King Henry: Chenopodium bonus-henricus Anise hyssop: Agastache foeniculus. Licorice-scented leaves, nice blue flowers the bees love (no, you don't get licorice flavored honey). Tagetes lucida: a 3' marigold that makes a pretty good substitute for tarragon. Sweet Woodruff: for Mai-wine and potpourri Pyrethrum: grow your own. Some things I think I recall people asking about/talking about recently: Fraxinella (gas plant) Hops (for flavoring beer and ale) (yes, they are the other genus in the Cannabinaceae (or Cannabaceae, take your pick) -- anyhow, first cousin to marijuana Saffron crocus bulbs Walking onions Elephant garlic yellow potatos (bintje is great in potato salad!) yard long beans (no, green, not purple) celtuce miniature sweet corn (advise picking no more than 5 days after silks appear) jicama tomatillo 11 cvs hot pepper 12 cvs sweet pepper (incl. pepperoncini) Oddities that caught my eye: black radish (black skin, white flesh) Oregon Spring and Santiam tomatoes, two determinant types that are parthenocarpic. In poor growing conditions, fruits will be seedless. About 10 days *earlier* than Early Girl. Lion's ears (Leonotus nepetifolia): a 3-5 ft mint plant with whorls of orange flowers. The hummingbirds like this South African native. Lobelia 'Compliment Scarlet': a tetraploid cross between L. fulgens and L. cardinalis. Should be large (1-1.5") bright red flowers that hummingbirds ought to find irresistible. Chinese lantern plant (Physalis alkakengi): "husk tomatoes" with bright orange husks. Made about $100 one year selling that to florists on $1 worth of seed... Bushel gourd: a lageneria with fruits to 20" across. also LOTS of oriental veggies.... From: Kay Klier Subject: Nichol's and Liberty phone # Date: 29 Jan 92 19:11:43 GMT Nichols Garden Nursery 1190 Pacific Coast Highway Albany, OR 97321-4598 phone (503) 928-9280 fax (503) 967-8406 mainly herbs and veggies, esp. oriental veggies Seeds seem to run about $0.70-$1.50 packet, mostly around $1. Free catalog, I think. $1.25 handling charge per order. Liberty Seed PO Box 806 New Philadelphia, OH 44663 phone (216) 364-1611 fax (216) 364-6415 lots of "mainstream veggies" and a fair amount of wildflower and ornamental seeds. Interesting plants for drying. Prices about 1/2-3/4 of "rack" prices for packeted seeds (Burpee, NK, etc.) around here. Also will sell largish quantities of seed to ordinary people at wholesale prices (usually 25-50% off). (e.g., 4 oz beets $2.45, but 1 lb for $5.35) $1 handling per order east of Rockies. Add $0.20 per pound rest of Rockies. From: Kay Klier Subject: More strange plants... Date: 28 Jan 92 00:09:18 GMT 'Nother neat catalog: Liberty Seed Company, PO Box 806, New Philadephia, OH 44663. Lots of good, basic seeds, including 34 cultivars of sweet corn, and some FUN seeds like: Ornamental wheat for weaving and bouquets: black heads and black awns white heads and black awns white heads and white awns and 'Gigas': 3 1/2" heads with 1" long spikelets (HUGE!!) and grey or black awns. Podcorn: like a regular ear of field corn, but with "husks" surrounding each kernal. Broomcorn: not a corn, but a sorghum with long infloresence branches. It's the stuff real "cornbrooms" are made from. Since the tips of the inflorescences are covered with shiny yellow, red, brown, mahogany or black "seeds", they've apparently been considered decorative by the florists. Subject: Re: where are epazote seeds? Date: 11 Jan 92 00:00:26 GMT Nichols Garden Nursery 1190 North Pacific Highway Albany, Oregon 97321-4598 Plant a handful of epazote plants, and you'll never have to buy seed again. They happily reseed all over, and grow like--um, weeds. Which, if you didn't know what they were, is what you'd think of them. Mine are currently a gorgeous maroon color, tinged with scarlet, by the way. Their last gasp of the season. Subject: Re: where are epazote seeds? Date: 10 Jan 92 20:33:17 GMT SP> A recent issue of Fine Gardening contained an article about Mexican SP> culinary herbs, including catalog sources. I believe it mentioned SP> epazote. SP> I think it was the last issue (December). Epazote seed is available from the following source: HORTICULTURAL ENTERPRISE P.O. Box 810082 Dallas, TX 75381-0082 While this company specializes in chilies and sweet peppers, they also sell the seeds of some Mexican herbs and vegetables. The catalog (actually a price-list) is free and they will mail seeds to Canada also. Subject: Re: slow bolting cilantro TW> I want to grow cilantro for the leaves here in southern Wisconsin. TW> Every variety I've tried goes to seed almost immediately. They're meant TW> to produce coriander I guess. There are some varieties that are meant to TW> produce leaves, but I can't find them. Any suggestions? You might try growing a variety called `Large Leaved'. It's a relatively slow flowering type which produces large quantities of young leaves for vegetable use. It's available from the following source: EVERGREEN Y.H. ENTERPRISES P.O. Box 17538 Anaheim, CA 92817 They offer a good selection of oriental vegetable seeds, over 50 varieties. Their catalog is $1.00. You could also try growing a variety of Cilantro called `Santo' (aka Slow Bolt, Long Standing, & Leafy). This is a new strain of Coriandrum sativum that produces lush vegetative growth through several cuttings and is relatively non-bolting. Although it is slow to bolt to seed, it's best to make succession plantings every few weeks to ensure a continuous harvest. "Most productive in cool weather." Some sources are: NICHOLS GARDEN NURSERY Cat. - free 1190 North Pacific Hwy. Albany, OR 97321 REDWOOD CITY SEED CO. Cat. - $1.00 P.O. Box 361 Redwood City, CA 94064 SUNRISE ENTERPRISES Cat. - $1.00 P.O. Box 10058 Elmwood, CT 06110-0058 TERRITORIAL SEED CO. Cat. - free P.O. Box 27 Lorane, OR 97451 PS. There's a tropical plant with coriander-flavored leaves called Cilantro peperomia (Peperomia maculosa). Subject: Re: slow bolting cilantro Date: 29 Jan 92 17:37:54 GMT >I want to grow cilantro for the leaves here in southern Wisconsin. >Every variety I've tried goes to seed almost immediately. They're meant >to produce coriander I guess. There are some varieties that are meant to >produce leaves, but I can't find them. Any suggestions? I've never experienced the problem you describe, but here's what the Ortho book "All about Herbs" says about Coriander: Direct seed coriander in early spring or late summer through fall... Sowing the seeds in late spring or summer is futile because the short nights wil make plants flower and set seeds precociously, when they are tiny. Plants will withstand quite cold weather....