Castboolit Gardeners !!! any interest in a seed exchange ?

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Dear Castboolit gardeners,
I have a few Family heirloom seeds that are prized more than gold.
Does anyone else have similar ?
That they'd care to exchange ?

Obviously my seeds are geared for the long days and short season of Minnesota and would prefer to trade with the same, but, sometimes it's fun to experiment with something special, and you never know, a seed from Alabama, just might be productive here in MN.

I've been doing my Garden planning for 2013 along with my two organic veggie farmer friends. We all save seeds and share between us (I actually do some of the seed cleaning/saving for one of the farmers).
Anyway, I am hoping to broaden my sources, maybe you want to also ?

AND HECK, it nothing else, looking through these photos is like
taking a walk through my garden, nothing better than that
this time of year.

Here are my most prized seeds.

"Sausage" Roma type Tomato
I only plant two of these plants each year since they are so productive, this table full is from one picking of the 2 plants.
just to the right of the table, you can see the plant with
a few green tomatoes still on the vine.


Rutgers Tomato
I save seed from the Healthiest small size plants with smaller size friuts (6 to 8 oz). I grow quite a few of these every year for Juice as well as eating. I like that they take up a fairly small space, don't grow into each other and tip over the cage due to large size friuts or don't outgrow the cage...while the photo shows this plant is kinda out of control, it's the only good photo with fruit I could find.
They are fairly blight resistant.


Black brandywine tomato
Very tasty and surprizingly earlier than the Rutgers.
Downside, they tend to crack badly.

Black brandywine with Rutgers


Taxi (yellow) Tomato
very early (55 day), low acid and sweet. small size plant.
shown with others about to be juiced.


Campfire Tomato
These may be also known as La Flamme'
This is a recent find of my veggie farmer friend.
This is the tastiest tomato I ever tasted.
sliced open it looks like a little campfire flame.
it does crack some, like most heirloom tomatoes,
but now nearly as bad as the black brandywine
It produces friut very early like the Black brandywine
shown with a cherry tomato for size comparison.

This plant and root mass grow huge, and will send out vines and take over the garden if you let it.
Root Mass photo: the plant to the left is a healthy
Rutgers plant, The Campfire to the right...I put the
12oz Popcan for size comparison, it's kind of hard to see,
but the very base of the Campfire stock is the same diameter
as the popcan.




Ruby King Bell Pepper
Rich full bodied sweet flavor, Productive healthy plant.
I get about 20 peppers per plant in a Minnesota season.


Quadratto yellow bell pepper.
These are huge thick walled peppers,
but they are late season, and few per plant.
sorry, I don't have a photo before it was cooked.
shown in a 6" skillet.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

One more...

Buttercup/goldencup winter Squash.
My Buddy grows 2 acres of these, over the years
he has saved seed from the largest, blockiest,
Thick walled, tastiest squash. While these are open
pollinated, my Buddy gets squash that looks like this,
from about 70% of the plants from this seed.
they can get up to 15 lbs each.

[waksupi]

I have some northern heirlooms I might trade. My two best are Painted Mountain Indian corn, and an Indian cantaloupe. The corn makes excellent corn meal and flour, and matures in around 101 days. The cantaloupe are a very small variety, only the size of a baseball, and are green and veined when ripe. Very tasty single serving. Matures in about the same length of time.
I'm looking for other Indian winter squash seeds. I do have some Mandan, but it cross pollinated, and is an undetermined strain now.

By the way, when tomatoes are cracking, that is usually caused by over watering. Once the fruit has set on mine, I cut the plants WAY back, and really cut back on watering.

Attachment 56202

[Hickory]

Would you be willing to sale 25 of your Ruby King Bell Pepper seeds?

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Hickory,
I sent you a PM
Jon

[oneokie]

Dang it, now I have a craving for tomatoes. Guess I will have to settle for a jar of juice.

I have some Amish Oxheart seed I can send if you would like. They are iffy here in the heat and dry weather.

[Bored1]

Wish I had something to trade for some of that! Gonna try a garden for the first time this summer and see how it goes. Figure it should work well here in Nebraska seeing as I live in the city and still had some random sweet corn grow in my backyard this year. If it grows wild, should be able to grow it trying too. LOL>

Where do you find "indian" plant seeds?

[dale2242]

I may be interested.
Depends on what people had to trade.
I have some Butternut, acorn squash , pumpkin , Indian corn and giant sun flower seeds I would trade...dale

[oneokie]

I may be interested.
Depends on what people had to trade.
I have some Butternut, acorn squash , pumpkin , Indian corn and giant sun flower seeds I would trade...dale

What?!!!! No zukes?

[reloader28]

WOW, great looking crop. Makes me wish for summer.
Unfortunately, we're just getting started with our heirloom seed trials. We wont know till next summer.

I did pick up a handy looking book this fall called "Saving Seeds". It looks really good.

[waksupi]

Wish I had something to trade for some of that! Gonna try a garden for the first time this summer and see how it goes. Figure it should work well here in Nebraska seeing as I live in the city and still had some random sweet corn grow in my backyard this year. If it grows wild, should be able to grow it trying too. LOL>

Where do you find "indian" plant seeds?

I could set you up with enough corn seed for you to build foundation stock. It wouldn't be many, as I ground most of mine. Each year you plant, select the best genetics for the next years seed, and each following year the strain will improve. It takes 4-5 generations (years) for the seed stock to adjust to your particular soil and climate conditions.
You can contact the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron Nebraska, or Knife River Indian village, in North Dakota for native stock seed, including tobacco, I believe. The Painted Mountain corn comes from Dave Christanson (sp) down in Big Timber, Montana. I've known Dave for nearly 30 years, and he developed this strain for short season Montana growing. Search "Painted Mountain".

If you are near Sioux City, talk to some of the Poncas, you may find someone who will trade you some local heirloom seeds. They have some good strains.

Since you are in town, get the book Square Foot Gardening. You won't regret it. Since switching over to that method, my production has been incredible.

[Marvin S]

I have garlic. Dont know what varity it is other than it is a hardneck type. It came from an old township that completly burt down abut 100 years ago in north east Kansas it grows wild there.

[Marvin S]

Also have some bloody butcher corn. You can google the story about it. There is also them magic beans I got years and never planted.

[OeldeWolf]

I do not have any to trade, I am afraid. I have always raised a few things, like tomatos, but usually bought plants. This year I planted a bunch more, all in pots. It at least gave me a good idea of what I will need to have to produce enough for us, maybe can some for winter. I just git another copy of square foot gardening and seed to seed. My boss borrowed my first set, so I gave them to him for Christmas. Unfortunately, I found out too late I was doing a few things wrong, so it is not worth saving most of my seeds.

So I am looking for seeds. To trade I have aspasragus beans <over a foot long, taste like asparagus>. I am looking for tomato, bell pepper, squash <perhaps summer crookneck, acorn, or that one Jon B has, or zukes> , melons of some variety, peas, anasazi beans, any herbs, onions, garlic, egg plant. And any advice on propagatiopn. Oh, I have snow drop bulbs, need to thin the patch under the faucet.

I am always interested in advice, as I am just starting out in this. Mom always bought seeds.

[waksupi]

I do not have any to trade, I am afraid. I have always raised a few things, like tomatos, but usually bought plants. This year I planted a bunch more, all in pots. It at least gave me a good idea of what I will need to have to produce enough for us, maybe can some for winter. I just git another copy of square foot gardening and seed to seed. My boss borrowed my first set, so I gave them to him for Christmas. Unfortunately, I found out too late I was doing a few things wrong, so it is not worth saving most of my seeds.

So I am looking for seeds. To trade I have aspasragus beans <over a foot long, taste like asparagus>. I am looking for tomato, bell pepper, squash <perhaps summer crookneck, acorn, or that one Jon B has, or zukes> , melons of some variety, peas, anasazi beans, any herbs, onions, garlic, egg plant. And any advice on propagatiopn. Oh, I have snow drop bulbs, need to thin the patch under the faucet.

I am always interested in advice, as I am just starting out in this. Mom always bought seeds.

I would really like to try the asparagus beans. I have some heirloom Beefsteak tomato seeds. I have some old strain beans I think are Anasazi, I think. PM an address if you want to trade.

[Bored1]

I could set you up with enough corn seed for you to build foundation stock. It wouldn't be many, as I ground most of mine. Each year you plant, select the best genetics for the next years seed, and each following year the strain will improve. It takes 4-5 generations (years) for the seed stock to adjust to your particular soil and climate conditions.
You can contact the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron Nebraska, or Knife River Indian village, in North Dakota for native stock seed, including tobacco, I believe. The Painted Mountain corn comes from Dave Christanson (sp) down in Big Timber, Montana. I've known Dave for nearly 30 years, and he developed this strain for short season Montana growing. Search "Painted Mountain".

If you are near Sioux City, talk to some of the Poncas, you may find someone who will trade you some local heirloom seeds. They have some good strains.

Since you are in town, get the book Square Foot Gardening. You won't regret it. Since switching over to that method, my production has been incredible.

Thanks for the pointers!!! Going to start working on that as soon as the holidays are over. I will keep you posted if I end up with something worth trading!!!

[10 ga]

Last 2 years I've purchased heirloom seed from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange mostly but several others. Just kinda starting and don't know how many of you guys would be in the coastal VA, "mid atlantic coast" type climate. My Cherokee Purple tomatoes and Turkey Craw beans have done very well here. I'm interested but a rookie at it. Best, 10 ga


X Z

[Just Duke]

I'd trade 45-70 bullets for Bell Pepper Seeds.

[Bored1]

Thanks guys!!!!

Grabbed a copy of New square foot gardening and it turns out a few local Lakota members don't mind sharing some seeds!!! May have to take you up on the offer waksupi maybe once I get the seeds there will be something you wanna try!

[fatboy]

here is one of the sites i got my mandan red corn from, Victory seeds also has alot of heirlom seed. had to reorder seed this year mine crossed with my yukon chief i think.
http://www.seedsofchange.com/default.aspx

Wish I had something to trade for some of that! Gonna try a garden for the first time this summer and see how it goes. Figure it should work well here in Nebraska seeing as I live in the city and still had some random sweet corn grow in my backyard this year. If it grows wild, should be able to grow it trying too. LOL>

Where do you find "indian" plant seeds?