Seeds of change

[LIBRA]

Ive heard some great stuff about this company. I got an email today from ideal bites? I think thats what its called, anyway after I got it I remembered hearing about it before. I am placing an order today I will let ya know what I think :)

http://www.seedsofchange.com/garden_center/browse_category.asp?category_id=3

[NCW_Woodnymph]

TO MANY GOOD THINGS! I want them but don't have the space. :(
Thanks for the link though. That's going in my favs. :D

:hippie:

[LIBRA]

I know, dont they have an awesome selection!!!! I had to get the catalog, its hard to see online. I know I know but I had to get it :D

They have asparagus too and I so badly want to grow it, its expensive though. Makes me nervouse to spend all that money, Ive never grown it before.

I didnt order today I couldnt make up my mind, I have to sit down and map out my garden first.

[NCW_Woodnymph]

The good thing about asparagus is that it grows for around 10 yrs so it's a good investment. I've never tried growing it because it grows wild around my mom's place. It's my favorite veggie but it sure is expensive in stores. :)

Have you ever read "The self-sufficient life; and how to live it" by John Seymour. It's one of my favorite books and has a section on growing asparagus and just about anything else you can think of. :D

:hippie:

[Gaston]

I bought about half of my seed from Seeds of Change last year, they did well. I've bought nearly all of this year's seed from them (except some Asian vegetable they didn't carry). So far I've sprouted eggplant and peppers, all have done extremely well except the Italian pink bicolor eggplant, only about half of them came up. I've got room for three more flats under my lights, I'll start the tomatoes and tomatillos this week sometime. I'm pushing the season a little bit, hopefully I can set out some strong plants about the time I need to start the warm-weather stuff and I'll have the flats free to use for them.

Johnny's Seeds have been good, but you really have to read the catalog closely if you're trying for all organic seeds.

Evergreen Seeds at http://evergreenseeds.com/ has a nice selection of Asian vegetables, although most are hybrid and I doubt any are organic. I got hooked on the slim white bitter melon last year, I'm going to plant a larger variety and see what I get.

But the short version of this blabbering is - Seeds of Change rocks!

[LIBRA]

Ive never done well sowing seeds indoors, with veggies anyway ;) But they always get too tall, lanky before I can get them outside. Then when I do get them outside the roots seem to rot out at the base? Im only starting a few weeks before I can plant them. So I sow outdoors a little later, but it takes so much longer to produce.

Im going to ck out that book, thanks!!! I love asparagus too, my parents used to grow it for years and years.

I also have to work on building a fence, anyone have experience with that? Ive got some sturdy chicken wire and was thinkin I could get some fallin branches for the posts, but am not sure how far down Id have to dig, the soil here is lots of clay and rock. And do ya staple or nail the wire, or tie it? I usuallly just wing everything,lol and then it falls apart :D OR I can get pallets and make a fence outta those, but thats alot more work.

Being a single mom, working 40 plus hours a week and tryin to homestead is HARD!!!!!! But worth every minute!!:smilie_wa go libra go,lol

[NCW_Woodnymph]

I don't know how you do it. I love doing things from scratch but I'm at home all day and there are still times I get overwelmed. :D

:hippie:

[Gaston]

I also have to work on building a fence, anyone have experience with that?

A little. What is it that you are trying to fence out? (or fence in)

[LIBRA]

Its the hardest thing Ive ever done. When I get home, I usually dont stop till I pass out. Thats why I love summer so much, its lighter longer and I can be outside all night, my house is a mess in the summer and pretty clean in the winter,lol
I think overwhelmed may be my middle name, Im always taking on projects. If I finish them, well thats another story,lol :D

[LIBRA]

A little. What is it that you are trying to fence out? (or fence in)
Keep my garden inside and dogs that poop alot outside,lol and rabbits, deer, woodchucks.

Id like to build it cheap by using lots of natural materials, like sticks, branches or those pallets cause there free. I already have chicken wire.

[Gaston]

Keep my garden inside and dogs that poop alot outside,lol and rabbits, deer, woodchucks.

Id like to build it cheap by using lots of natural materials, like sticks, branches or those pallets cause there free. I already have chicken wire.

Woodchucks and some dogs will dig under anything but a fence that's designed to stop digging. Usually thats done by digging a two-foot wide border about six inches deep around the outside perimeter of the fence, laying fencing flat in it, securing it to the regular fence, then covering it with dirt. Unless you have an awful lot of diggers, it's simpler just to boxtrap the woodchucks and deal with the dogs one at a time. For other pests the chicken wire ought to do it, you may have to hang up something flashy that moves with the wind to scare the deer if they get persistent.

The key to fencing is good solid corner posts, and tightly stretched fencing. There's not much way of tightening chicken wire by stretching, but you can add extra supports (boards, more uprights) and staple the fence to them.

My garden isn't fenced (yet). Last season I tried raising some of the French Charentais melons. Picked one a bit early, and even green it was as wonderful as I'd heard they were. They're so fragrant that you can smell them the minute you get close to the garden. Mom came to me later that week and said that she saw a grayish cat in the garden eating a melon, but by the time she got out there to shoo it off it was gone. I thought "a cat eating melon? That's odd". Sure enough, almost half of a melon was gone. I have a cat that loves popcorn, so I didn't think much of the incident.

About that time I had a disk rupture and had to have surgery. When I got back from the hospital and was able to gimp out to the garden, I discovered that all my melons were gone. All of them, every last one. I finally found a little spot of bare dirt that wasn't mulched, and there it was - a raccoon track. Greedy little bastard, he could have left us one or two.

I've been watching around the creek for tracks and haven't found any, I figure it was a drive-by munching. If it happens again this year, though, I'll be doing some fencing, too. :D

[hedgewitch]

That's a GREAT site, thanks for posting.
I don't know what their shipping costs would be to me though - I'll investigate a bit more.
By the way - that little gadget thing they have on the home page for making your own pots out of paper - FORGET IT!
I'll post details on how to make your own without a fancy Maple Wood gizmo!
It's quite an oxymoron that they're encouraging people to make eco friendly pots out of old newspaper by buying a NEW gadget.

Hee made me laugh that did.

[LIBRA]

Yes please do post it, Id love to hear!!! And I didnt even notice that on the homepage, I was so engrossed in veggies :)


Gaston, the dogs wont dig under it, they just love to pee and poo on everything I dont think they'd dig under a fence just to do that, I hope not anyway, freaks, LOL!!!!

Too bad about your melons, funny story though!! I have this picture in my head of this drive by munching, ha ha!

Last yr something took a bite or two out of my pumpkins and I had like 20-30 pumpkins with bites taken outta them it was odd. They went around and had to try every stinkin one of em!

Woodchucks arent bad when were home, but if I go camping and take my dog then they come out to play, they know its safe. Lil bastards :D

[LIBRA]

Finally got my asparagus from seeds of change. Im just so not sure where to plant it, gotta figure it out tonight. They sent it dry, they look all dried out. Anyone ever planted asparagus before?

[LIBRA]

My asparagus is finally coming up!!!!!!! Its so little and cute right now. I cant harvest it till next year, I cant wait though!! Anyone grow it before? This is a first for me.

[StellaBlue]

I built a fence around my garden over the weekend out of things I found in my garage. I didn't need a really heavy duty one, just one that would keep out the neighbor's dogs. They have already trampled a few of my plants. I used chicken wire and some wood that I had left over from the tomato cages my husband built for me. I used a big rock to hammer those down in the ground until they felt sturdy, then I zip-tied the chicken wire to the posts. Seriously, what did people do before zip ties were invented?

[LIBRA]

my compost is old pallets zip tied together.. Amen zip ties :D

[hedgewitch]

I've grown Asparagus before but in my little garden they're not practical. I will grow them again when I move 'cos they are just the best veg ever!!