seeds

[Yvonne Belisle]

I was wondering does anyone have any seeds left from planting this year that they would be willing to share? I'm on a really tight budget and the last penny I was holding skreeched and scared all the others:) I can send a sase if anyone needs one and has a few spares. I'm in eastern Pennsylvania and seeking anything I can put in a garden. Thank-you in advance.

[Mairwen]

Be careful about using last year's seeds. For some reason, and I honestly think it's a capitalistic ploy, seeds collected from plants and saved, as well as "left over seeds" aren't producing anything. :( :bad:

[Yvonne Belisle]

That's not good to hear. Maybe we should do a seed exchange here as well? It might help on some of those hard to find herbs.

[Mairwen]

That might help. Unfortunately, I'd have to bow out of it ~ even though it sounds like fun. I've done the seed exchange before and it worked quite well.

[Lavender]

Hi Yvonne...

Do you want some herb seeds? I'll look over what I have left tonight & send you a list. Most of my seeds are left over from this year's planting & are still viable. At least, all my seedlings came up. I'm just happy to be able to share. Too bad I can't send you the plants itself.

[Yvonne Belisle]

That would be fantastic! Thank-you I'm teaching my kids about the woods but they have never really been in them before. So far the 4 year old found a tick and the 12 year old found poison ivy so it's been interesting. I want to plant stuff near the house that they can learn from so herbs will be a great start.

[Lavender]

Hi Yvonne,

I have Yarrow, Feverfew, Lemon Balm-Citronella, German Chamomile-Bodegold, Valarian, & Vervain, & Basil. I also have chive, garlic chives, sage, anise hyssop, & lavender but these seeds are a few years old & may or may not come up. Darn! I just threw the rest of my calendulas in my garden this morning! I don't collect a lot of seeds - most of them are perenials & the rest usually self-sowed...except for the basil...

Oh, I also have a variety of sunflower seeds too. If you want to PM me with your address, I'll mail them off to you.

For my mother's day present, I got dirt...3 yards of it :) & spent the day spreading it around & putting the rest of my seedlings in the ground.

[Silver Venus]

Hiya! Great idea Yvonne Thomas! But I dont have any spare seeds to send you ~ only planted a few this year because Im just starting out.. They are coming on great! :) But I am going down to the garden centre to get some more herbs this weekend so if you want me to pick you up anything inparticular I would love to send them to you!!

Wildchild ~ your dirt sound wonderful! Hope all your new seedlings and garden flousish inot a heaven this summer! :)

[Yvonne Belisle]

Lavender? I have always wanted lavender but I've never gotten around to planting it.

[BearDancing]

Send me your address and I will surprise you. With instructions if you want. I would love to share with you.

Make sure the lavender that you plant is hardy for your area or it will not come through the winter, if it is not hardy you can plant it in a pot (in the soil outside) and then take it in before the frost to let it grow in the house for the winter.

Love FairieSpirit

[Silver Venus]

Great, send me your address and I will be going down the garden centre this saturday, Ill buy some lavender ~ sow a few of the seeds in sa pot for me and post the rest out to you next morning so you should get them in a weeks time! :D

[Celtic_Angel]

No seeds here other than acorns, but if someone can tell me how to collect seeds from sage and rosemary I'll have some to send to Yvonne.

[Yvonne Belisle]

I'm sure there would be a few takers on those. Medieval times had the belief that rosemary at the door ment that a woman ruled there.

[Celtic_Angel]

lol I did not know that about rosemary. It's all over at my house. Must mean that mother nature rules here over mankind. seems appropriate.

[EasternPriest]

Actually, in our case..it means the last generation of the priesthood went crazy planting it....

[EasternPriest]

Originally posted by Mairwen
Be careful about using last year's seeds. For some reason, and I honestly think it's a capitalistic ploy, seeds collected from plants and saved, as well as "left over seeds" aren't producing anything. :( :bad:

There's a bit of yes and no in that.......Seeds collected from some plants will not germinate, because many of the foods we eat are "hybrids", and the seeds of hybrid plants are usually sterile.

Seeds from previous years may still germinate, but with a lower success rate. As seeds age over time, they become less able to germinate.

The capitalist part comes in that some seeds have been designed to deteriorate more rapidly, so that new seeds must be purchased each year.

[muse]

Thank-you for that post I hadn't thought about that.

[BearDancing]

I collected seeds from a so call hybrid petunia (tidal wave series) I planted them and they are gorgeous. Very strong stems and the flowers are the same color as the original. sometimes they say that if you plant the hybrid seeds that because it is usually a cross between 2 or more that they flower could be something that is totally different than the parent plant (the one you took the seeds from) I have one that is just starting to bloom and it looks a very light pink so far, this is different than all the others that I planted. All but the one are a vibrant deep pink/purple, gorgeous color.

So even if they say hybrid do not be afraid to gather the seeds and try, some may work...some may not.

Sometimes I wonder if they say that they are hybrid to discourge the saving of the seeds for replanting. Yet again alot of gardeners just do not save seeds.

Who knows

[idusty88]

Here is a good article about getting seeds to grow: http://www.organicgardening.com/library/seeding_simple.html .

[EasternPriest]

ask and you shall receive...send an addy and you'll get seeds :)

[skysteed]

Guess who's hanging a large spray of rosemary on the front door today.