Southern Exposure Seed Exchange

It looks like we found a new seed company to try. A colleague made us aware of the Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. They are a Baker Creek-esque seed company based in Mineral, Virginia that focuses on gmo-free, untreated, open pollinated seeds suited to the inland plains of the mid-Atlantic (our zone, 7a) and the mid-Atlantic region writ large. They describe this area as "generally characterized by high summer heat, humidity, numerous plant diseases, uneven precipitation and occasional high temperatures in the early spring and late fall. Soils are predominately clay except in the sandy coastal areas." Add in the plagues of Egypt-magnitude insect problems we experience at the community garden and this precisely captures our growing conditions.
 
Am I in love? Very possibly. I am withholding judgement til we grow some of their seed, but all indications are positive. 

For starters, their catalog is lovely. Just the type of seed catalog a garden hopes to get in the middle of winter: one filled with planting and seed saving tips, planting calendars (again, for MY zone...how great is that?!), planting quick references, and great information about seed exchanges and preservation programs. It has a great mixture of plant photos and old-timey drawings. All the seed descriptions include indicators identifying varieties "especially well-suited to the Southeast," heirlooms, ecologically grown, and USDA certified organic. They are up front about the specific plant seeds they carry that are hybrids (only four of them). They even sell seed-saving supplies that are usually difficult to find, such as muslin bags and seed vials.

They have a "safe-seed" pledge that says they do not "knowingly buy or sell genetically engineered seeds or plants." I'm happy to see this. While it doesn't necessarily mean they go as far as Baker Creek does to ensure their seed is not GMO tainted (for example testing each batch of heirloom seed), it is still a far cry better than most seed companies out there. 

They are even part of the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association (OSGATA) et al. vs Monsanto lawsuit which definitely scores them points with me. If you aren't familiar with the lawsuit, I encourage you to read about it here. 

Overall, I am excited to order some seed from these folks. We've been looking for some summer lettuce that can withstand our brutal June temperatures, and it looks like they have a few varieties that fit the bill. (I'm eyeing the "Jericho" which was bred for desert heat and which is "especially suited to the Southeast.") I will do a follow up post later this summer.

2013 Seed Collection

Here is what is in our seed collection for 2013. I will update this periodically though the year as my will power fails me, and I buy more seeds than my garden can ever accommodate. The * indicates the seeds we usually start indoors.

Storage: We store our seeds in old peanut butter jars or a ziploc and keep it in a crisper drawer in our fridge.

Beans:

Bean, Brittle Wax (Bush Wax) -OP- Burpee -52 days  (1 1/2 pkgs)

Bean, Burpee's Stringless Green Pod- F1 - Burpee- 50days (Bush habit)
Bean, Climbing French - SSE -OP-65-75 days (pole habit)

Brassicas:           

Broccoli, Calabrese Green Sprouting, Baker Creek

*Brussels Sprouts- Baker Creek-OP 

Kohlrabi, Early White Vienna – Baker Creek - OP

Pakchoi, Choko Baby  – John Scheepers – 45 – 55 days

Climbers (Peas and Cukes):

Pea, Shelling (Burpeeana Early)-Burpee - 63 days

Pea, Super Sugar Snap (edible podded) - Burpee – 64 days

Cucumber, Burpless Beauty – Burpee – F1- 60 days

Cucumber, Bush Champion - Burpee - F1 - 55 days 58-65 days
Cucumber, Japanese Climbing- SSE -OP

Gourds and Squash/Pumpkins:

Winter Squash, Early Butternut (bush habit) – John Scheepers – 82 days

Potimarron - SSE -85-95 days (saw this in Germany and loved it. SSE is the only place I know of that sells it)
Pumpkin, Early Sweet Sugar Pie--Burpee 90 days

Herbs:

*Basil, Greek - Burpee Fordhook Collection                        

*Basil, Lime- Burpee Fordhook Collection            

*Basil, Genovese – Baker Creek
*Basil, Sweet - Burpee

*Bee Balm, Lemon – Baker Creek            

Chamomile, Organic German ( but actually roman)-Garden's Alive-OP- Perennial

Chamomile, Bodegold – John Scheepers - Perennial
Chamomile, Organic German - Garden's Alive
Chervil, Curled -Burpee Fordhook Collection  

Chives, Common- Burpee-Perennial
Chives, Common - American Seed
Chives, Common - Burpee Signature 
Chives, Garlic - Burpee                   

*Cilantro, Slo-bolt – Baker Creek
Cilantro, American Seed            

Lavender, True - Burpee

*Majoram - Ferry Morse             

*Oregano – Burpee
Parsley, Single Italian Plain Leafed - Burpee

*Sage, Broad Leaf -Jiffy Smart Start

*Tarragon  -Ferry Morse

*Thyme, Common -  Burpee   

Nightshade:

*Cherry Tomato, Blondkopfchen-SSE-OP- 75-80 days (yellow)

*Cherry Tomato, Black Cherry- Baker Creek – OP (black/purple)
*Cherry Tomato, Riesentraube- Baker Creek -OP (red)
*Cherry Tomato, Super Sweet 100 –Burpee- F1-70 days (red)

*Tomato, Cherokee Purple – Baker Creek – OP (black/purple)

*Tomato, Costoluto Genovese- Baker Creek-OP (red)

*Tomato, Green Zebra-Baker Creek - OP    (green)

*Tomato, Orange Fleshed Purple Smudge- Baker Creek – OP -(multi)

*Tomato, Thessaloniki- Baker Creek-OP-60-80 days (red)

*Tomato, "2012 Volunteer" cherry/Roma mix (red)

*Pepper, Beaver Dam – SSE – OP-80 days from transplant (mildly hot)

*Pepper, Black Hungarian – SSE – OP 70-80 days from transplant (medium hot)

*Pepper, Garden Sunshine – SSE – OP-80-100 days from transplant (sweet)
*Pepper, Red Mini Bell- Baker Creek (sweet)
 Onions:

Bunching Onions, Evergreen Long White -Burpee- Perennial

Onion, Nebuka Bunching- Plantation- 60-65 days
Onion, Yellow Granex - John Scheepers - 150 days 

Onion, Red of Florence, Baker Creek

Leek, American Flag--Ferry Morse

Shallots, Ambition – John Scheepers--100 days

Root Vegetables:

Beets, Yellow Cylindrical, Baker Creek

Beets, Chioggia, Baker Creek
Beets, Cylindra - Burpee - 60 days
Carrot, Nantes Half Long - Burpee - 70 days
Carrot, Short n' Sweet Chantenay - Burpee - 68 days
Parsnip, Harris Model, Baker Creek

Radish, Asian Watermelon - Burpee - 35 days
Radish, Gourmet Rainbow Mix (Flamboyant French Breakfast (red/white long taper), Fuego (red round), Hailstone (white round), Helios Yellow (round), Pink Celebration (round), Plum Purple (round), Roodkapje (red/white round) and White Icicle (long taper)  - John Scheeper- 23-30 days 

Turnip, Purple Top White Globe – SSE -  45-65 days

Turnip, Golden Globe - Baker Creek
Salad:

Asian Greens, Mizuna, Baker Creek

Asian Greens, Tatsoi, Baker Creek

Lettuce, Butter Beauty (butterhead) - Burpee - 75 days
Lettuce, Burpee Bib (butterhead)- Burpee 75 days

Lettuce, Parris Island Romaine – Ferry Morse – OP-68 days

Lettuce, Simpson Elite (looseleaf) –Burpee –OP- 48 days

Lettuce, Tennis Ball (butterhead)- SSE
Lettuce Mix, Lovely Lettuce Mesclun Blend (Little Gem Baby Romaine, Curly Tango, Cheeky Red Lolla Rossa, Crispy Summertime, Brunia red oakleaf, Buttery Rouge Grenobloise and Merveille des Quatre Saisons) - John Scheepers - OP-30-40 days

Mustard Greens – Baker Creek
Japanese Giant Red Mustard Greens - Baker Creek
Flowers:
Echineacea, Majestic Coneflower Mixture- John Scheepers- Perennial
Bells of Ireland -Burpee
Love in a Mist - Baker Creek (2pkgs)
Lupine, Russells Hybrid Mix - Burpee
Sunflower, Tiger Eye Mix - Baker Creek

December Radishes

We have had great luck with radishes this December. Instead of our usual radishes we planted the John Scheepers "Gourmet Rainbow Radish Mix" which includes Flamboyant French Breakfast (red/white long taper), Fuego (red round), Hailstone (white round), Helios Yellow (round), Pink Celebration (round), Plum Purple (round), Roodkapje (red/white round) and White Icicle (long taper) and has a growth time of 23-30 days.

We must have lucked out because we harvested a handful and each was a different type. Usually with these seed mixes there seems to be an uneven amount of one type over the others so we were pleasantly surprised. Below are some we picked right before the holiday. We appear to have the White Icicle (which were kind of meh), the Hailstone and the Fuego (both were tasty), and the Plum Purple (which was fantastic!!!).

We previously harvested long red, carrot-looking radishes that I think are the Flamboyant French Breakfast and were also tasty.  Below is also the Pink Celebration which was good. The only one we have not had is the yellow Helios radishes.

When these run out we plan to get more of just the Plum Purples which were out of this world!

Seeds for Cold Weather

Our seed order is here! It includes a few more things we may be able to squeak out for fall but otherwise it is all for spring. We aren't going to do a CSA share next year since we haven't been super pleased with what we have received.  We are going to garden more and visit the farmer's market more instead. However there are several things we were introduced to via the CSA that we do not want to give up, and we are going to try our hand at growing those. Here is what we ordered:

Mizuna - This is spicy asian green we usually get from the CSA)

Tatsoi - This is a spicy asian green we usually get from the CSA that hubby loves to use in pesto

Rainbow Swiss Chard  - Hubby loves it and I like the look of it when it is growing so we are going to try it)

Parsnips, Harris Model - We usually do Hollow Crown but we love parsnips a ton (obviously) we are going to plant both kinds next year. We might try and get a sowing of this in for fall so that we have early spring parsnips.

Broccoli, Calabrese Green Sprouting - For some reason growing broccoli has always intimidated us, but we're gonna give it a go next year. Our attitude now is that with the row cover anything is possible!

Onion, Red of Florence- We are already planning to grow onion from seed for the first time next year instead of getting sets. If I am going to do all the work I figured we should try two types of onions and not just one.

Beets, Yellow Cylindrical- We love golden beets and the cylindras we have are so easy to cut so we thought a gold cylindra would be awesome. Turns out these are actually mangels (super big roots grown for animal fodder) but we'll see how they taste. As long as we pick them small they won't have a chance to go behemoth on us.

Beets, Chioggia (striped)- We are in a beet faze and I have always been intrigued by these striped beets. Plust they are supposed to taste less "earthy" than regular beets.

and for our free gift (Baker Creek always includes one) we got American Melon. I'm not a huge melon fan and we don't really have the space for melons, but I'm sure we can find some use for the seed. 

Our Seed Collection - 2012

Here is what is in our seed collection right now (or as Garden Betty calls it, our seed vault). Since I'm already shopping for next year I thought I should know what I already have without having to trot all the seeds out periodically. We store our seeds in old peanut butter jars or a ziploc and keep it in a crisper drawer in our fridge. The * indicates the seeds we start indoors. The bolding are the seeds we got mid-season that we will try in 2013.

Beans:

Bean, Brittle Wax (Bush Wax) -OP- Burpee -52 days  (1 1/2 pkgs)

Bean, Burpee's Stringless Green Pod- F1 - Burpee- 50days (Bush habit)
Bean, Climbing French - SSE -OP-65-75 days (pole habit)

Brassicas:           

Brussels Sprouts- Baker Creek-OP 

Kohlrabi, Early White Vienna – Baker Creek - OP

Choko Baby Pakchoi – John Scheepers – 45 – 55 days

Climbers (Peas and Cukes):

Pea, Shelling (Burpeeana Early)-Burpee - 63 days

Pea, Super Sugar Snap (edible podded) - Burpee – 64 days

Cucumber, Burpless Beauty – Burpee – F1- 60 days

Cucumber, Bush Champion - Burpee - F1 - 55 days 58-65 days
Cucumber, Japanese Climbing- SSE -OP

Gourds and Squash/Pumpkins:

Winter Squash, Early Butternut (bush habit) – John Scheepers – 82 days

Potimarron - SSE -85-95 days (saw this in Germany and loved it. SSE is the only place I know of that sells it)
Pumpkin, Early Sweet Sugar Pie--Burpee 90 days

Herbs:

*Basil, Greek - Burpee Fordhook Collection                        

*Basil, Lime- Burpee Fordhook Collection            

*Basil, Genovese – Baker Creek
*Basil, Sweet - Burpee

*Bee Balm, Lemon – Baker Creek            

Chamomile, Organic German ( but actually roman)-Garden's Alive-OP- Perennial

Chamomile, Bodegold – John Scheepers - Perennial
Chamomile, Organic German - Garden's Alive
Chervil, Curled -Burpee Fordhook Collection  

Chives, Common- Burpee-Perennial
Chives, Common - American Seed
Chives, Common - Burpee Signature 
Chives, Garlic - Burpee                   

*Cilantro, Slo-bolt – Baker Creek
Cilantro, American Seed            

Lavender, True - Burpee

*Majoram - Ferry Morse             

*Oregano – Burpee
Parsley, Single Italian Plain Leafed - Burpee

*Sage, Broad Leaf -Jiffy Smart Start

*Tarragon  -Ferry Morse

*Thyme, Common -  Burpee   

Nightshade:

*Cherry Tomato, Blondkopfchen-SSE-OP- 75-80 days (yellow)

*Cherry Tomato, Black Cherry- Baker Creek – OP (black/purple)
*Cherry Tomato, Riesentraube- Baker Creek -OP (red)
*Cherry Tomato, Super Sweet 100 –Burpee- F1-70 days (red)

*Tomato, Cherokee Purple – Baker Creek – OP (black/purple)

*Tomato, Costoluto Genovese- Baker Creek-OP (red)

*Tomato, Green Zebra-Baker Creek - OP    (green)

*Tomato, Orange Fleshed Purple Smudge- Baker Creek – OP -(multi)

*Tomato, Thessaloniki- Baker Creek-OP-60-80 days (red)

*Eggplant, Rossa Bianca – SSE – OP -80 days

*Pepper, Beaver Dam – SSE – OP-80 days from transplant (mildly hot)

*Pepper, Black Hungarian – SSE – OP 70-80 days from transplant (medium hot)

*Pepper, Garden Sunshine – SSE – OP-80-100 days from transplant (sweet)
*Pepper, Red Mini Bell- Baker Creek (sweet)
 Onions:

Onion, Nebuka Bunching- Plantation- 60-65 days
Onion, Yellow Granex - John Scheepers - 150 days

Evergreen Long White Bunching Onions -Burpee- Perennial
Leek, American Flag--Ferry Morse

Shallots, Ambition – John Scheepers--100 days

Root Vegetables:

Beets, Burpee Golden – SSE – 55-60 days
Beets, Cylindra - Burpee - 60 days
Carrot, Nantes Half Long - Burpee - 70 days
Carrot, Short n' Sweet Chantenay - Burpee - 68 days
Parsnip, Hollow Crown- Burpee – OP- 105 days
Radish, French Breakfast – SSE – OP – 30 days       
Radish, Asian Watermelon - Burpee - 35 days
Radish, Gourmet Rainbow Mix (Flamboyant French Breakfast (red/white long taper), Fuego (red round), Hailstone (white round), Helios Yellow (round), Pink Celebration (round), Plum Purple (round), Roodkapje (red/white round) and White Icicle (long taper)  - John Scheeper- 23-30 days 

Turnip, Purple Top White Globe – SSE -  45-65 days

Turnip, Golden Globe - Baker Creek  
Salad:

Lettuce, Butter Beauty (butterhead) - Burpee - 75 days
Lettuce, Burpee Bib (butterhead)- Burpee 75 days

Lettuce, Parris Island Romaine – Ferry Morse – OP-68 days

Lettuce, Simpson Elite (looseleaf) –Burpee –OP- 48 days

Lettuce, Tennis Ball (butterhead)- SSE
Lettuce Mix, Lovely Lettuce Mesclun Blend (Little Gem Baby Romaine, Curly Tango, Cheeky Red Lolla Rossa, Crispy Summertime, Brunia red oakleaf, Buttery Rouge Grenobloise and Merveille des Quatre Saisons) - John Scheepers - OP-30-40 days

Mustard Greens – Baker Creek
Japanese Giant Red Mustard Greens - Baker Creek 
Flowers:
Echineacea, Majestic Coneflower Mixture- John Scheepers- Perennial
Bells of Ireland -Burpee
Love in a Mist - Baker Creek (2pkgs)
Lupine, Russells Hybrid Mix - Burpee
Sunflower, Tiger Eye Mix - Baker Creek

Seeds 40% Off

We were just at Kmart, and they had Burpee seeds 40% off. Couldn't resist adding a few things to the ol' seed collection. I know some hardcore gardeners snub their noses at Burpee seeds but as much as I hate to admit it we have really good luck with Burpee seed.

We bought some cylindra beets, asian watermelon radishes, sweet basil, burpless cucumbers and bush cucumbers, some butterhead lettuce and some lavender which I have had very poor luck with in the past. 3rd time's the charm :)

2012 SEEDS!!!!

The Baker Creek seed catalog came and I couldn't resist buying some seeds to add to the trove I have in the fridge. This year's additions include Early White Vienna Kohlrabi, Assorted Sunflowers, Black Cherry tomatoes, Mustard Greens, Bee Balm (lemon), Genovese Basil, and a splurge: Orange Fleshed Purple Smudge tomatoes. Who could resist something called purple smudge?

And the folks at Baker Creek are so friendly. I accidentally ordered 2 Kohlrabi packets, and seriously, who can plant 800 Kohlrabi plants? I emailed them right away and they told me that my order already shipped but they would refund me anyway for the extra packet and that I should share it with a friend. I love good customer service.