Don’t onion seedlings make you think of tiny little alien tentacles or periscopes rising up from the soil?
p.s. If you sow too much, the sprouts are edible, too.
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Kokopelli Seed Foundation
I want this book! We took a week off last month, staying at the home of an avid tomato gardener whose name I have not sought permission to reveal (and therefore will not). While there she introduced me to the Kokopelli Seed Foundation, a non-profit organization based in France who are working to actively address issues of food security and preserve biodiversity by producing organic open-pollinated seeds as well as educating and promoting these issues globally.
One of their projects is the book, “The Seeds of Kokopelli” by Dominique Guillet is a massive 440 page, hardcover tome introducing Kokopelli’s work and farms, as well as proper pollination, seed production and saving techniques for an assortment of vegetables. The bulk of the book functions as a food plant directory introducing thousands of open-pollinated and heirloom herb and vegetable varieties. My host had the French version of the book at her home
(“Les Semences de Kokopelli“) which proved to be a bit of a tease given that I could only gaze at the photos, picking up a line or two of French here and there. Even still, on quick glance the book introduced me to a few interesting varieties that I’ve got on my list for next year including:
- Cucumis myriocarpus – Non-edible, but highly decorative and weird cucumber relative.
- ‘Kaiser Alexander’ Cucumber – Another freaky, but edible cucumber with a strange brownish, ridged skin reminiscent of cantaloupe.
What I saw has absolutely convinced me to order a English edition for myself. $46 (includes shipping to Canada) is an excellent price for such a massive encyclopedia of plants. The price including shipping to the US is a deal at $34-38.
Leave a commentMexican Sour Gherkin
Adorably teeny tiny Mexican Sour Gherkins (Melothria scabra) are starting to pop up all over the vines I’ve got growing at my community garden plot. The fruit in the picture is about half and inch or so and should be approximately 1-2″ when fully ripe however I am extremely impatient and picked a few for tasting. They taste very much like tiny, juicy cucumbers. Every description I have read says they have a surprisingly sour skin that makes them taste almost pre-pickled straight off the vine. Mine were very fresh flavored so I can only guess that the sourness will develop as the fruit matures.
The plant is a very ornamental and prolific vine with lots of pretty little leaves dotted by miniature yellow flowers. The tiny, ridiculously cute fruit are like Lilliputian watermelons, accounting for nicknames like “mouse melon” and “sandÃÂita†(Spanish for little watermelon).
Growing It
I started mine this past spring from seeds purchased online via Seed Savers. I was a little bit concerned by the small size of the plants in comparison to other cucumbers at planting time but they took off immediately and quickly climbed up the trellis I made for my cucumbers using bamboo stakes and a plastic “chicken wire” leftover from another project. So far the plants are living up to their reputation as a pest and disease-resistant species — while some of the other curcubits are starting to show signs of powdery mildew the Mexican Sour Gherkins are entirely blemish and pest free. The plants are also much more drought tolerant than other cucumber-related plants making them a welcome addition to gardens like mine that can’t be tended to on a daily basis. I am not growing any on my rooftop garden this year but I would imagine that unlike many cucumber varieties that can be tricky in containers, their drought tolerant nature and small size would make this a good option in a medium-large sized container.
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Leave a commentKitazawa Seeds
Sure we’re already mid-way into the growing season but it’s not too late to plant seeds and it is certainly not too late to buy seeds with pretty packaging. I found these Asian seeds by Kitazawa Seed Co. at Soko Hardware in an Francisco’s Japantown and could not resist their understated but well-designed packages for my collection.
I plan to try out the watercress seeds immediately as an experiment and will use the daikon seeds in my sprouter. I already have my shiso crop in place for this year and being hardy self-seeders probably won’t need the seeds next year but I thought, What the hey, and bought them anyways.
Browsing through the website I can see that they have a huge selection of Asian veggies and herbs that I have never seen anywhere else. Check out ‘Tankuro’, a black seeded soybean, ‘Japanese Long Scarlet‘ an elongated, red radish, and ‘Kurogoma‘ black sesame seeds! Too late and too much for this year but possibles for next year’s experiments.
Leave a commentHerb Fair 2007
Aka The Great Yearly Event in Which I Grant Myself Permission to Pig Out on More Herbs Than You Can Shake a Stick At.
I went. I smelled. Money left my wallet. I went home with an allergy attack and a cart full of glorious, smellerific plants.
Here’s what everyone wants to see:
- ‘Red Gem’ and ‘Tangerine Gem’ Marigolds – Have I sold you on these yet? I’ve been shouting high and low about these for years and they’re still not as popular as I’d like them to be. In fact I did not grow any from seed because they were so easy to find last year. 4 for a buck. This year, NOTHING. Now I’ve been reduced to purchasing these at 2 bucks a pop.
- Virginia Mountain Mint
- Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea) – A native carnivorous plant. I purchased this one from the North American Native Plant Society. There is a large cocoon snug inside one of the old pitchers. Only time will tell what will emerge from within. We wait and watch with fear and excitement.
- Coconut Geranium – My scented geranium collection is seriously out-of-hand. Have I mentioned how I really do not need more plants to over-winter? You should see it though. It’s the small leaved type with delicate little purple/pink flowers. Sigh.
- Peppermint Geranium – I have a variegated type but this one has irresistably soft and fuzzy leaves.
- Sweet Marjoram
- Basils – I won’t list all the varieties, of which there are many. Several in fact. This list might go on for days.
- Perilla ‘Britton’ – I grew this two-toned leaf variety last year and it was such a hit I thought I’d try it again.
- ‘Purple Beauty’ Pepper – A sweet bell pepper that I can’t recommend enough. It does well in medium-sized containers (try at least a foot and a half deep) with fruit that starts out purple so you don’t have to slug it out through boring green bells waiting for a colour change.
- ‘Black Pineapple’ Tomato – Colette of Urban Harvest describes it as “ugly but delicious.” She’s been trying to sell it to me all season-long and frankly I just don’t have the fortitude and willpower necessary to resist a black tomato.
- Orange Thyme – One of my favourite thyme varieties. There are an astonishing number beyond the usual — please don’t make me choose just one. This one features a very low trailing habit with spikey leaves that carry a sweet n’ spicey orange scent.
- Lemon Eucalyptus – I could not resist the strong, fresh lemon scent and the delicate, floppy leaves. I do not need another plant to overwinter! Why do I do this to myself?
I also received a couple of basils and eggplants in trade. Now I just have to get these things planted!
Previously: 2005, 2004, 2003… and so on.
Now I know why I neglected to write a yearly update after last year’s event… too many plants!
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