Thursday, February 12, 2009

Seeds For Sale

Hey guys-- this is a long post. We're having a seed sale, with heirloom seeds-- old varieties, with lost of flavor! You won't find these in the store or at the garden center. We're selling seeds as a fund-raiser for our garden ministry, which is growing by a huge amount this year! So please help us out! Ordering instructions at the bottom-- or come to the Sale, Saturday March 7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.!!!

BEANS

Empress - $2.00 Bush variety - exceptional flavor, stringless green snap bean, a great bean for fresh eating, freezing or processing. 55 days.

Rattlesnake Snap - Certified Organic $2.50 Pole variety - dark green pods are brushed with purple streaks, drought resistant. 60-90 days.

Sultan’s Golden Crescent - Certified Organic / Very Rare $3.00 Pole variety - Nearly extinct! Curved yellow snap bean, stringless, and prolific. 75 days.

BEETS


Albino - Rare $2.25 Totally white, sweet roots. 50 days.

Early Blood - Certified Organic / Rare $2.50 Dark red, sweet, crisp and tender.Good for summer and autumn planting. 48-68 days.


Broccoli

DeCicco - Certified Organic $2.00 Made U.S. debut in 1890. Italian origin. Early variety. Compact plants with 4” main head, prolific side shoots. 48 days from transplant.


CABBAGE


Winningstadt - $2.25 German heirloom introduced to American in 1866. Sweet mild flavor and dense heads are great for sauerkraut or other favorites. Excellent keeper. 85 days.


Corn


Country Gentleman - Certified Organic $2.50 Introduced in 1890. Late season white, “shoe peg”, 7 - 8 foot stalks often produce two ears. 88 days.


Cucumbers


Armenian - $2.00 Heavily ribbed, pale green, burpless, no need to peel. Retains flavor at 12 - 18” long. 50 - 75 days.

Boothby’s Blonde - $2.00 From the Boothby family in Livermore, Maine. No peelin’, fresh eatin’. Crisp sweet flavor and pale green skin make it a great choice for bread and butter pickles. Best picked at 4”. 55 - 60 days.

Crystal Apple - Certified Organic $2.50 Originated in New Zealand. Unique creamy green, apple shaped variety, very prolific. 65 days.

Mexican Sour Gherkin - Rare $2.50 Culinary oddity. 1 -2” cukes look like tiny watermelons and fall off the vine when ripe. Sweet flavor backed up by an unexpected sourness, as if they were pickled on the vine. 60 - 70 days.

Miniature White - $2.00 Short vined variety is great for gardener with limited space. No peel, sweet flavor. Best raw or in salads, under 3”. 50 days.

Parisian Pickling - Certified Organic / Rare $2.75 From early 1800’s France. Used for pickling gherkins and cornichons. 55 days.

White Wonder - $2.00 Introduced in 1893 from New York. Blocky, ivory-white, 7” fruits are great raw or for pickling. Highly productive, even in hot weather. Cukes start to turn yellow when past maturity. 58 days.


EGGPLANT


Applegreen - Certified Organic / Rare $2.75 Oval, 5” fruits have pale green skin, are non-acidic, no peel, extra early variety that does well in cool and wet conditions (a true feat for eggplant). 65 days from transplant.

Thai Green - $2.00 Long & slender 12” fruits are light green, no peel, and absorb spicy flavors well, hence their use in Thai cuisine. Drought Resistant. 75 days from transplant.


LETTUCE


Amish Deer Tongue - Rare $2.50 Slow bolting. Unique triangular green leaves with straight edges. Broadcast for fantastic baby leaf, “cut and come again” lettuce, or wait for very loose bibb heads. 30 days baby. 55 days head.

Bronze Arrowhead - $2.00 Medal winner at the 1947 All American Selections. One of the very best. Red and green oak leaf type, looseleaf. 45 days.

Crisp Leaf - Certified Organic $2.50 Romaine. Flavorful heads grow to 10” tall with serrated leaves. 45 - 55 days.

Forellenschuss - Rare $2.50 Romaine. Austrian heirloom. Superior flavored lettuce with green leaves and maroon splotches. Holds well in summer. 55 days.

Grandpa Admire’s - Certified Organic $2.50. From civil war veteran George Admire. Bronze tinged lettuce that forms large loose heads. Slow bolting, stands up well to summer heat. 60 days.

Merveille Des Quatre Saisons - $2.00 Butterhead. French heirloom chronicled
in 1885. Attractive reddish bibb type rosette with excellent flavor. Color and flavor do best in cool spring/autumn climate. 60 days.

Reine des Glaces (Ice Queen) - Certified Organic $2.50 Crisphead. Great slow bolting, summer variety. Dark green, deeply pointed, lacy leaves. Use as leaf lettuce once head is cut. 62 days.

Rouge d’ Hiver (Red Winter) - Certified Organic $2.50 Romaine. Green heart with brownish red leaves. Grows 10 -12” tall. Great for salad mixes. 60 days.

Tennis Ball - Certified Organic $2.50 Butterhead. First introduced in the 1850’s. Small tight rosettes of light green leaves form loose heads no bigger than 7”. 50 days.


LIMA BEAN


Christmas - $2.00 Pole variety. Dates back to the 1840’s. Heavy yields of large white beans with maroon spots and swirls. Use as a green shell lima, or dry. Does well even in extreme heat. 75-90 days.

MELONS (canteloupe/honeydew etc.)


Canoe Creek Colossal - Rare $2.50 Large, 8 to 15 pound, deeply ribbed. Great taste, pick when just beginning to “slip”. Pale orange flesh. 85 - 90 days.

Charantais - $2.00 Consensus pick among melon lovers. Smooth, round, 2 pound melons have sweet, fragrant and juicy, salmon colored flesh. Creamy-gray skin with green stripes. 75 - 90 days.

Delice de la Table - Very Rare $2.75 Nearly extinct, late 1800’s French heirloom. Small 1 to 2 pound fruits are mottled orange, have deeply ribbed fruits, and are very sweet. 85 - 90 days.


Ha’Ogen - Rare $2.25 Israeli variety. Deep yellow-orange rind with slight green ribs. Green flesh is sweet with spicy undertones. 75 - 80 days.


Minnesota Midget - Certified Organic $2.75 Extra early, short vined variety. Round 4”+ fruits have a high sugar content and are edible to the rind. Resistant to fusarium wilt. Developed at Univ. of Minnesota in 1948. 60 - 75 days.

Petit Gris de Rennes - Certified Organic $2.75 French melon grown nearly 400 years ago in the garden of the Bishop of Rennes. Sweet orange flesh. 80 - 85 days.

Prescott Fond Blanc - Rare $2.25 French melon documented before 1850. Fruits weigh up to 9 pounds, have a dense sweet flesh and a divine aroma. Skin is “lumpy”. Drought tolerant, and like all rock melons, will NOT “slip”. 85 - 95 days.

Tigger - $2.00 Armenian variety. 1 pound fruits are a vibrant yellow with dark orange zig-zag stripes. The white flesh is semi-sweet, but it is mostly used in gourmet restaurants for it’s visual appeal and incredibly powerful aroma. They are often cut in half and used as striking dessert cups. 85 days.

OKRA

Red Burgundy - $2.00 From Clemson University. 4 foot tall plants with 6 - 8” burgundy colored, tender pods. 55 - 60 days.


ONION


Long Red Florence - Rare $2.00 Italian heirloom. Elongated, bottle shaped bulbs with mild flavor. Great for fresh use. For spring and fall planting. 110 days.


PEPPERS (Heat scale 1 to 5)


Alma Paprika (1) - $2.25 The best for drying and grinding into paprika. Can also be eaten fresh. Round, thick walled peppers are slightly warm and sweet. Ripens from cream-white to orange to red. 75 days.

Fatalii (5) - $2.50 One of the hottest peppers we know of. 3” long, top-shaped, golden-yellow peppers have a citrus flavor, with very few seeds. Can be grown in large pots and kept alive for several seasons. 90 days from transplant.

Fish (3) - $2.50 Pre-1870’s, African-American heirloom. Variegated leaves are creamy grey and dark green, making this a nice edible ornamental. 3 inch fruits start out cream with green stripes, then ripen to orange with brown stripes, then finally red. Use in white stage for cream sauces, or for salsas and fresh use at any stage. 80 days from transplant.

Mustard Habanero (5) - Rare $2.75 Unique colors and shape. Starts out pale green with a purple blush, then mustard orange, then finally reddish orange. 95 days from transplant.

Miniature Chocolate, Miniature Red, Miniature Yellow - $2.50 each color. From the Lucina Cress family in Ohio. 2 inch, mini 2 -3 lobe peppers. Great for stuffing or pickling. 90 days from transplant.

Quadrato Asti Giallo - Rare $2.75 Large blocky bell pepper from Italy. Ripens very slowly from green, to green and yellow, finally to a golden color. Sweet and spicy flavor at any stage. Thick, crisp flesh. 70 - 80 days.

Tolli’s Sweet Italian - $2.50 Sweet red Italian heirloom is versatile and tasty. Great for fresh eating, canning, or added to tomato sauces. Heavy yielding, 4 - 5” long tapered fruits. 80 days from transplant.


Swiss CHARD


Five Color Silverbeet - Certified Organic / Color Guarantee $2.50
Unlike most commercial “rainbow” chard, all the colors in Silverbeet are grown in isolation to insure a proper balance, and give you the best color. 50 - 60 days.


SOYBEAN


Agate - Certified Organic / Very Rare $2.50 Historic New Mexico heirloom. Highly productive, medium-sized yellow seeds with reddish-brown saddles. 80 days.


RADISH


Helios-Certified Organic $2.50 Pale yellow, sweet spring radish, white flesh. 35 days.

Plum Purple - Certified Organic $2.50 Exceptional variety. Round, deep purple roots, white flesh, sweet and mild all season, hardy and never pithy. 25 - 30 days.

SPINACH


Monnopa - Certified Organic $2.50 Round leaf type, claimed to be the sweetest of all spinach. High in vitamins A, C, and E. It is very low in acid which promotes the absorption of calcium and other minerals. 45 - 60 days.

Strawberry Spinach - Very Rare $2.50 Grown in Europe for centuries. 16” plants have triangular toothed leaves and tender shoots good in salads or steamed. Red mulberry-like fruits grow on the same plant and are edible, good for drying or mixing in with salads. A self-seeding annual.


SQUASH


Australian Butter - $2.00 Thick, dry orange flesh is superb for baking and is a good keeper. Hard shelled fruits weigh up to 15 pounds, with a small seed cavity. 95 days.

Galeux d’ Eysines - Rare $2.50 First seen in Tranzault, France. Sweet, moist, orange flesh is great for baking and soups. Fruits weigh 10 - 20 pounds and should be harvested before total maturity. 90 days.

Musquee de Provence - SSE Prize Winner $2.75 From southern France, introduced to America in 1899. Gorgeous, flat “pumpkinesque” fruits average 20 pounds and ripen from green to a rich brown. Deep orange flesh is perhaps the very finest for baking, and is a good keeper too. Often mixed into Fall ornamental displays.
100 - 110 days.

Thelma Sanders Sweet Potato - Certified Organic $2.50 Ohio heirloom from the Knoche family, noted squash collectors. Cream-colored acorn-type squash is great for baking. Very productive. 85 - 90 days.


TOMATO


Blondkopfchen (a.k.a. Little Blonde Girl) - Certified Organic $2.75 Perhaps, the very best all-around grape tomato. 1” golden-yellow fruits with sweet taste, high yields, grows in giant clusters, and unlike many grape/cherry varieties it does not crack. Bears until frost. Indeterminate. 75 - 80 days.

Isis Candy - $2.25 Gorgeous grape tomato marbled with red and has a cat’s eye starburst on the blossom end. Almost too pretty to eat. Sweet and fruity. Indeterminate. 70 - 80 days from transplant.

Jaune Flamme - $2.25 Deep orange, apricot-shaped heirloom from France. Excellent, “bitey” flavor. Great for drying as well. 2 - 3 ounce fruits, borne in clusters. Indeterminate. 70 - 80 days from transplant.

Martino’s Roma - Certified Organic $2.50 SSE’s pick for best Roma variety. Good flavor for a Roma, unlike the supermarket. As always, great for sauce, salads and salsa. Rugose. 75 days from transplant.

span style="font-weight:bold;">John Baer - Certified Organic $2.75 Great all-around tomato. Use for canning and fresh eating. Bright red, smooth and round, meaty with a balanced flavor. Indeterminate. 70 days from transplant.

Plum Lemon - $2.25 Seed found in Moscow market during the 1991 coup. Small, yellow, meaty, pointed end fruits really resemble a lemon. Sweet, refreshing flavor.
Indeterminate. 72 days from transplant.

Purple Russian - $2.25 From Erma Henkel in the Ukraine. Plum shaped, purple-black fruits are meaty with the fantastic “black” flavor, but without the heavy cracking most other black tomatoes have. Indeterminate. 80 days.

Moonglow - Certified Organic / SSE Prize Winner $3.00 Medium size, bright orange fruit, with orange meat and few seeds. Winner of the SSE’s 2007 Heirloom Tomato Tasting. Wonderful flavor. Indeterminate. 80 days from transplant.

Striped Cavern (a.k.a. Schimmig Stoo) - Rare $2.75 Gorgeous stuffing tomato. Hollow, red fruit with yellow stripes and thick flesh, looks like a pepper! Holds 4 weeks in the fridge. Perfect for stuffing with pimento cheese, chicken salad or more. Super choice for caterers. Indeterminate. 80 days from transplant.


Watermelon


Cream of Saskatchewan - Rare $2.50 White fleshed, Russian heirloom. 4 - 10 pound, round fruits have exceptional flavor. Stands up to cool weather. 85 days.

Golden Midget - Rare $2.75 Very early variety with golden-yellow exterior and sweet salmon-pink flesh. Small melons have thin rind and black seeds. 70 days.

Mountain Sweet Yellow - Rare / SSE Pick $3.00 Popular in 1840’s Pennsylvania. Very high sugar content. Dark yellow flesh inside of long, 20 - 30 pound melons. Productive plants. 90 - 100 days.

Moon & Stars (Van Doren strain) - Rare $2.50 This is the original strain of the famous green melons covered with yellow “stars” and having one larger yellow “moon”. Unlike many novelty heirlooms, Van Doren’s sweet pink flesh is good eating. Spotted foliage and brown seeds. 90 days.


Mail Order Instructions
: Simply send us a list of the heirloom varieties you want, and indicate how many packets of each heirloom you need. Add up your total from the pricing given in this list, then add the postage and handling from the guide below. Allow 5-7 days for delivery. Make checks and money orders out to The Rock / LaRoca. Send your seed order to:
In-Feed
c/o: Bob McKinley
472 Larkwood Drive
Lexington, KY 40509

Shipping Fees:
$10 or less………..$3.50
$10 to $20.……….$5.00
$20 to $30.……….$7.00
$30 to $50.……….$9.00
Over $50.…………$10.00

2 comments:

Melissa K. said...

Oh my gosh...I swear I started salavating when I read the list. Yippie...time to plant things. Winter's really going to end!!! My problem is that I want to plant some of everything....Hmmmm...how to choose.

kwsikes said...

Hey,

I've read your blog of and on over the last few months. Great stuff. I'm a pastor in Tacoma and have a little garden. Oh how i long for the long growing seasons of Tennessee. The tomato's just aren't the same up here. That being said, which of your tomato seeds might work best in the nortwestern climate?

kwsikes@hotmail.com