I thank you for the tomato seeds . I realize that probably meant the johnny jump ups being offered . I just thought I would ask about that ,,
I remember looking through the Asian vegetables but you have the Bok choy , and that seems about all here , and everywhere most of the time ,

Actually, I just like violas and each year think about starting them indoors.

But I already have more seeds than I plan to start ... I just like collecting seeds! And I have grandiose plans for when I retire ... counting the days ...

Some of the viola seeds seem dried out but the I have about 30 seeds of ,, If I don't get at least one of twelve , I rarely do at all so 12 or so of of one to you ,

Those ones in the list are all I have done , Many I could offer eight or nine trades of ,,

Besides ,, a few specials is what this is about ,,

contemplating adding more ..

For me just getting a few greens to chew on and a few to make seeds is an accomplishment sometimes , it goes the way it does ,

Years ago I worked with a guy who had a saying that I like better and better.

You can say it straight or wryly.

"Every day is an adventure!"

That was not meant to imply anything bad about Bok Choy, Rick
it is nice to grow , I get that as,, say that in one singular you would have to speak 20 languages in one word ?

Rick - Are any of those tomatoes good for high elevation? I live in Colorado and we have cold plus elevation. My friend wants tomatoes but she is higher elevation than I am. So the ones I like don't like her place.

Thanks,
Cheryl

In summary, seeds will be identified by year?

Yes, if someone has older seed they will indicate it. When you look at each listing for seeds you may see a ? highlighted in blue. If you roll over it, you will see any comments the person offering the seed made about that item. It is usually there that a person lists the age of the seed.

Hi Littlecheryl, and welcome to ATP!

I don't recall any of the descriptions specifying "for high altitudes". Maybe short-season tomatoes? If your friend knows some names of varieties that do well at high altitudes, I could look to see if I have those.

I found this PDF about tomatoes in Idaho:
http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edc...

"YOU ARE A SHORT-SEASON, HIGH-ALTITUDE GARDENER IF:
You live in Idaho at an elevation above 4,500 feet,
OR
Your USDA hardiness zone is 4 or lower,
OR
You have a frost-free growing season of 110 days or less"

Scanning to see what they recondite:
"For a list of tomato varieties recommended for short-season, high-altitude areas, consult “Choosing and Growing Adapted Vegetable Varieties” in the Short-Season, High-Altitude Gardening Series:
http://info.ag.uidaho.edu/pdf/...

But that link didn't work for me.
Try: http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edc...

That whole website might have gardening info specialized to idaho, but it might apply to parts of CO also.

They suggest these:


VARIETY - - - - DAYS TO Maturity - - - - - HARVEST NOTES
Better Bush 72 Large, red, bred for container planting
Champion 62 Large, red, good fruit set in cold climates
Early Goliath 60 Largest early variety, dark red fruit, good slicer
Fourth of July 49 Medium size, red, one of earliest varieties
Golden Girl 69 Small to medium size, gold color, high yield, sweet
Northern Exposure 67 Medium-large, red, compact, good in high
elevations
Phoebe’s 65 Large, red, bred in Rexburg, ID; hard to find
Roma 62 Small-medium, red, oval shape, good for sauce
Siletz 57 Medium size, dark red, seedless slicer, full flavor
SubArctic Maxi 48 Small-medium, red, recommended for high elevations
Sweet 100 65 Small, red, very prolific, sweet flavo

I think I once had a trade pkt of Siletz but can't find it. I might still have 'Sub-Arctic Plenty' but not 'Sub-Arctic Maxi'.


(But again, my single-pkt tomatoes from trades will be older seeds, like 2011-2013 and some older.)

Great suggestions/response, Rick!

Thank you! I saved both PDFs that I found, for later perusal.

My regional "quirk" for tomato-growing is that nights just never really warm up. We have a long frost-free period, but days don't reach as warm as 50F for a long time in the spring, and nights get cool almost all summer long.

I had some Stupice that were fairly good for a few weeks, but then we had some colder nights ... and their flavor became like cardboard. Old, stale cardboard. Sungold cherry tomatoes didn't mind those cool nights as much as the Stupice.

RickCorey said: ... and their flavor became like cardboard. Old, stale cardboard.

...sounds delicious

And Really good for "Pulping Up " Minerals and Radical protection ,
Reaction really gets the Blood Circulating .

>> their flavor became like cardboard. Old, stale cardboard.

It's a description that we'll never read on a commercial seed packet.

I think the people who write blurbs for places like Burpee and Parks listened to too many episodes of Lake Woebegone, where all the children are above average.

If I believed their catalog and packets, EVERY variety they sell is the most popular, has the best flavor, and is the easiest to grow. Of course, they sometimes forget to mention things like "needs stratification" or "slow and irregular germination".

Thanks Rick!! That was very helpful! I will work on my lists and add some to my want list The database is really great but it does take time to enter them all!! I did flowers and veggies A-C (doing a santa swap thing so I have to keep adding!), I have I think 86 and that's not all of them (some I couldn't find). Once I get the database complete I will be starting my trade list. I will have to count my seeds and pre-pack/label them. Just curious if 15-20 counts are the norm? Also, how many should I keep for myself if I plan to save their seed? Then once my math is all done, I will make a want list!! Oh my that is definitely a to do list!

Littlecheryl said:Just curious if 15-20 counts are the norm? Also, how many should I keep for myself if I plan to save their seed?

Yes and no. 15-20 seems about average, but it depends on the type of plant and/or seed size. If the seeds are tiny (like poppy seeds), there's likely to be A LOT more in the package (more likely to be described/measured in terms of tsp or mg, too). Larger seeds, likes corn or daylily seeds, may only be around 5 seeds, or even less.

Keep what you think you will need. Overestimate your needs of your not sure. There's no sense giving away too much and then having to purchase more seeds later.

Most of the time , My seeds like cucumber never keep well, years like this I will keep three or four and grow a few seeds for another season , limited space means every few years I can grow them , this time a few in buckets or large pots
Eat one or two , save the other for seeds , not as many in pots or buckets ,
unless your using the grow containers ,
This may sound a bit like blithering from me , but it is part of the decision
Most find the seeds easy , you get a lot for the packages , but that has been slowly reducing also , So it is nice to have a few that make seeds ,

Following the above , The Spacemaster grew well with reduced germination the first season I grew them , last year , hardly any germinated . this season all I planted grew with good germination ,, I never can tell with the cucumber seeds ,
I have more drying , if they get done , (they will ) I will ad these . they are , NP or SE Green cucumbers ,

The Biennis seeds are three season old from the fridge
Most are new or less than two seasons old ,,

All things being though , the seeds of most of the cucumbers , once again , are very difficult for me to determine , Best I try for is a nice plump hand sorted seed to trade .

Tomatoes , Might grow if your ancestors saved them , some keep a year , some might keep 100 yrs or more ,
I know , i know , all agree though 5 to 10 is the end ,, lol

Glad to help! I saved those articles too, for reading at leisure. Thanks for prompting me to go hunt!

You might consider keeping some notes as you pick out your varieties, especially after you've tried some of them. You could write up your notes - or lists of recommended varieties for altitude - as an article or tip. Dave and Trish give acorns for articles of all different lengths, including "tips" just a few lines long. And we all appreciate learning from other peoples' research and experience.

Littlecheryl said: ... Once I get the database complete I will be starting my trade list. I will have to count my seeds and pre-pack/label them. ...

That is key! The times I've listed some seed "because I know I have lots of that left", I either have fewer than I thought, or can't find the big bag they were in. Now I try to follow the rule: "find it and count it, THEN list it!".

Those "HAVE" lists are precious!

>> Just curious if 15-20 counts are the norm?

Sizes range all over the map. If it's a perennial or re-seeding flower, probably people only need enough seeds that they are sure to get several seedlings, and they can multiply the plant from that start.

For annuals and vegetables, I think it's nice to include at least enough to give it two good trials, like 5-10 feet of row each time, if practical. And cost can be a factor for purchased seeds.

I mostly go by how much seed I have. If I have lots of one variety, I enjoy packing up fat trade packets with 1/8th tsp or 1/4 tsp of small seeds each. That might let someone plant a spring row, a fall row, and have enough left for next year if they liked it. I do want to use or give away all of a variety before it becomes old enough to have declining vigor and germination rates.

When I get a full ounce of lettuce seed, it usually costs $4 to $7.50. I sometimes divide that up in 1/2 tsp pkts, and will combine those into full tsp packets if they get several years old. I could have split that into 16 pkts, almost 2 grams each, and each pkt would only have cost me 25 - 50 cents plus shipping.

I also bought (recently) three fancy new varieties of lettuce, each $3.00 for 150 seeds. I have to decide whether to split each three ways (50 seeds costing $1 per pkt), or maybe 5 ways (30 seeds = 60 cents) or 7 ways (20 seeds = 43 cents). But I'm definitely saving at least 50 seeds for myself!

It's a tough decision whether to offer two people 50 vegetable seeds each, or four people 25 seeds each. 25 heads of looseleaf lettuce is barely enough to know if you like them plus save some seeds. But 25 big heads of Romaine might be plenty.

Frank Morton's relatively new "Flashy" lettuce cultivars look pretty and are unusual hybrids of different lettuce types, so I'd like to spread them around. But I'd rather make two people happy then make four people grumpy! In the past, I've had small commercial packets of some unusual variety, and got out my 1/32nd tsp measuring spoon so I could split it several ways. Then every time I looked at those skimpy packets, I felt cheap. Now I lean more the other way when I have enough seeds to go around.

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa 'Flashy Lightning')
Lettuce (Lactuca sativa 'Flashy Green Butter Oak')
Lettuce (Lactuca sativa 'Flashy Butter Gem')
http://www.rareseeds.com/flash...

(Their coloring is like -
Lettuce (Lactuca sativa 'Forellenschluss') )

Last years Zinnia seeds , Mixed reviews , from feedback , Mine did not germinate as well as possible either , However last season neither did production purchased . Feedback same about that ,
These do not look all that bad to me though ,


I like Lettuce myself , My favorite this year was Paris Island , but no seeds , end of the season no plants either .




Zinnia Seeds