Saturday 20 August 2016

Tomato Seed Audit & Seed Parcels


The nights are beginning to draw in and the Wyevale seed sale will be on over the bank holiday so it's time to start looking at my seed list and stocks and thinking about what I need more off and to replace. I do have a lot and I mean a lot of tomato seeds, orders from the family was that they didn't want yellow, purple, black or green toms so those that I have can be donated to fellow plot holders or go to a seed swap.

The wife does not understand why I need to try new varieties every year, in her mind as long as they are red she is happy. Then I point out to her that she likes plum and cherry but there are times you want larger or even beefsteak sized toms 


I'm about to send 20 packs of self saved parsnip seed to the GYO Grapevine Virtual Seed Parcel and as a result can request 20 packs of seed back so you guessed it I'm looking at tomatoes. Those whos stock I need to replace and those new ones that I want to try.
   
What is this a virtual parcel, well it differs to others that I have joint where a physical parcel normally a small box of a certain size to limit the expense is sent from member to member who has asked to be on the list and the parcel is tracked and the mileage traveled is recorded and the parcel tracked.  You open it up take out what you fancy and add seeds that you no longer want back into the parcel, then post it on to the next member.

The GYO Virtual Seed Parcel is only open to Grapes (members of the grapevine forum with UK return addresses) the seed are listed on the forum. It's fundamentally a seed swap system and has conditions of membership.

You must have been a member of the Grapevine for at least three months and have made more than 50 posts in those three months, which really is not hard to do as there are lots of interesting threads to contribute to and games on the forum.


Basically if you had 10 packs of seeds that you don't want, and you want to echange them for 10 on the list that you do want you look at the extensive list of seeds on The NEW Virtual Seed Parcel - Seed lists.and draw up your wish list. Then send your seed to Veggie Chicken the organiser and keeper of the pointy stick on the forum (as in she is one of the moderators) who will swap them for 10 packs you have selected if they have not already gone, and send them back to you.

One can send in as few or as many packs but there is a limit of 20 out at one time.


Normally I grow 8 toms in the Space Saver Greenhouse, 20 in the back garden in flower buckets, 4 - 6 out in the open on the allotment and 6 - 10 under cover and next year hopefully the new greenhouse will be erected on plot 23B

Below is an audit of my tomato seed stock.

Tomatoes Red

Amish Mayberry
Beefsteak
Cherry Cascade– No Seed
Crimson Crush self saved experiment
Gardeners Delight– Too many packs give some away or swap 
Garden Pearl
Harbinger – one seed
Hundreds and Thousands – Definite in quantity
Kibitz – No Seed
Marvel Stripes
Money Maker
Necta Rose
Outdoor Girl – two seeds
Plum Roma
Purple Russian Plum
Rainbow Blend F1
Red Robin – Definite in quantity
Red Zebra
Sandpipe No Seed but plants growing in the SpaceSaver for seed saving this year 
Stupicke Poini Rane
Sunset Sweet Horizon – 3 seeds
Sunset Red Horizon - two packs 
Super Roma
Sweet Aparitif
Sweet Million No Seed
Sweet’n’Neat Cherry  No Seed
Tesco Mini Plum
Terenzo F1 Hybrid
Tomatoberry Garden F1
Tumbler
Tumberling Tom Red

Black

Black Sea Man
Black Krim
Black Opel (Cherry)
Black Russian

Yellow

Limmony
Oleron Yellow
Nikolayev Cherry
Summer Cider
Wild Cherry
Yellow Cherry

Green

Tomatillo Verde
Green Zebra

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