Topic: Seed Sharing Circle

[aj]

I lasted 5 minutes.

Opened - and OMG - what a fantastic haul!!!

Thanks everyone - and JayB for organising it.  :P  ;D :-*

[galina]

And here too.  Absolutely brilliant!  I succumbed and opened the packet.  It is just thrilling.  Thank you JayB, thank you everybody - Thank you so much.

Don't worry Earlypea - when Jayb said she was getting ready to send, I used a few generic descriptions from the HSL catalogue and copied them into our list.  Scrap them and replace with your own, they were just place holders before we got the real thing.

Happy Birthday to you also and many happy returns.

[lottiedolly]

Sulking in the corner kicking the wall........still waiting for mine  :'(

[Jayb]

5 arrived, Yayyyy.

It won't be long lottie, they were all posted at the same time  ;D

Thanks galina, much appreciated. I've still some bits to finish and add, but it is getting there. Here's the link again https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1NE_FA8mzqaFtVFsQ46lRLTPCYJAjkiHD3u9R34pQKDE

 

[aj]

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_WBYkHlj5sHM/TQpaiDgerWI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/Sat4eIAwD5E/s1600/PC160682_0211.jpg

Piccies of my haul :D

[SueK]

Just to say that mine got here too, late yesterday - thank you so much to Jayb for organising and everyone for their work over the year.  It's the perfect antidote to the conditions outside.  And - I never quite believed it when people said that French beans were pleasing to look at, but I could admire these packets - and your pic too, aj - all day! :)

[earlypea]

Talking of bean seeds.....I was wondering. 

My Major Cook's Bean left to dry in two different places are decidedly different colours.  One lot were dried in a room with a very large south facing window and I hadn't realised how hot it was getting.  The white parts of the bean are sepia and the coloured bits are less intense too.  Do you think they are slightly sun damaged and will have a shorter life?

[aj]

That happens with loads of speckled or striped beans; I now pop mine straight into a tray in the airing cupboard - to remove the excess moisture. I've germinated loads that have been dried in the sun [before I realised what was causing it!]

[galina]

Talking of bean seeds.....I was wondering.  

My Major Cook's Bean left to dry in two different places are decidedly different colours.  One lot were dried in a room with a very large south facing window and I hadn't realised how hot it was getting.  The white parts of the bean are sepia and the coloured bits are less intense too.  Do you think they are slightly sun damaged and will have a shorter life?

Bean seed coats change colour dramatically during storage.  Their bright colours dull down, beige becomes brown.  It is a natural process.  It happens inside a closed box, inside a drawer that never had any sun on it.

The best photos are taken from newly dried seeds.

Another interesting aspect to seeds is how different they look in different locations.  A seed I usually describe as beige, was described as mid-brown by somebody else and as vibrant conch shell pink by a third.  We were all talking about the same bean from the same source.  Different minerals in soil and different environmental conditions do influence bean seed coats.  

Size varies as well, in wetter areas bean seeds are larger, my seed friend from very dry Colorado in the USA sends me seeds that are slightly bigger than half the size they will be here.  Incidentally her seeds keep their vibrant colours for longer, mine dull down much faster.  I always keep at least one original typical seed in the packet and compare my saved seeds with that.

It is an interesting subject.

I think heat is more damaging than light.  If the light faded them a bit I would not worry, if they had stayed above 40C for any length of time because of the sun, they could be.   but I daresay that nobody here will wait for many years before trying out our lovely haul of new varieties.  I would not worry unduly.

[galina]

And - I never quite believed it when people said that French beans were pleasing to look at, but I could admire these packets - and your pic too, aj - all day! :)

As my kids put it when they were little "Mummy is playing with her seeds again!" ;D

[plot51A]

Still waiting for mine to arrive...... :'(

[plot51A]

...and its here!!  ;D  ;D  ;D

[Jayb]

Yayyyy Suek and Plot51a, was chuckling as I read ;D
Love the piccie aj, I'm sure its just what lottie wanted to see  ;D

And - I never quite believed it when people said that French beans were pleasing to look at, but I could admire these packets - and your pic too, aj - all day! :)

As my kids put it when they were little "Mummy is playing with her seeds again!" ;D

I find the colours, patterns and different sizes simply gorgeous, almost like shiny beads, but I think more like handling little jewels and bonus they are yummy too ;D
Sounds like you are well and truly hooked suek

[lottiedolly]

When i came home last night from my works do there was a package on the floor, i held off until this morning, i am sitting here squealing with pleasure and surrounded by seeds, my husband is shaking his head and probably wondering about my mental state to get so excited by seeds.


I would like to say a massive thank you to Jayb for arranging the parcel and another massive thankyou to every member of the circle, This year i have decided that i will be making notes of whom i have the seeds from when i plant them so i know who to mentally thank as they grow. Your generosity in sharing these seeds is so appreciated.

i agree with everyones comments about the beans, i think that it is one of the reasons that i have become a bit of a bean addict because of the variety. I also have been a failure in growing peas in the past but i will give them a try again this year, a special thank you to Robert for his donations especially as we know that you have had problems this year and i hope that you will be feeling better soon and have a better year next year.

I have to say we must do this again next year.

big hugs to you all  ;D ;D ;D  :-* :-* :-*

[earlypea]

.......but I daresay that nobody here will wait for many years before trying out our lovely haul of new varieties.  I would not worry unduly.

Unfortunately, I might have to wait one year or more though because plans have changed and I'll be away so it is a slight concern here.

Well, I hope no-one is put off from sowing the Major Cook's Bean because of their subdued appearance.  A little batch dried out of sunlight are without a doubt my most appealing specimens of all, very sweet-shop, humbug.

Also interested in why some are a blocky shape or with a blocky, stunted end rather than a smooth oval.  I have a theory that it's because they developed in extremely dry conditions and then the beans swelled in exceptionally wet conditions but the pods developed first and there wasn't enough room so they all jammed up together.  Is there another explanation?  That for some reason has especially affected the smallest bean seed, the Ice/Crystal wax.

[aj]

I certainly am not put off growing any beans!

With regards the shape - not all beans are oval. Some are blocky [these are my faves in all honesty], some oval, some nearly spherical....it depends on the bean type.

[earlypea]

With regards the shape - not all beans are oval. Some are blocky [these are my faves in all honesty], some oval, some nearly spherical....it depends on the bean type.

The original ice wax were distinctly oval from the HSL though that's why I wondered - growing conditions I imagine?

[ruud]

Nothing yet on the other side of the pond,but that will be,i am sure santa knows the way. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

[galina]

With regards the shape - not all beans are oval. Some are blocky [these are my faves in all honesty], some oval, some nearly spherical....it depends on the bean type.

Here is another observation I have never found a good reason for:  Why do some bean varieties develop normal sized pods, but have gaps inside.  This especially applies to late pods.  Others also have fewer seeds inside a pod, but they also produce shorter pods - no gaps. Maybe the seed development and the pod development are entirely separate events controlled by different environmental triggers.  And sometimes Ice/Crystal Wax seeds appear squeezed and othertimes they don't.

As AJ said, some beans do it all the time.  The Americans have a term for bean seeds that are always squeezed inside the pod and appear angular, they call them 'cutshorts'. 

[plot51A]

Have opened my packet now, its wonderful. My favourite bean (by appearance) has to be Jacob's Cattle, so pretty.
I had intended to be more restrained in my tomato growing next year - think that's out the window too.
My thanks to everyone involved, especially Jayb for all the hard work put into this Circle. I'd like to give special thanks to those who put such encouraging posts on the board - I was very seriously considering dropping out as I failed to achieve most of what I'd optimistically hoped for. I'm so glad I stuck with it.
Am learning such a lot, and looking forward to growing lots of exciting things. Thank you again.

Anne