Have just come back from a holiday at Dordrecht in the Netherlands and whilst there discovered the most amazing little shop selling a huge range of unusual and heritage seeds, they don't have a catalogue but you can order through their website of www.vreeken.nl Its all in Dutch but there are photos and the Latin names are given. I specially noted the huge range of unusual tomatoes, peppers, squashes/pumpkins/courgettes, and dwarf/climbing beans but there was much more - OH isn't into gardening/growing so couldn't spend as much time as I would have liked there but purchased several packets of heritage beans to grow as there's still time to plant these!
(Not sure if I am putting this in the right section so perhap 'admin' will move it if its in the wrong place!)
Thanks for the link - I'll have a look!
ooooh foreign seed porn hmmmmm nice ;D
To be serious, just had a quick look on the website and it is great, i could browse on there for ages, a really good selection. :)
Thanks for that link lavenderlux :
Did you see all those unusual bottle gourds :o
duke
Hmm...good choice of different maize varieties...I think that site deserve another look with cup of coffee in one hand and 'little' plastic card in another.. ;) ;D
Thanks for that... ;D
Duke, thought you might like to know a lot of those gourds and winter squash are on my freebie winter squash page , posted the list last nightXX Jeannine
what a great site and they now include a little English! I wonder did they notice the attention they were getting. Well good for them great selection and good prices with the exchange. Haven't yet seen how much postage and packing is but the new dahlias are gorgeous there is one pure white one that's to die for. Is it too late for me to planbt dahlias?
I happen to be a member at Garden Organic at Ryton On Dunsmore.
They have a heritage seed library (HSL) with some lovely old and unusual varieties.
As a member I can choose 6 varieties which I was sent this spring which I tried out.
All have produced amazingly healthy productive plants, and they taste fantastic too.
Jersey Sunrise Tomatoes
Daniels Defiance Runner Beans
Reading Purple French Beans
Crimson Flowered Broad Beans
Cucumber King of the Ridge
Kale Canadian Wragged Jack
http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/index.php
http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/support_us/membership.php
well worth a look and helping to sustain important biodiversity too!!
Its good that old and unusual varieties of vegetables are available to Garden Organic members through the HSL and one of my lottie neighbours gets seeds from here but his view is that he doesn't very very many seeds in the six packets he's allowed to have. The packets of seed from the supplier in Dortrecht are of a good size; One of the varieties I got was dwarf bean red swan, it has red flowers and pods just developing, also a climbing bean with purple flowers and pods (but think this one is not so unusual as it looks very similar to that which another lottie neighbour is growing)
Jeannine - when I was at Dortrecht I spoke to the owner and he said he visits Canada and the USA for 'seed swap meets' and that's where he sources his seeds
Think it is probably rather late for planting Dahlia tubers for this year
The US and Canad don't have the restrictions that EU countries have, we don't have any lits of "ok "veggies so it is not a problem here, and with all the different nationalities a tremendous variety of seeds are needed.
I keep promising to publish a list of companies that will send to the UK
XX Jeannine