Hi Everyone!  I've made my list of what I'm wanting to grow this year (list to come!) and today I'm going to look through what seeds I already have before ordering anything. 

Last year I got two *shoeboxes* full of seeds at an auction for next to nothing.  They are dated for 2004 I think.  Last year germination was still great, this year should be good too.

Here's the thing -- Two boxes full of seeds is more than I'll ever be able to plant before they get old and won't germinate any more.  Even though I got such a great deal on them, I hate to see seeds go to waste.  I'd like to share what I have instead of letting them get old.  I'm going to catalog what all I have and either divide it into mixed packets or just list what varieties I have - don't know which yet.  When I figure it out I'll post, and anyone who wants some of these seeds can have them for cost of postage.  These are standard seeds - not organic, and many are hybrids, but they are good seeds and will produce good food for your family.  Off hand I think there are tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers, squashes, beans, peas.... About half are flower seeds to pretty up the garden.  Germination rates should still be good.

If any fellow homestead bloggers are intersted in some "free" seed, please comment so I know if there is even an interest.  Like I said, I'm just going to figure out what postage will be and thats what you pay - I'm not trying to make money off this, just keep from being wasteful and bless someone who needs them.  I'd like to limit this offer to other homestead bloggers, unless you know *of* someone who can and will use them.

I've had a couple of requests to know what seed catalogs we get and order from so here are some that we've gotten recently, along with their websites so you can go request a catalog for yourself:

Pinetree Gardens -- has a *lot* of neat varieties.  This is the main place I ordered from when we had a smaller garden.  I still order a couple of things from them.  http://www.superseeds.com/

Johnny's Selected Seeds --- Tons of selection - they have two different catalogs, the home gardening catalog and a growers catalog if you are growing for resale and need larger quantities of seed.   They carry some heirlooms and organics.  We order a lot from Johnny's.  http://www.johnnyseeds.com/

Territorial Seed Company -- Also has two catalogs, home gardener and growers.  We order a lot from Territorial too.  They carry some heirlooms and organics.  www.territorialseed.com

The Cook's Garden  -- Can be kind of pricey sometimes but carries many unusual varieties and their catalog is just plain fun to look through, even if you don't end up ordering.  They carry quite a few heirloom and organic seeds.  www.cooksgarden.com

R.H. Shumway -- Carries quite a few heirlooms, some you don't see in other catalogs.  I've noticed that they carry more hybrids now that they they've been bought out and I've heard bad stories about their customer service since they've been bought out too but I haven't had any problems with them yet.  Their prices are good too.  I usually order a few things from them.  www.rhshumway.com

Stokes -- Also has two different catalogs (home garden/growers).  We order from Stokes too.  They don't have a lot of unusual  varieties and not a lot of untreated seeds.  They do have a very good selection of flower seeds if you're into cut flower growing and they have all the standard vegetable varieties that you hear about.  www.stokeseeds.com

Totally Tomatoes -- This is the first year I've seen this catalog but it looks great!!!  The whole catalog is tomatoes and peppers - heirloom, open pollinated, hybrid any variety you can imagine.  If you're a tomato or pepper fanatic you'll like this one.  www.totallytomato.com

Burpee -- We ordered a lot from them when we had a small garden but their prices are higher than a lot of other companies.  They have been around a long time though and are a reliable and respected company and have good quality.  www.burpee.com

Peaceful Valley --  Has some nice seeds and equipment and they specialize in organics.  www.groworganic.com

Tis the season for seed catalogs fa la la la la....

I just love it when the seed catalogs start coming in!  I love to look at all the "new" varieties and varieties I've heard about over the past year.  I make my wish list.....  then I whittle, and whittle..... and whittle it down to a reasonable (and affordable!) number of plant varieties and place my orders.  It's just so hard to choose when there are so many varieties of veggies to choose from, especially peppers and tomatoes!  There are entire catalogs with just tomato and pepper seed! 

True confession time -- I HATE tomatoes!  I love to grow them but I wouldn't eat one for love or money!  I do love tomato products - salsas, sauces, marinaras etc... mmmmmmm and I do like finely chopped sun dried tomatoes on pasta.  But fresh tomatoes?  EEEEWwwwww!

Tomatoes are so beautiful though, I grow a lot of varieties - I love the different colors they come in - from the "black" tomatoes (which are pretty much dark brownish purple) to the "white" tomatoes.  Last year one of our "white" tomatoes were a very pale peachy color and actually had fuzzy skin like a peach!  The taste was out of this world though (according to my tasters) and was a big favorite.  I grow a bazillion varieties of tomatoes.  Hubby and kids eat tons and I sell them at the farmers' market (the tomatoes, not hubby and kids) What doesn't sell I give away to appreciative friends, family, and neighbors.  Almost all of the tomatoes I grow are heirlooms and they are grown without synthetic chemicals.  I *would* say that I grow them organically, but our government has decided that only people who can PAY for that title can legally use it.  (don't get me started on that rant!)

I'm a pepper growing fanatic too -- every color imaginable and tastes from sweet to "OHMYGOODNESSITHINKIMGOINGTODIE!"  One day hubby mistook an extra hot jalepeno for a mild salad jalepeno and cut it up all over his salad.  He said he could feel his earwax melting.    Now he checks before cutting up jalepenos.

I'm hoping to expand our veggie garden this year.  I'm making sketches and determining how much me and the kids can handle - hubby does NOT enjoy gardening.

I'd love to hear about your favorite tomatoes and peppers!  Maybe I can add them to the list this year.

JennMarie