Successful Seeds So Far, 3/19/2006
- Delicata Squash saved from Ray Hodge's 2005 crop, growing like a weed.. Excellent keeper, thanks Ray!
- Tomatillo! Grows great under the grow lights. Most prolific start so far.
- Green Bean, already has flowers and it's snowing outside. Think I planted it too early?
- Raddichio- doesn't like water on leaves, especially if it has Seabird Guano fertilizer in it.
- Basil- Germinates quickly, and if you don't overwater it, grows great.
- Salsify, and to a lesser extent Scorzonera. Johnny's Salsify crop doing better than Fedco Scorzonera.
- Onions- not much luck, but some are doing much better than others. Thinning and trimming to 4" is crucial. Don't let them dry out. Heat the water to lukewarm... Trying AACT also. I'll figure it out, eventually.
- Tomatoes- Fedco Heirloom, Shepherd's Camp Joy, Tumbler all are doing well.
And the Losers
One thing I noticed is that reused soil that was in a greenhouse- mostly bark, is a very poor idea. Bust out the $7 for a bag of the "black gold" from Alaska Mill and Feed. It has Sphagnum, Perlite and worm castings. Very good texture, absorbs water and drains well. Has a fine structure to help the small plants develop their root system quickly.
Seed Companies
These companies are listed with the highest recommendation first.
Johnny's My favorite, more different seeds. 9 pages of greens! Yeah! Mesclun Mayhem!
Fedco Boycotting Monsanto and anything else Genetically Modified. A+ for conviction.
Cooks Garden Everything for the gardening chef- like Jamie Oliver the Naked Chef. Celeriac?
Ed Hume Seeds Cheap, available at Alaska Mill and Feed
Denali Seed Company Reliable source of O-S Cross Cabbage seed.
Pase GreenhousesE-Bay seed company. Has Cipollini Onions and Tumbler F1 Tomatoes
Jung Seed Company Randoph Wisconsin- Top Crop Green Beans
Seed Saver's Exchange
Seeds of Change
Territorial Seeds
Veseys
Pinetree
Harris Seeds Onion Starts and a few veggies that I want
Stokes
Reimer Giant Veggies.. Poor reviews based on germination and customer service. O-S Cross Cabbage
Dixondale Farms Onion Starts
Osborne Seed Excellent references on planting and seeds etc.
Burpee My childhood seed company- now my least favorite
Thompson and Morgan Expensive seeds, but they have Lady Di and Tumbler F1 Tomato, John Evan's Favorites
Medwyn Seeds UK, exhibition quality
Felco Pruners
Alaska Gardening Resources
16 Steps to Gardening in Alaska
Recommended Varieties from the Master Gardeners
2004 Veggie Trials at UAF How do some recent varieties hold up?
Growing Grain in Alaska? Why would you want to do that?
Cooperative Extension Service
Success: Toma Verde Tomatillo 9.4 lb/plant
Nelson Carrot from Territorial
Joan Rutabaga
Sora Radish
Racer Pumpkin, Johnnys
Why don't some beans grow well in Alaska? Is it because of low soil temps, or could it be the same reason that Whiptail occurs in the Mat and Tanana Valleys? Azotobacter requires molybdenum to create fix nitrogen, using nitrogenase. If the soils in the glacier valleys don't have MO, then beans won't get the N they need!
Other Gardening Info
Chelated Calcium, Metalosate
What the heck is Scorzonera?
Chelated Calcium, Metalosate
Non-Traditional Alaskan Crops
Here are some veggies that typically aren't grown in Alaska, but have been grown quite successfully by some. There may be some tricks involved.
Basil
Tomatillo
Scorzonera
Dry Shell Beans
Big Onions
Celeriac
Parsnips
Growing Onions From Seed
World's Largest Cabbage, Bernard Lavery
Bernard Lavery is supposedly working for an Arab prince. His varieties are available from "Thompson and Morgan".
Other References
Ken Whealeys book "seed inventory "
U.S.A. germplasm GENE BANK ,SEED BANK ( I think it is www.ARS-GRIN.GOV ).
Bernard Lavery's book "I can grow "
Mammoth Onion Seed Company
Brassica Genome Gateway
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