I *love* vegetable seed names!

[wildeyed]

'Minnesota Midget', a small, short season melon.

'Mortgage Lifter', a main season tomato. Allegedly, the guy who bred the tomato paid off his mortgage on his seed sales.

'Moon and Stars', an Amish heirloom watermelon with a skin marked like the night sky.

I buy seeds just 'cause I like the name, or I like the story about how the seeds got their name. I guess that is part of the marketing plan, but still!

So give me some more. What are your favorite seed names?

[BOSSHOG]

1. I'm trying

Costoluto Genovese and Oaxacan Jewel Tomato Seeds this season. The names are quite intriguing and they are supposed to be large and tasty. I hope so. A combination of the name and very nice pictures sold me on these seeds.

[wildeyed]

3. How could you say no to an Oaxacan Jewel?

So exotic and beguiling, a name filled with endless possibilities :toast:

[sazemisery]

6. I am trying the Costoluto Genovese because you mentioned it

I bought the Costoluto Genovese because you mentioned it here and because of this description:

"You may never find an uglier tomato, but what a great taste! The flavor is the most complex we have ever tasted, a bit on the sweet side and very juicy. A California market grower says it makes the all-time best tomato juice. This Italian heirloom has large, deep red fruit that are squat and so ribbed they're nearly pleated." I'm a sucker for the ugly duckling.

I am planting these varieties also.

The Pantano Romanesco because of this:

"A Roman heirloom that was sent to us by Signor Barbetti, from Italy. The fruit are large and are deep red, with almost a purple tint. The flesh is very rich, flavorful & juicy. An excellent tomato for home and market gardeners, very rare and delicious."

Amish Paste because it is the best sauce tomato ever, IMHO.

Sun Gold because this is snack food for anybody who says they don't like tomatoes.

Tomatillo 'cause I adore salsa verde.

edited because my two trains of thought collided.

[Blue Gardener]

8. Sun Gold tomatoes

I have to grow these every year. They're so tasty...better than candy!

[BOSSHOG]

13. I hope you and I have an awesome crop

They didn't look too ugly to me in the catalog. Happy gardening this year.

[sazemisery]

14. May the Tomato Gods smile down on us.

:hi:

[NMDemDist2]

2. Sparkler Radish

red on top with white tips

:bounce:

[wildeyed]

4. I feel giddy just thinking about Sparklers!

It is not just a radish, it is a state of mind :crazy:

[Kolesar]

5. Well, the "Asian melons" in the Johnny's catalog were good for a laugh

...one evening on our ski vacation during cocktail hour.

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/product.aspx?scommand=search&search=sun%2bjewel&item=2879
Sun Jewel (F1)
(Cucumis melo)

Extra-early, Asian specialty.
This melon is gaining quite a following with Johnny's customers! The unusual, 7" x 3 1/2" oblong fruits are lemon yellow with shallow white sutures. The flesh is white, crisp when ripe, and wonderfully sweet. Plants are resistant to downy and powdery mildews, and produce large numbers of fruit. Fruits slip off the vine when ready. Packet: 20 seeds.

Days to Maturity or Bloom: 68

[wildeyed]

7. The part about "fruits slip off the vine when ready" is masterful.

Makes melon growing sound so simple and deeply fulfilling.

That is a wonderful site. A good variety of seeds, tons of cultural information and the comparison feature is wonderful, but hoo boy they are expensive!

[Kolesar]

9. Johnny's was recommended to me, but those prices caused a kerfuffle in the appropriations committee

I shopped for similar products in www.harrisseeds.com and found that I could save about a dollar per packet. I called Johnny's and their response was that they have a higher germination rate.

I don't doubt them. I read a book last year about seed companies. The retail seed business has incredible pressures to bring the products down to "a dollar a pack" or so. Consequently, the seed companies are tempted to sell seeds that are out of date, low germination rates, or even put the wrong variety in the envelope. Gardener consumers like me just assume that if there was something wrong, it must have been some mistake that I made. Don't assume that. It may have been bad product.

The only catalog company I have had recommended to me in my growing region has been Johnny's, Harris, and www.stokesseeds.com . I am so tempted to start another thread on this subject.

[wildeyed]

10. Also something to think about.

How many seeds in the packet? Some brands have very few actual seeds. If you store them properly, seeds can last years and years, so buying from a reputable source that gives you reasonable number of seeds that have a high germination rate can actually be a savings, even if they are a dollar more here and there. I only plant one seed in each hole if the seeds are new since I expect almost all to germinate, so that saves, too.

I bought a few seeds packets at the Lowes this year that had a very low germination rate. They were nasturtiums, so I doubt I did anything wrong. Also, there were only about 8 seeds in each packet :(

The Johnny's site was fabulous. It might be worth a few extra $$$ to have the quality, selection and to be able to use the comparison feature when shopping.

Seeds of Change changed their seed packet this year to ziplock plastic. At first look, you think, yuck, plastic, but the seeds will keep so much better in that type of container, and since most of their seeds are open pollination, you could collect and keep the same variety in the same packet for years.

Interesting topic, would definitely be worth a thread.

[Kolesar]

11. The book recommends Park Seeds in your hot region

Assuming that you still live in NC. www.parkseeds.com A company like Johnny's in Maine is unlikely to have suitable products for your region; they would be best for short season and moderate season climates.

[wildeyed]

12. I ordered mostly from Pinetree Garden this year.

http://superseeds.com/

They are in Maine, so I doubt they are the best choice, but they came up on an internet search for an obscure summer squash vine that I wanted to grow, so I ordered other items from them to make up for the shipping fee.

*Please note, if you decide to order form them, they have a long shipping lag, 2-3 weeks, so plan accordingly.*

I like short season veggies even though I live in a long season place. Short season = less time for things to get eaten, diseased or for me to lose interest. August is disgusting here, so I like to wrap up the garden in July, then spend as much time as possible out of state.

[DrDan]

15. yep - big fan of Burpee seeds

[NJCher]

16. names, guys, names

I was lovin' those names. More!!



Cher

[Blue Gardener]

17. Seed Savers Catalog

Always good for some interesting names of heirloom varieties. They usually tell the story of the seed's origin, so it's always fun to thumb through their catalog.
Some interesting tomato names:
Green Sausage
Hillbilly Potato Leaf
Isis Candy (each has a cat's eye starburst on the blossom end)
Kellog's Breakfast
Nebraska Wedding
Silvery Fir Tree