Seedy Saturday

I am obsessed with seeds, as most gardeners are, and greedy about accumulating them. I love sorting and admiring them like Scrooge with his gold coins. I also love to trade them, like a kid with hockey cards - I'll be posting a list, should any body like to have spares, or do some trades! I found some glorious seeds at Seedy Saturday today in Victoria- http://www.jamesbaymarket.com/seedysaturday/seedysaturday.htm the first one I've been to, amazingly - it was hard to restrain myself, but I only came home with 12 packets and one rhizome! So many beautiful, heritage and organic seeds, mostly locally produced. I have never heard of New Zealand Yams (Oxalis tuberosa) before - you grow them like Jerusalem Artichokes - in a pot at first for the first year, then transplant out the 2nd year in full sun to part shade. I love their wonderful carnelian red hue - but will have to wait a couple of years before I can eat any. Tatsoi,Harris Turnips, and Anaheim Peppers (Poblano) from Full Circle Seeds in Sooke: http://www.fullcircleseeds.com/ Dwarf Snow Peas and Buerre de Rocquencourt Yellow Bush Beans from Two Wings Farm :http://www.twowingsfarm.com/ Red Adzuki Beans from Annapolis Seeds in Nova Scotia: http://www.annapolisseeds.com/ Purple Barley and Rama Tulsi (Holy Basil) from Salt Spring Seeds: http://www.saltspringseeds.com/ Cicoria Palla Rossa Precoce from Jeff Wright's Franchi Sementi: http://www.oldcountryseeds.ca/ Green Shiso from Mountain Seed Co. in Winlaw BC: http://mountainseedco.com/ and last, but not least, someone from the Land Conservancy of BC gave me a packet of Chervil seeds to grow for the bees as part of their " pollinator Enhancement Project" - you can 'bee'come a member of the TLC: www.conservancy.bc.ca And as if all that seedy excitement wasn't enough, we trudged over to Market Square to puruse the stalls of the Winter Public Market: http://victoriapublicmarket.com/ where we got to try sprouted peanuts, grissini, and cheese made on Salt Spring Island. I purchased a lovely acorn squash grown on Sea Bluff Farm. We sat in the warmish February sunshine and chowed down on a sprouts wrap with spicy peanut sauce, it was great. Now, we just have to try to be patient, and wait for Spring to arrive - can't wait to get planting all these beautiful seeds!