A Seed Saver's Garden

[heirloomgal]

More cooking inspired by snow! -23C/ or 3F right now. COLD! Even my dawg isn't thrilled about going out today. Coconut Cake Has no wheat flour or sugar in the cake itself. I made it with almond flour, maple syrup, and unsweetened coconut and coconut oil. There is icing sugar in the frosting, with the butter (about 3:1) and vanilla, and because we NEVER ice cakes around here it was a bit to adjust to. We were all on the fence that the cake was really good, but the icing was too sweet. I will make it again though! I'll need an icing recipe that isn't so sweet next time.

Probably because I just can't help myself, I picked these little cherry tomatoes from a basket I bought at the grocery store. They have blackish shoulders, and a little point on the nose. Pretty unique little guys. Of course, they are probably hybrids, but I'm tempted to extract the seeds anyway and give it a try. I wonder what the odds are that they'd come true?

 

[jbosmith]

Probably because I just can't help myself, I picked these little cherry tomatoes from a basket I bought at the grocery store. They have blackish shoulders, and a little point on the nose. Pretty unique little guys. Of course, they are probably hybrids, but I'm tempted to extract the seeds anyway and give it a try. I wonder what the odds are that they'd come true?

View attachment 46049

Every heirloom was a hybrid at one point!

 

[flowerbug]

i'd give that cake a try and probably wouldn't notice it being too sweet. i love coconut.

 

[digitS']

I think that we overestimate the number of commercials varieties that are hybrid.

Some breeding programs are very labor intensive and can be convoluted with hybrids used for more than one generation. That is expensive and seed costs reflect it. Added to costs are the profits that may be gained from proprietorship. Farmers don't want all that added expense in growing a crop for a produce company. Some hybrids are exclusively home gardening varieties.

Keep in mind that breeding hybrids is often done for disease resistance.

Steve

 

[heirloomgal]

Found a seed catalog in the mail today; not too many of the seed companies I deal with send those out anymore. This one was from Vesey's which is a pretty big outfit, relatively speaking, full of glossy colourful pictures. I was checking out the tomatoes, just curiosity really since they don't tend to sell the types I buy, and was surprised to see tomato seed for a variety called Cobra F1 selling for $10.00. For 10 seeds. And they don't even say the tomato tastes great, they say it's 'good tasting'. Wow, if I'm going to pay one dollar for a single tomato seed I want that tomato to be about the best one I've ever had! Sheesh, I wonder what special qualities it expresses? Yellow Doll (F1) watermelon, 15 seeds for $8, Patio Snacker cucumber comes to about 50 cents a seed too. I grew Yellow Doll years ago, and it was a great watermelon. But alongside it I grew Petite Yellow (an OP), and I'd say they were one for one.

 

[ducks4you]

More cooking inspired by snow! -23C/ or 3F right now. COLD! Even my dawg isn't thrilled about going out today. Coconut Cake Has no wheat flour or sugar in the cake itself. I made it with almond flour, maple syrup, and unsweetened coconut and coconut oil. There is icing sugar in the frosting, with the butter (about 3:1) and vanilla, and because we NEVER ice cakes around here it was a bit to adjust to. We were all on the fence that the cake was really good, but the icing was too sweet. I will make it again though! I'll need an icing recipe that isn't so sweet next time.

View attachment 46047View attachment 46048


Probably because I just can't help myself, I picked these little cherry tomatoes from a basket I bought at the grocery store. They have blackish shoulders, and a little point on the nose. Pretty unique little guys. Of course, they are probably hybrids, but I'm tempted to extract the seeds anyway and give it a try. I wonder what the odds are that they'd come true?

Recipe, pls! I don't mind using flour in Mine!

DD went on a Keto diet this year. I will ask her how to frost a cake without sugar.

 

[Zeedman]

DD went on a Keto diet this year. I will ask her how to frost a cake without sugar.

Easy... just put it the freezer for a few days, and it will come out frosted.

 

[ducks4you]

Well, that's what I would do.

 

[heirloomgal]

DD went on a Keto diet this year. I will ask her how to frost a cake without sugar.

Thanks @ducks4you

 

[digitS']

I grew Yellow Doll years ago, and it was a great watermelon. But alongside it I grew Petite Yellow (an OP), and I'd say they were one for one.

DW had zero interest in yellow watermelon. I showed her the listed days to maturity for some that were surprisingly shorter than the reds, suggesting that they might be suitable in our garden. She may have been influenced by my failures at growing some short season reds. Her disinterest continued.

Then, she bought a yellow watermelon by mistake at the farmers' market. She was willing to eat some of it but continues to resist. Of course, I could make the decision by myself but she is certainly more of a watermelon fan than I am. If she is happy with the supply available in the soopermarket, that's okay. I have very little confidence that our garden could match or exceed what's available.

An important melon growing region in NE Oregon is only about 300 miles south. I suppose these places are likely to have problems with other crops that I know nothing about. I tell myself, before venturing into more of the foolish and inopportune.

Steve