Well, the Des Moines Seed Swap, organized by your favorite little hippy, went really well.
About 20 people stopped by to visit, swap seeds and eat banana bread. There was a nice mix of new gardeners and old gardeners and Franklin gardeners and Downtown gardeners. One of the gals from the Franklin Gardens, Donna, got seeds donated from Seed Savers Exchange. So, everyone left with more seeds than they came with.
I taught a couple of people how to save tomato seeds. I don't think they quite believed me when I got to the ferment-them-on-your-counter stage. I got to share some of my knowledge of seed starting too. Hopefully some of it will stick.
One of my good friends, and a fellow seed saver for several years now, Brian, stopped by and shared some of his peppery goodness and knowledge.
Of course, it just makes me sadder to leave this great city. :-(
I've got a great new job, but we have to move. So, in 3 weeks we'll be packing a truck and heading 5 hours NW to Sioux Center, IA. The seed swap turned into my last act as a Des Moines gardener.
I'm going to miss these crazy Des Moines gardeners. The Franklin gardens with the poor drainage and brave mice, and the most beautiful tomatoes I've ever eaten. I'll miss the crazy thievery at the Downtown plots, the bits of brick and cement still in the dirt, and the tastiest sweet corn ever roasted.
Hopefully this passion, grown here in Des Moines, can find root in a new community. New gardeners to meet, colder winters to cheat, and lot's of new veggies to eat. :-)
I'll have to be on my toes to get a good spring garden started in time! Wish me luck!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Good luck!
I wishing you luck! :) Tomato, pepper, onion, leek starts! Eek. I was wondering if you had heard anything back about the Garlic plot? I LOVE saving seeds! I look at it as part of my harvest. Tomato seeds are super easy! Hopefully some of the people you showed will save seed this year. I am going to try bean seed saving, I think I saved some beans and peas last year. It shouldn't be too difficult. Good luck with your move!
Post a Comment