I don't want to get too carried away, but it looks like we are through most of our frosty nights as temps are climbing up to the 30'C mark in Southern New Brunswick this week. This is the perfect time to get some plants in the ground. I would encourage you to check out our featured business Annapolis Seeds for some unique offerings.
Last season I spent $125.00 to buy thirty comfrey plants (Russian Bocking 4 and 14 strains). After having no luck with a local search I ended up buying these from Ontario and having them shipped in the mail. I was very concerned that I buy specifically the sterile Bocking strains so that the plants didn’t take over the whole of my one-acre property. As you may know, common Comfrey is a prolific spreader via seed but the Bocking type only spreads via roots.
I paid around $30 for shipping and wasn’t able to get the small size root cuttings until late in the season. These were potted up right away to grow a bit before transplanting. The sellers had also inoculated them with a mycorrhizal powder. I had great hopes for these little beauties to make me some great green manure, (I live in the forest and have almost no lawn). To my displeasure, this spring I found one live plant had made it through the winter. I don’t think this was an fault of the seller, rather bad timing, a drought like summer and the stress of being shipped by post. Disappointingly, this put my plans for chop and drop establishment off my another growing season. The other issue that I have is that I could have gotten another dozen small plants for the money that I had to pay Canada Post to ship from Ontario.
After this experience I was so happy to hear from my friends at the Hayes Urban Teaching Farm that I could try Annapolis Seeds. They have a beautiful selection of medicinal herbs and permaculture plants that are difficult to find, including Russian Bocking Comfrey.
I’m looking forward to heading to Nova Scotia this summer to meet the business owner in person. This kind of business is EXACTLY what we need in Atlantic Canada! The seeds are also ecologically grown, suitable for local climate, and are all open-pollinated. I’m pleased that I can share my future seed dollars with these folks and not a super-center or big chain seller.
You can connect with Owen and see products at http://www.annapolisseeds.com/
Happy Homesteading!
Amy
Comments