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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 4, 2013 17:49:11 GMT -5
OK, I'm going to attempt a frost seeded carrot row or two. Carrots are a complete bitch for me to germinate.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 4, 2013 17:45:35 GMT -5
They are completely self supporting in my experience. Bit weird considering they are technically a vetch, but I've never heard (or seen) a viny fava.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 4, 2013 6:34:51 GMT -5
I like the zombie one the best, you can offer a 100% money back guarantee. If a zombie eats your brain while you are using the product you will receive a full refund ( upon personal application and proof of purchase).
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 4, 2013 5:48:06 GMT -5
It's really rather an elegant scam. You are selling a product to a clientele who is - totally uneducated customer in a state of anxiety
- Unlikely to actually use the product
- The product is designed to be used post-collapse, so when the customer finds out the product is crap the Better Business Bureau etc are irrelevant.
The Survival Gardens are basically a silly overpriced security blanket. They give silly people a perceived feeling of having done something to protect themselves from a threat that doesn't involve actually doing something other than spending money and maybe digging a hole in the backyard. There's a whole range of other products they could try selling along a similar line, - Zombie Repellent Ointment-100% Guaranteed!
- Alien Mind Control Beam Blocker Hat!
- Ultrasonic Plug-in Leprechaun and Pixie Repeller
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 20:42:15 GMT -5
I picked Johnny's the first time because they have the highest prices on average of the seed companies that I often use. I went to the Fedco website and priced that list at their quantities and came up with $63. And the pack sizes didn't match up as with Johnny's so I "bought" the next pack size up to be sure to get at least as much seed. And Fedco has free shipping that's the final number.
I guess you'd have to find the plastic tube somewhere, section of PVC pipe and some caps?
One downside with using Fedco or Johnny's or any other seed company is that you have to go through the difficult process of picking the seed yourself instead of having a Senior Botanist throw a bunch of crap seed in a tube carefully hand selecting the seeds for you so you don't have to worry.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 19:22:41 GMT -5
Dang Joseph! How do you make those crazy charts so fast? You're giving me a headache after I already had one from the big words and concepts the Senior Botanist Huizenga was teaching me. I managed to struggle through my cerebral pain and compare that list at those quantities with Johnny's prices for comparable OP seeds. Johnny's is not in love with OP seeds but they did have them for everything but Spinach on the list. I came up with a grand total of $108, but you end up with mostly a lot more seed than they have due to the pack sizes Johnny's sells not matching up exactly.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 11:50:11 GMT -5
Don't get me wrong, I think resilient communities are the only thing that makes any sense, I just don't see the harm in the self sufficiency concept. You start out with that goal and you find yourself making the community connections almost as a matter of course. At least in my experience.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 11:42:29 GMT -5
He's got me convinced! Super high germination rates! Look at that dehumidifier they have on their log cabin! It sounds German, that must mean those seeds are good!
They have an actual Senior Botanist! He totally gave me a headache with all of his fancy scientist botanist talk! 50 degrees is the ideal seed storage temp! I never knew that! Plus they have all those seeds in the half gallon jars, I am totally blown away by all their amazing science! Wow! I really need to buy seeds from these guys instead of actual seed companies or other scammers that are copying the same rip-off! I've come to trust Brian Brawdy over the course of his amazing three minute sales pitch. Besides, they thought of fleecing panicky armchair preppers first! Allegedly?
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 11:22:15 GMT -5
I see a lot of talk, I don't see any actual independent verification they can actually do this stuff they are promising. Until I see some of that, it sounds a lot like Cold Fusion to me.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 11:19:15 GMT -5
I would hesitate to experiment with bindweed. It develops a perennial tuber that is way way down there. The seed is viable for 50 years !
As far as making hay, I don't doubt the nutritional numbers but how would you cut it? It grows into this giant tangled mat, the plants you've cut are still tied to plants you haven't. Can't see scything it or using a sickle bar.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 3, 2013 0:06:19 GMT -5
I think its a great delusion, I got started on this whole crazy enterprise when I read "The Guide to Self Sufficiency" by John Seymour. I still love that book, short on actual how-to but great for firing the imagination. I figure if someone is striving for self sufficiency they will make a great addition to a resilient community when the shit hits the fan. Beats watching zombie movies, do they make anything but zombie movies anymore?
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 2, 2013 17:31:51 GMT -5
I've had a couple miscommunications so I'm writing this to clarify a few things for people who've never traded seed with me before. - We don't sell seed
- Our first preference is to trade this seed for cool seed you have
- If you need something from our list it is free if we can afford to get it to you (if you live somewhere really exotic we might ask you to cover the shipping, this has never happened yet)
- We ask that that you do not resell any seed we give you until you've grown it out yourself.
- We make no promises as to total varietal purity, we are not big believers in purity
As far as the reselling issue goes, as far as I know that's never happened either. There really isn't any way for us to prevent it from happening and still actively trade seed. If we ever found out about it, that would be the last trade ever made with that individual. Which is no doubt a terrifying thought to contemplate for an ebay hotshot. But that's all we've got.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 2, 2013 9:28:45 GMT -5
I suspect there will be no difference in potency. Willows will root any time of year, in fact just about every member of Salicaceae will. If you go out and take a willow cutting now and bring it into the warmth it will break bud and root.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 2, 2013 6:24:28 GMT -5
I think they did transplant stuff, but didn't really use pots much or at all. The closest I've seen mentioned to some kind of portable transplant is the Aztec/Mexica people using blocks of soil as transplant "pots" in the chinampa system. I think people did use the seedbed system a lot more than folks do today. Sowing the seeds very tightly in a specially prepared area and uprooting them and transplanting them when they reached the right size.
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 1, 2013 4:30:33 GMT -5
This is getting really interesting.
Thanks ilex for teaching me of the existence of the alc gene. I have to put some thought into how to store the hanging style winter tomatoes.
Holly, I didn't get the Me Tarzan Cherry. And why haven't I gotten any bunches of grapes in my packages? I'll trade you rocks for grapes!
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