Hi everyone!
Thanks for the replies to my earlier posts about seeds. In case you are reading my posts for the first time, I'm a long time member of Dave's garden and a NJ native who is currently teaching English in South Korea for the 4th year now. I have oodles of Korean seeds - all commercial and recent, including the famous kimchi pepper among others including Korean herbs (sorry, no ginseng! but I can send you authentic Korean Red Ginseng tea in individual pouches), veggies, cabbage for Kimchi, authentic Korean pickles, cucumbers, zucchinis, perilla, fresh Goji berry seeds, too much to list here. I've been gardening for over 25 years since the age of 7 and love the spring.
I am also an heirloom fanatic including tomatoes and peppers. I also love morning glories and through the generosity of gardeners here on Dave's and the other well known US garden website(you all know which one), I've been able to have many successful trades over the years while I've been teaching abroad. All of my seeds have reached the US safely as I package them discreetly and include a Korean souvenir for every gardener who trades with me. If the seeds are bulky, I send in small cardboard boxes and mark them as "Korean souvenirs", which they technically are. Since they are commercially grown and I buy them fresh every spring, they do not carry disease or any bugs in them. If anyone has seeds of the following and would like to swap, send me a Dmail, and I'll get back to you ASAP. I'm looking for the following among others. If you have anything interesting that isn't on my list below, feel free to let me know. I can't wait to get back home to the USA. Meanwhile, Thanks to each and all of you who've been so wonderful in the past years. I am truly grateful for having the privilege to trade with each one of you.
Looking for:
Double/Triple daturas of all colors
Datura discolor - white with purple center, different from Datura tatula
Brugmansia seeds - named crosses if possible, will trade for rare seeds on my list, packets of Red Gingseng tea, Korean lucky silk pouches with embroidery in many colors
Key lime seeds - fresh ones please - the older ones don't grow.
Meyer lemon seeds - fresh ones please - the older ones don't grow.
Easter egg plant - for my students at the English academy I teach at.
Hyacinth bean vine - looking for purple "Ruby Moon" strain if possible, they have such pretty red leaves. Also white if available
Morning glories like blue star, red star, orange Noah, Carnival de Venezia, Early Call, etc, what they have on the Burpee seed racks now. Last time I visited the US, they had so many new varieties. They were so beautiful, but I started them late so I wasn't able to save any seeds from them. I'm itching to go to my local Home Depot or Lowes if I could right now!
There are so many seeds in the US that we take for granted. The flower seeds here in Korea are very limited. Koreans are content with traditional favorites passed down from generation to generation like Impatiens balsaminia - flowers are used to dye fingernails, Red salvia, Zinnias, Portulaca grandiflora, Sunflower - only one kind! how boring, Morning glories- common kinds like Ipomoea hederacea, Ipomoea nil in some cases but not as varied as Japanese morning glories, Dianthus, Korean purple iris, Marigolds.
South Korea is surprisingly lax about seed trading and I've not had a single bubble envelope confiscated in the 4 years that I've traded internationally. To be on the safe side, if you need to fill out something on the customs form, "garden collectibles" is appropriate as it gets by customs without any problems. In the event that they've opened envelopes, they still forward the entire package to me, nothing missing. It's amazing how customs laws differ in comparison to the United States. As a US citizen, I'm amazed.
Thanks for reading my post. I look forward to your replies!
Elizabeth
This message was edited Apr 20, 2011 2:03 AM
CLOSED: Looking for Easter egg plant seeds among others
Hi -
I have to trade (seeds in bulk quantity) the following 3 items:
English Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) hardy perennial
Wallflower (mixed colors) (Erysimum cheiri, Cheiranthus cheiri) hardy perennial
Zinnia 'Thumbelina' (mixed colors) (Zinnia elegans cv. 'Thumbelina') annual
.......................
Would you be interested in trading any of the above for some of the items that you have available there in S. Korea?
I'm familiar with the Korean culture, having lived with a person who was born there and later became a U.S. citizen. I've seen balsam used for coloring the fingernails (as you describe), having grown the plants from seeds sent here many years ago from S. Korea. It was also (formerly) used as lipstick (same method) - the flowers and the leaves (either one) were crushed and applied to the desired area and left there for a while, the result being a lovely (and long lasting) orange to red-orange color (depending on how many times it was applied).
I don't have the specific items that you're looking for at the present time, but I may locate some of them in the near future. I'm always trying to expand my horizons.
Let me know if you would be interested in a trade. I'd be interested in getting some of the baslam seeds Impatiens balsamina - Bong Seon Hwa (봉 선 화) (preferably the single flower type, which is a hardy annual), and some of the cayenne pepper seeds which are used for making kimchee, of which there are probably many local variants. I'd also be interested in seeds of other herbs or garden plants that are not commonly known here in the U.S. that may have limited regional use in your area.
Best wishes,
> Nick