Basils, Catnip, and more for postage

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This offer is now closed
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Initial response to this offer was slow, so I'm closing it out at 10 people. I'll put a link on this thread to the next offer that I do. It's just easier for me to do these offers in quick batches rather than stretching them out over a longer time.

Thanks!

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Heya! I know this thread is a week or two later than ususal, but I needed to catch up on a couple of other SASBE offers and get over "the crud" that's been going around before packaging some more seeds.

This post has information on how I'm doing this offer and what I need from you. The second post on this thread will have a list of seeds being offered. The third post will be for a list of participants.

Basil Seeds: I have enough of my favorite Italian Basil to go around, but some of the others are limited. I will try to distribute them as fairly as possible. it will not be strictly first come, first served but will also be based on your preferences, so please list your top picks first. (For example, if the second person to post lists ‘Window Box Basil’ as their 6th choice and the 12th person to post lists it as their 1st choice, if I’m down to the last packet, it will go to the 12th person.)

Catnip Seeds: I have plenty, so everybody who wants a packet will get one. Just tell me.

Bonus Flower Seeds: Please list your top 3 picks, in order, and then list 3 alternate choices. You can give me a general description ("sun loving" or "butterfly plants") rather than specific alternates if you prefer. You may go back and edit your choices until the end of the week. I may add more seeds to the list, so please check back here.

Sample response:

Italian Basil
Purple Basil
Sprite Mix Basil
Minette Basil

Catnip – yes please!

Flowers:
1.Gaillardia, Burgundy
2. Asclepias incarnata
3. Love in a Puff

Alternates:
Torenia
Heliopsis
anything purple

The list of seed choices will be in the second post on this thread.

Please post everything on this thread rather than Dmailing me with requests... keeping everything in one place will really help me get these together quickly.

I’m going to limit this offer to 15 people to start with. If you’re one of the first 15 to post on this thread, please send me your postage this week, and I’ll get the BE’s in the mail at the beginning of next week.

I am in the address exchange, or you can Dmail me for my address.

I have some new, small bubble envelopes that I would prefer to use because they are easier to pack without seeds shifting around. Instead of sending me a bubble envelope, I’m going to ask everybody to send an extra first class stamp (41 cents) to cover the cost of the BE. If you are asking for more than just basil seeds, you will need to enclose the higher amount of return postage (80 cents, plus 41 cents for the BE). If you are only asking for a couple of seed packets, 58 cents (plus 41 cents for the BE) will be sufficient.

Please send me an envelope with the following:

1. Loose postage: either $1.21 or $0.99, as detailed above. No pre-printed metered labels, please, as the USPS will not accept them.
2. A label with your return address & your DG name
3 A note WITH YOUR DG NAME so I can find your post on this thread.


This message was edited Mar 18, 2008 7:22 PM

List of seeds available

BASILS:
Italian Basil (15): my favorite for pesto, sauces, all culinary use. Tall, large crinkled leaves.
Purple Basil (10): might be ‘Red Rubin’ or similar variety
“Sprite Mix”(15): contains both 'Lemon Basil' and 'Lime Basil' seeds
Cinnamon Basil (5): spicy flavor is nice in salads, blooms are a pretty garden accent.
'Minette' (7): small leafed, compact variety with good flavor
'Thai Basil (5): wonderful in stir fry & curry, beautiful blooms make it a great ornamental also
Window Box' (5): Similar to Minette, leaves may be slightly larger, a Renee’s Garden variety
'Cameo' (5): a compact basil with larger leaves like a standard sweet or Genovese basil

CATNIP: Nepeta cataria

FLOWERS:
Asclepias incarnata, Swamp Milkweed, cream (from seeds of ‘Ice Ballet’), 5
Aquelegia mix, Columbine, 5
Callicarpa Americana, Beauty Berry (shrub, trade seeds), 3
Pretty Purple Pepper (miniature ornamental for borders, containers), 5
Love in a Puff vine (Cardiospermum haliccabum), 5

Datura, Devil’s Trumpet, lilac (from trade), 3
Datura, Devis’s Trumpet, double purple (from trade), 3
Hibuscus, unknown variety (could be hardy or tender, from trade), 3
Gaillardia pulcleea, Burgundy Blanket Flower, 5
Heliopsis helianthoides var. scabra, Ox-Eye (yellow blooms all summer long), 10

Rudbeckia, trade seeds marked “Black Eyed Susan”, 3
Tagetes tenuifolia, ‘Lemon Gem’ marigold, 3
Torenia, Wishbone Flower, pink & blue ‘Happy Faces’ mix (2005 germinated fine in 2008), 5

TOMATOES: I have 1 or 2 packets of each of the following available for this swap, just list them with your flower extras.
'Hanging Basket' -- compact plant bearing 2-3" red tomatoes
'Silvery Fir Tree' -- gorgeous foliage and decent tomatoes on a determinate 24-30" plant
'Wisconsin 55' -- smooth round red, great flavor & production in my garden
"Friendship" -- unknown name, smooth round red, great canning variety that a friend and I passed back & forth for years
'German Red Strawberry' -- big productive oxheart
'Polish Linguisa' -- huge red paster

PEPPERS: -- still working on packing & labeling these, but I'll list them
'Sweet Pickle' -- beautiful compact plant with delicious sweet (not hot) little peppers
Serrano' -- seeds from trade
'Tabasco' -- seeds from trade
'Fish Pepper' -- great flavor, med. hot, cute striped peppers on cream-splashed variegated foliage; heirloom
'Yellow Flying Saucer' -- very hot habanero type, compact productive plants
'Hot Lemon' x? -- 2" yellow pepper with citrus flavor, might be a little crossed but taste and color are true
'Bulgarian Carrot' x? -- 2-3" orange pepper great flavor, same as above
'Bolivian Rainbow' -- hot purple peppers; purple foliage
'Fluorescent Purple' -- hot purple peppers; purple foliage
'Pretty Purple Pepper' -- miniature 6-10" plants with adorable round purple peppers, more ornamental than tasty
Habanero mix -- large varieties of different colored habs that crossed and mostly turned out red



This message was edited Mar 14, 2008 1:00 PM

List of participants. I'll edit to add names as we go along. I'll also edit here to show that I've received your postage and let you know when the BE's have been sent out.

1. dhemmer -- mailed 3/19, received
2. edgeoftheworld -- received, mailed 3/18
3. Mrs_Ed -- received, mailed 3/18
4. drsaul -- mailed 3/22, received
5. kaperc -- received, mailed 3/19
6. tetleytuna -- mailed 3/19, received
7. kari_sue -- received, mailed 3/18
8. darlindeb -- mailed 3/19, received 3/20
9. mauryhillfarm -- mailed 3/19, received
10. jojoringer -- mailed 3/19, received 3/20


This message was edited Mar 24, 2008 10:57 PM

I wanted to add a note here about the DG articles I've been writing. There are some that might be especially useful to anybody new to growing plants from seed.

Seed Starting 101: Lights http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/464/

Seed Starting 101: Heat Mats http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/556/

Preventing Damping-Off: http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/277/

Seed Starting 101: Sowing & Clump Transplanting (scheduled for Thursday!)

If you have any questions about this whole "seeds for postage" thing, check out http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/629/

And once you've got your basil growing, take a look at the first 3 DG articles I wrote about growing and using herbs... :-)

critter
hi thanks for the links. they are helpful. i would love to put my name down for

BASILS:
Italian Basil
“Sprite Mix”
Cinnamon Basil

FLOWERS:
Datura, Devis’s Trumpet, double purple

Torenia, Wishbone Flower, pink & blue ‘Happy Faces’ mix

thank you
dhemmer
(diana)

Diana, you've got 'em!

I think you'll like the Italian basil. A friend of mine brought back the seeds from Italy several years ago, and it's just a fabulous variety. :-)

Hi Critter,Please reserve all of the basils you mentioned.Thank-you,Edge (Mark)

Mark, availability permitting, I'll do so... since some of the basils are in short supply, it would help me if you listed them in order of preference... for example, you may not have an equal need for all 3 varieties of compact basils... Thanks!

HI!

I'll take one Italian basil if there are still some left!

Extras, Butterfly/Sun please.

-MARNA

This message was edited Mar 11, 2008 10:14 PM

Hi Critter!

I would like to have:


Italian Basil

CATNIP-Pretty please!

Datura, Devis’s Trumpet, double purple


Thanks so much for doing this!!

Darin

Hi Critter - nice offer! I would like the following:

Italian basil
Sprite mix
Asclepias

Thanks very much.
Kathleen

Critter, thank you so much for the offer! I have been really considering an herb garden of some kind and this would make a great beginning.

Basil:
Minette
Sprite Mix
Italian

Flowers:
Love in a puff vine
Datura Double Purple
Torenia
pretty purple pepper

Ann B. :^)

You're welcome! With 6 people already, we're off to a good start. :-)

If you don't ask for extras, I won't put in random bonus packets, because I don't want to send you seeds you can't use. It's OK to mention things that aren't specifically on the list... it you tell me you like hot peppers or need tomato seeds or love pink flowers and have a lot of sun, I can probably find something you'd like.

I did not ask for extras because I wanted to give everyone a chance to get something. But I love surprises and would give them a good home. I am not at all particular, having something new to try is always an adventure!

Tetley, there's plenty for everybody to get something, I promise! I can do "random" -- but knowing anything about your garden helps me pick something you'll like. But if I send something you can't use, you can always pass it along. :-)

Critter, I would love the Italian and the sprite basils.
Thank you for doing this!
Karen

You're welcome!

I've added a few tomato and pepper varieties. If you're looking for anything in particular, just ask.. If I have a couple of extra seeds, I'll include them.

critter
can i get a few pepper packages i want to try my hand at them. i am looking for some white tomatoes if you have any extra. thanks for your generosity.
diana

White is one color I don't have, but I've heard good things about 'White Queen', and that's one you might be able to find on a seed rack. Let me know if you have any preferences among the peppers -- hot, sweet, very hot, ornamental, etc.

I edited the seed list again... added Thai basil, from seed saved in 2006 that should still germinate just fine (basil seed is good for several years). Also added a couple packs of 'Sweet Pickle' pepper.

Kaperc -- I got your postage today; thanks! Please take a look at the updated lists and LMK if you'd like anything in addition to what you requested previously. It's fine to make a general request too, like "anything else for butterflies."

Everybody else: If you haven't put your postage in the mail, please do so! I've got these seeds ready to go (packing peppers today) and would like to turn this offer around quickly. Thanks!

Thanks, Jill, but I'm a beginner at seed starting, so I think I have enough.

Kathlen

In your zone, Kathleen, these would be perennial...

Torenia 'Happy Faces' mix of pink & blue

And this is one of my favorites... very easy to grow from seed, and (unlike many perennials) it'll bloom the first year. The second year, it'll get 3 feet tall and bloom nonstop all summer long!

I was calling this "Not-Chocolate-Daisy" for a while, because the seeds had come in a mis-marked packet, but it's been ID'd as Heliopsis helianthoides var. scabra, aka Oxeye or Orange Sunflower.

My postage went out today. Oooo, i like that helianthoides. They're nice with those magenta lambs ears (or whatever they are called), I have those seeds.

If some of those happened to fall into my packet, that would be okay with me. :D

thanks again.

Those magenta flowers in that photo are Rose Campion (Lychnis coronaria)... I like them, too! I've run through the packs I made up of those, but if somebody wants just a pinch of seeds from my stash, LMK.

Mrs_Ed, I'll add that yellow flower to your BE!

I mailed mine today also.
Thanks,
Karen

How long do you think that those Lychnis Coronaria seeds last. I've had mine for a long time.

in my experience, most seeds are good for at least 4-5 years if stored dry, in controlled room temperature (eg, air conditioning in summer, not a 120 degree attic). After that, germination % may decline, but you're still likely to get something sprouting.

I would just like some Thia Basil "Queen Siam." a few seeds 24.

Thanks,

Deborah

I'll D-mail you for your address.

Hi, I've never done a seed exchange before, so I will do my best to follow instructions. i hope I'm not too late.
Basil:
First choice: Italian Basil
Second choice:Thai Basil
Third choice: Purple Basil
Flowers:
Gaillardia Burgundy
Aqueligia mix
Heliopsis

Thanks!

Sent the postage for you today! Sorry it took so long, I lost the thread ------- :^)

Mauryhill, you're not too late at all. And you're not necessarily limited to 3 choices of basil or flowers, either -- but listing your picks in order of preference will help me if anything is in short supply. I'm sorry if I over-complicated the directions!

I got postage today from Mrs. Ed and Karri Sue. Thanks!

Hi Critter, I would also appreciate Sweet pickle peppers,
Fish peppers

I forgot to put in alternate flowers: Asclepias incarnata
Callicarpa
or anything that does well in full sun, which is what I have.

I am happy to receive anything that works out, and am not particular about what flowers.
I grow garlic and make pesto to freeze, which is why the basils are my first choices.
I got your address via d-mail, and will send out my postage tomorrow. thanks!!!!!

Hi Critter,
If it's not too late, I love freakishly hot peppers and I would love to give that Yellow Flying Saucer pepper a try. Or either of the hot purples might make my DH's next salsa experiment more ... uh interesting LOL
I can get the postage in the mail tomorrow.
Thanks for offering these. You are an amazing gardener!
Joey

LOL

Joey, I can definitely set you up with some freakishly hot peppers! I've got seeds for a couple of habanero varieties that I saved and grew out last year -- some were red rather than the yellow ('Fatalii') or dark ('Chocolate') color they were supposed to be, but they still grew nice big *hot* habaneros! Those are the ones that I figured I should put together in a "mix" since they didn't grow out true. Do you have space for some taller plants? And would you like basil while we're at it?

Thanks! I have space and space and space! I've marked out space to put peppers in the monster perennial border I've started. I have the Chocolate Habenaro and the Fatili, and am always ready to try a new pepper!
As for Basil I have always wanted to start the Lemon and Lime Basil for my kitchen window herb shelf but have never gotten around to it.
But I would be happy with just the peppers if your running low on basil.
Since I joined Daves I've never had so many seeds in my life! I'm working on plans for new light shelves with screens to keep out cats and kids. I have plenty of room outside, LOL it's inside that's getting cramped.
I'll get an envelope out today and thanks so much!!
Joey

Mrs_Ed, Karri, and Edge... your seeds went out in today's mail. Thanks!

I'm going to close out this offer thread with the 10 people we have so far. I'll pack the rest of the BE's today.

If I missed anybody on the list of participants (3rd post), please let me know!

If you have any additional requests or wish list picks, please post them. If you don't post anything about extra seeds you might like (either specifically or generally), I'll assume you can't use them.

I'm pretty sure I'll still have basil packs remaining after this offer. I'm planning to offer them on a thread following my article on using different basil varieties in the landscape -- this week Thursday! :-)

Thanks for adding me! I just got back from the mailbox. The envelope is on it's way!
Joey