Brighter Planet's 350 challenge Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
(used with permission from Jordanne Dervais)

Counting it down, are you prepared??

Friday, January 6, 2012

Prepping for Spring - Part 2 Seed Inventory & Selection

With the unseasonably warm weather we are having, I have been having thoughts of spring and planting.  I decided to pull out all the seeds I have and was surprised to find I have a good bit!  Not all the heirloom I want, but I gotta start somewhere, right?  So here is the list of what i currently have on hand (that I have collected and packets from friends):

  • 100s of bell pepper
  • lots of jalapeno and other varieties hot peppers
  • canteloupe & honeydew melon
  • eggplant
  • heirloom broccoli (waltham 29)
  • heirloom soybeans (thanks to Tim from Oleo Acres)
  • okra
  • 2 varieties of beets
  • carrots
  • squash
  • 2 varieties of lettuce
  • royal burgundy bush beans
  • roma bush beans
  • turnips
  • pumpkin
  • shelly beans
  • peaches n cream corn
I think I am off to a pretty good start!  But I really want to expand this year and thankfully have the help/muscle of a couple family friends.  Here's the list of what I want to buy from Baker Creek heirloom Seed Co:
  • sugar snap peas
  • costata romanesca squash
  • tomatillos
  • yellow & red cherry tomatoes
  • calendula
  • catnip
  • chamomile
  • feverfew
  • scullcap
  • swiss chard
  • kale
  • 2 types of eggplant
  • asparagus
  • bok choy
  • fennel
  • wild rocket arugula
  • bee balm
  • cilantro
  • sage 
  • horehound
  • amaranth
  • italian pepperoncini peppers
  • parisian pickling cucumbers
  • berries & grapes
Sounds like a lot, I know, especially for my yard, but I will be utilizing the beds in the front also and the east side of the house.  most of the herbs will also be in pots on a shelf.  I already have the egg crates ready to start seed and am thinking of starting some lettuce now. The bug has bit and man it bit hard!!!  I'm ready for spring!!!!  All the seeds I am ordering are going to cost about $50 and that doesn't count the berries, grapes and fruit trees I want..

You know what excites me most about this list?  The amaranth.  Don't know what that is? Amaranth is an 8,000 year old crop called the “super food” by the ancient Aztecs.  Once an abundant part of the empire’s crop base, Amaranth was fed to runners and warriors because of its reputation for providing large bursts of energy and improving athletic performance. The crop was regarded so highly that each year bushels of Amaranth were presented to their leader, Montezuma. Because the crop figured so prominently in Aztec culture and religious ceremonies, the conquering armies of Cortez burned the fields to the ground. As European crops replaced indigenous ones, Amaranth slowly fell out of use. Twenty years ago, the “ancient crop with a future” enjoyed a renaissance when the National Academy of Sciences recommended Amaranth as one of twenty foods to be re-introduced into the American diet.

 Amaranth contains large amounts of dietary fiber, iron, and calcium as well as other vitamins and minerals. Amaranth also has naturally high amounts of lysine, methionine and cysteine combined with a fine balance of amino acids making it an excellent source of high quality, balanced protein (about 14% by volume), which is more complete than the protein found in most grains. In addition to Amaranth’s outstanding nutritional value, it is also very low in sodium and contains no saturated fat. Another outstanding feature is that our Amaranth is organically grown and is naturally Non-GMO.







No comments:

Post a Comment