Seedy Saturday (& Sunday)
The past Saturday and Sunday were Seedy Saturday (and Sunday) events here in the West Kootenays, First there was Seedy Saturday in Nelson here, and then there was Seedy Sunday, out in Slocan (a rural area about 30 mins from me). A friend of mine that just really started to get into gardening wanted to go to both, and of course who was I to turn her down?
So we started with Seedy Saturday in Nelson, where I’ve gone every year since I moved to this town, and I knew what to expect. So what does one usually expect? Well, it’s certainly not as big as the Vancouver one I had gotten used to at Van Dusen Botanical Gardens, there’s usually about 6-10 booths here, no swapping going on, and maybe a talk. This year there was a talk on seed saving, but my friend and I couldn’t get our act together quick enough to make it before it started, so we did miss out on that (I’m pretty good with the seed saving knowledge, but my friend isn’t since this is really her first year gardening and she’s jumping in head first with the seed saving and OP/heirloom varieties).
So it’s not huge like the other bigger cities, but it’s what we have here, so I’m not going to complain!
So off we went on Saturday, and I managed to make some pretty good finds. I got:
Mr. Tung’s Pole Beans were the real find this year, to read about them see the previous entry.
Sunday we picked up and drove out to the small community hall in Slocan (which isn’t a town per se, but an unincorporated rural area surrounded by farms and acreages). As I had expected, it was mostly the same people, but there were a few people there that weren’t at the Nelson one, and that made it worth while. Especially for my friend who I think was a little overwhelmed on Saturday and didn’t buy much. On Sunday she far surpassed me in the seed purchases though.
On Sunday, all I got was:
And then we found a guy selling seed potatoes. YAY! So we snapped up some Rose Fingerling pototatoes, 2kg, which is more than enough for both of us to split, and for only $4.50 to boot! Now this was labelled as ‘Rose Fingerling’, but I have the inkling that this is the same as ‘Rose Finn Apple’ Fingerling (they look exactly the same).
We had already ordered ‘Russian Blue’ and ‘Caribe’ (often called an heirloom, but it’s just a few years to new to really be one in my books), both of which we’re splitting, so we’ll be up to our ears in potatoes this year (which is great, because I can eat the things raw I love them so much…. and I’m not even kidding).
All in all, a good weekend, I’m just a little sad that nobody at the events here in our area actually wants to swap, it’s all just straight purchases. But, a good weekend none the less. I would like to see a lot more people participating, there are usually the same half-dozen people or so every year, and while it’s fun seeing the same people every year, it’d be great to see some new faces and new varieties from year to year (because I know there’s some more hidden family heirloom gems around this area, there has to be with such an agricultural/rural history).
But, I must say, it was busier just in terms of the amount of people attending then it has been in previous years, and while it was nothing like the sardine cans that Toronto Seedy Saturday and Vancouver Seedy Saturday were (thanks Gayla and Meighan for the updates!), there was definitely more in attendance. I think this may be due to the fact that not only is vegetable gardening itself becoming more appealing to people, but also with food prices rising the way they are, the economy, etc. (and all that crap you’re inundated with on the news every night), and knowing what goes into (or onto) your food, growing your own is something that’s becoming something that people are just factoring into their lives. I think the people newer to food gardening will find not only will they end of saving some cash, but they’ll find a new hobby that more satisfying than they ever thought it would be.
