One thing I can do with my garden log is see if some suppliers have an unacceptable rate of failure. That way I wouldn't order from them again. So here is how it went down this year.
1. Veseys
I like them. I had about 14 varieties from them this year. The only one that produced nothing was the Pizzicato poppies, but most poppies failed due to overcrowding in the Jungle, so I don't blame them. A 7% failure rate in the horrid conditions in my garden isn't bad. The English daisies didn't live up to my expectations, but I overcrowded them. The "Pot & Patio mix" asters only produced one colour, which irked me, but again, I didn't give them good conditions. On the other the pansies were absolutely excellent and I'm totally buying them again; and the California bluebells also performed well. For next year I'm getting more English daisies and more asters, and hopefully by treating them better, I'll get better results.
2. Swallowtail
I had 19 varieties from them, of which 3 failed; 16% failure. All three were morning glories, however, and at least one of them I tried before and know it's a slow cultivar. Therefore, it's quite likely that all three simply ran out of time. I am definitely buying all these plants from them again, except their English daisies mix. Not that it wasn't good, I just don't need three English daisy mixes.
3. OSC
Seven varieties; one failed, two underachieved, and one I'm not sure, seeing as several other cultivars would have looked much the same so I don't know which supplier to give the points to. Well, that's not a very good record, but then again, all but one packet went into the Jungle, and one can't really judge a supplier by the Jungle. Nonetheless, I'm not planning to buy anything from them next year. I have better options elsewhere for the hollyhock, marigold and morning glory, and the rest weren't interesting. I only buy OSC on impulse at the hardware store anyway.
4. McKenzie Seeds
18 varieties, 4 failed; 22% failure. This includes the cypress vine and thunbergia vies, the delphiniums, and the "Falling in Love" poppies. I can hardly blame the poppies, since they were in the Jungle and were added very late, and besides, "Falling in Love" is simply not a successful endeavour in this house. Still, this isn't a very good performance. On top of that, most of what I bought from them was stuff I didn't even want, but again, the hardware store carries it, so I get sidetracked. For next year I'm doing the hyacinth bean (Darth Plant), flax, convolvulus and morning glories again, but I'm using other suppliers except for the flax, which I haven't found elsewhere. I may or may not do poppies again, but realistically, considering that I seeded 4000 Flanders poppies and many bloomed and went to seed, I suspect I will have no shortage of poppies for many years to come.
5. Seedrack
That's where I get my baobabs. I've read bad reviews of them online, but really, they sell rare seeds with specialized germination needs, so just because someone can't germinate them, doesn't mean the supplier is at fault. I had no trouble germinating the baobabs. I've received more seeds from them already for next year, and most of them are hard to germinate. Some are even hard to store. I sure hope the black pansies will turn out; for the rest, failure is to be expected.
6. Thompson & Morgan
Now these are the ones I'm displeased with. I had seven varities. One, "Kniola's Black Knight" morning glory, did not flower, but it might have run out of time. The convolvulus mix may or may not have succeeded, since I had the same from McKenzie and can't tell which supplier's seeds sprouted; however, the packet from Thompson & Morgan was packed in 2008, so I was pretty pissed off when I received it. And the worst thing was the "blue" geranium that turned out nowhere near blue, and which allegedly they shipped me again and I never received. The one thing that really turned out was the Flanders poppies, but like I said, I'll never get rid of them now, so I certainly won't be needing to buy more. So for next year, I will only buy a couple of things from them, and only because I don't have another source (yet).
In summary, my top suppliers are Veseys and Swallowtail, then Seedrack for rare seeds, McKenzie and OSC in the middle, and Thompson & Morgan last.
1. Veseys
I like them. I had about 14 varieties from them this year. The only one that produced nothing was the Pizzicato poppies, but most poppies failed due to overcrowding in the Jungle, so I don't blame them. A 7% failure rate in the horrid conditions in my garden isn't bad. The English daisies didn't live up to my expectations, but I overcrowded them. The "Pot & Patio mix" asters only produced one colour, which irked me, but again, I didn't give them good conditions. On the other the pansies were absolutely excellent and I'm totally buying them again; and the California bluebells also performed well. For next year I'm getting more English daisies and more asters, and hopefully by treating them better, I'll get better results.
2. Swallowtail
I had 19 varieties from them, of which 3 failed; 16% failure. All three were morning glories, however, and at least one of them I tried before and know it's a slow cultivar. Therefore, it's quite likely that all three simply ran out of time. I am definitely buying all these plants from them again, except their English daisies mix. Not that it wasn't good, I just don't need three English daisy mixes.
3. OSC
Seven varieties; one failed, two underachieved, and one I'm not sure, seeing as several other cultivars would have looked much the same so I don't know which supplier to give the points to. Well, that's not a very good record, but then again, all but one packet went into the Jungle, and one can't really judge a supplier by the Jungle. Nonetheless, I'm not planning to buy anything from them next year. I have better options elsewhere for the hollyhock, marigold and morning glory, and the rest weren't interesting. I only buy OSC on impulse at the hardware store anyway.
4. McKenzie Seeds
18 varieties, 4 failed; 22% failure. This includes the cypress vine and thunbergia vies, the delphiniums, and the "Falling in Love" poppies. I can hardly blame the poppies, since they were in the Jungle and were added very late, and besides, "Falling in Love" is simply not a successful endeavour in this house. Still, this isn't a very good performance. On top of that, most of what I bought from them was stuff I didn't even want, but again, the hardware store carries it, so I get sidetracked. For next year I'm doing the hyacinth bean (Darth Plant), flax, convolvulus and morning glories again, but I'm using other suppliers except for the flax, which I haven't found elsewhere. I may or may not do poppies again, but realistically, considering that I seeded 4000 Flanders poppies and many bloomed and went to seed, I suspect I will have no shortage of poppies for many years to come.
5. Seedrack
That's where I get my baobabs. I've read bad reviews of them online, but really, they sell rare seeds with specialized germination needs, so just because someone can't germinate them, doesn't mean the supplier is at fault. I had no trouble germinating the baobabs. I've received more seeds from them already for next year, and most of them are hard to germinate. Some are even hard to store. I sure hope the black pansies will turn out; for the rest, failure is to be expected.
6. Thompson & Morgan
Now these are the ones I'm displeased with. I had seven varities. One, "Kniola's Black Knight" morning glory, did not flower, but it might have run out of time. The convolvulus mix may or may not have succeeded, since I had the same from McKenzie and can't tell which supplier's seeds sprouted; however, the packet from Thompson & Morgan was packed in 2008, so I was pretty pissed off when I received it. And the worst thing was the "blue" geranium that turned out nowhere near blue, and which allegedly they shipped me again and I never received. The one thing that really turned out was the Flanders poppies, but like I said, I'll never get rid of them now, so I certainly won't be needing to buy more. So for next year, I will only buy a couple of things from them, and only because I don't have another source (yet).
In summary, my top suppliers are Veseys and Swallowtail, then Seedrack for rare seeds, McKenzie and OSC in the middle, and Thompson & Morgan last.
No comments:
Post a Comment