CATCH THE BUZZ - SEEDS SHORT, ORDER EARLY

CATCH THE BUZZ

Will there be a shortage of vegetable seeds for gardeners in 2010?

Source: freep.com

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It is possible, says Barbara Melera, owner of the oldest seed house in the country, D. Landreth Seeds of New Freedom, Pa.

"In 2009, we had the worst growing season in 50 years," she said. Rain and disease destroyed crops and with them, the seeds for next year's garden.

"Onion sets. And a cucumber seed shortage," she predicted. "We are being told that the cucumber harvest was catastrophic, attacked late in the season by woolly mildew. There was fruit, but no viable seeds inside.

"We are being told that many, many varieties simply won't be available."

Likewise, Europe had a terrible harvest this year, and Europeans purchased much of their produce from the United States, taking with it, the seeds.

And, as further proof that we are in a global marketplace, Europeans and Australians have taken a fancy to eating sprouts.

"When you grow vegetables just to get the sprouts, nothing gets to fruit. And they are consuming gigantic quantities of seeds just for the purpose of sprouts," Melera said.

Word of possible shortages must be leaking out, Melera said, because retailers are telling her they had their best December in years.

It is certainly true that vegetable gardeners are ordering seeds earlier and earlier, but Melera said she thinks it is more likely that gardeners are acting out of fear of shortages.

This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping, published by the A.I. Root Company.

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