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[<sgian AT netscape.com>]

>I don't know anyone who has not planted Park seeds. I didn't know they
were bankrupt


This has already happened to a number of seedsmen including Gurney's and 
Henry Fields and others.  Still going ofter they have been bought out but not 
the same as when they were family run.  I still have a type of lettuce 
(Bronze Mingionette) and peppers (Tequila Sunrise) that I bought from Park's 
at least 25 years ago and have saved seed from them ever since.  

Many of the newer seed companies and the ones still run by families and small 
groups offer a much larger variety of seeds than those companies of yore, and 
they offer more OP stuff.  Baker Creek, Nichols, Italian Tool and Seed, 
Southern Exposure, etc. etc.  have just done such a better job at providing 
vegetable seed,  it is small wonder, says I, that the old line is folding.

There's a sort of seed triage goes on here, and this time of the year we are 
in the thick of it.  First line of defense is to save our own seed.  This 
accounts for about 75% of all our seeds.  Failing that, we look at the local 
feed stores and produce stands.  I understand that every part of the country 
doesn't sport produce stands and that's a pity.  Here they stock all the 
local favorite seeds by the scoop or by the pound.  Then the gardening 
departments of the building suppliers and marts are scanned to fill in any 
missing seeds.   And THEN we see what we have not been able to get anywhere 
else and put in an order to two or three seedsmen.  

If we were cut off from all other sources of seed but our own saved seed, our 
variety would suffer a bit and the potato crop would be somewhat diminished, 
but we'd be OK.  I certainly don't expect that to happen, but we'd weather it 
if we had to.


James

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Netscape.  Just the Net You Need.