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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Of melons and dreams...

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  • From: "Kieran &/or Donna" <holycow@frontiernet.net>
  • To: "North American Fruit Explorers" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Of melons and dreams...
  • Date: Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:07:19 -0500

I myself wouldn't get all worked up by Baker Creek's claims.  They have different soil from TN, but the biggest thing is that they are appealing to our sense of novelty.  Look a bit closer to home.  Old SSE Yearbooks are a great resource.  I have used mine for years to pick out varieties that do well in our climate.  When I wanted to know more( like soil), I often just called the person, another advantage of being in SSE.  I learned to be suspicious of the members who offered lots of novelty colors, or who raved about everything they offered as great.  I got some real duds through SSE, but I got some terrific varieties too. 
    Just because a variety is a best seller doesn't mean it tastes good, if it has some other quality like huge size or novel color.  The asian melons supposedly don't have much taste, though great scent.  Again, old SSE yearbooks give the comments of many people on many varieties.  And last but not least, many of the depressingly "ordinary" veggies are widely available because they are widely adapted and generally productive.  Some collectors items are just too thin skinned to ship well, but some are finicky about soil or climate or just don't produce very well. 
    Oh, and get a CEC soil test from A&L labs over in Memphis.  It will be worth it.  Which river are you near?  We lived 1/2 mile from the Tenn River, on cherty excessively well drained soil.  Donna



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