Kitchen Garden Forum

Free post and packaging - just till Thursday. I was halfway through ordering
soime strawberry plants and the website went down to put up their new website. An incentive to look at their new offers I guess!

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Hi,
Thanks for that tip seem to be having problems getting garlic locally - local Scats and garden centre sold out.
Hilary

Hi Eddie, shame you missed it they are not that well organised, I phoned them cos I couldn't find the riight place to put the code in for newweb, then decided to order over the phone and she didn't have the new codes yet for the new website, said she'd ring me back tomorrow. The newweb code goes in the little referrred from slot at the top of the order form.
Hi Hilary, yes, that was why I ended up on line, all the local suppliers had none at all.

A tip if you are ordering something from Thompson and Morgan

I thought the tip was going to be "Don't"

lol, I only order from them occasionally Alan, and to be fair they do sort things and replace them if there is a problem. Mostly I order from the real seed co and then save seed. I thought I would try their everbearing strawberry albion and I needed some autumn onion sets and garlic. Trying to get in advance for next year !.

Hi Alan,
I very nearly put the same posting up yesterday! Don't!
Over the years I have had difficulties with them so that now I simply feel there is so much choice with regards seed purchase I use others for preference.
JB.

Personally I've only had one problem with them, and that was compensated for promptly and to my satisfaction, Whereas another firm which used to be excellent has deteriorated a lot, so I guess a lot of firms have their ups and downs as management changes.

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Amazing how experiences differ, mine arrived in fine condition, two different garlics and two sets of onions, all full firm and none sprouting. i would ring and complain if mine arrived like that. I usually order from garden organic or real seeds, but T&M had a few items I wanted to try.

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It makes me laugh what they charge Eddie, if I can i save my own seed and swap, nature is far more generous, last year I let one cabbage seed and there was enough seed to supply the whole village.

EddieJ wrote:I also had a good laugh at the prices in the Medwyns Catalogue. Someone has kindly given me some of their Brittania runner bean seeds, which is just as well, as I didn't fancy paying 22p per seed!

Nature's Babe wrote:It makes me laugh what they charge Eddie, if I can i save my own seed and swap, nature is far more generous

Whilst you two are laughing, remember: Medwyn Williams is selling quality, selected strains of seeds aimed at exhibitors, not amateurs! I wouldn't buy them, as I am not an exhibitor, but those who are prefer to buy quality from a trusted source.



http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-w ... -26521978/

Hi NB,
Brassicas are as easily crossed and as promiscuous as the Squash family so with the Cabbage you have collected seeds from until you have actually grown the progeny to maturity you really have no idea what you are growing. Certainly you stand a good chance of the seed being true but you have no guarantee. This is where these awful Seed Merchants come into their own. Guarantee!
It only takes a few Bees to visit your flowering plant that have been on an F1 hybrid that is in flower at the same time and you could end up with a total load of rubbish. It is for this reason of all the seeds that I collect I never include Cabbage seed on the list. Of course it could cross with a Wild Radish. You know the same Wild Radish that that GM Oil Seed Rape is supposed to have crossed with! (I heard that snort from here!)
JB.

Hi Johnboy

I'm in total agreement on saving brassica seed. I would add one more point: saving from one plant is very poor practice. As pointed out on the Realseeds page linked below:

You can't keep seed from just 1 plant because all these sort of vegetable breed as a 'herd'.
You need a minimum of 20 plants to get healthy seed, otherwise they get too inbred and stunted.

http://www.realseeds.co.uk/brassicaseedprocessing.html