2-10-2010 - New acquisitions
The new seeds for 2010 are already rolling in from various sources.

From the PBS BX I received Erythrina herbacea and Echeandia texensis.

From SIGNA I received Nemastylis geminiflora.

From Rocky Mountain Rare Plants I received Kalmia latifolia.

Sadly NEWFS has taken the year off to allow some of their newly relocated flower beds can reestablish themselves.

10-9-2009 - Oh crap!
I just found some notes indicating that those were NOT seeds of the white-flowered Monarda sp. after all. But instead they were seeds of Monarda russeliana which I had acquired from the last NEWFS seed exchange.

10-4-2009 - Thank you, Pier One!
Well at long last the white-flowered Monarda sp. has finally germinated! It didn't bloom this year but I have a couple healthy looking plants that should overwinter in their semi-shady flower bed alongside my house. Also a couple of those Manfreda virginica seeds germinated too.

As for Pier One, I picked up a piece of furniture from the local store, and they made me drive around back to their loading dock. Well I was delighted beyond belief to discover their store was adjacent to an established (albeit man-made) prairie. A pocket of the prairie was on their property, so I went back several times to collect seeds of Rudbeckia pinnata, Rudbeckia sp. (triloba?), Monarda sp. (didyma?), and Asclepias tuberosa which, believe it or not, is not yet in my prairie!

So I cast all these seeds throughout my prairie, and then began harvesting seeds from my own small garden patches of Echinacea species. I must have collected thousands of seeds of Echinacea purpurea. And perhaps nearly a thousand seeds each of: E. laevigata and E. pallida. None of these species has been established in my prairie yet, despite several attempts. Now I'm hopeful the sheer number of seeds cast into the praire will finally yield some positive results.

Passiflora incarnata produced yet another stunning display of flowers this year, yielding an abundant crop of fruit, one of which I'm enjoying at this very moment! Passiflora lutea continues to thrive and bloom, but it still refuses to set seed. Stupid Passiflora lutea. LOL!

Eryngium yuccifolium is establishing itself nicely throughout my prairie. What a great wildflower! The native Bidens coronata, Solidago sp. and Aster sp. are putting on an incredible display of color right now... massive quantities of yellow, white, and pale purple... the grand finale of the season. Soon it will be time for everything to rest while winter works its magic on those stratifying seeds.

10-3-2009 - New acquisitions
In spring I acquired a lot of new plant specimens... some local genotype, some regional. Most of them seem to have survived the growing season. Now let's see if they overwinter succesfully.

From Plant Delights Nursery I acquired Iris fulva 'Lois', Physostegia virginiana 'Eyeful Tower', and Lilium pyrophilum.

From Sunshine Farms I acquired Lilium superbum.

From Seneca Hills I acquired Asclepias variegata, Silphium compositum, Silphium albiflorum, and Penstemon murrayanus.

From Dropseed Nursery in Goshen, Kentucky I acquired Pycnanthemum tenuifolium, Silphium pinnatifidum, Silphium trifoliatum, Silphium laciniatum, and Helainthus silphoides.

From Porterbrook Nursery in Racine, Ohio I acquired Liatris turgida (my first ever Liatris species!), Lupinus perennis, Helianthus salicifolius, Filipendula rubra (my prairie needs a queen!), Coreopsis auriculata, Delphinium virescens, Manfreda virginica, Veronicastrum virginicum, Centrosema virginianum, and Silphium mohrii (yes, I'm a Silphium addict!).

2-15-2009 - Seed gathering
I did a bit of wildflower seed hunting today but only gathered one seed head of that white-flowered Monarda sp. (which I still have not been able to establish in my garden) and a few seed pods of Manfreda virginica.

2-7-2009 - Change of plans
From 2005 to 2008 I sold seeds, but I have suspended that activity in 2009, maybe for good. The money I made went right back to buying more plants in spring, so that was a rewarding experience. But the travel I've been doing, especially since late 2007, has made it impossible to collect many seeds. So rather than tear down the website and stopping all sales, I decided to leave the site up and take it in a new direction.

I will continue to use the site to track my collection. As new plants are added & removed the site will be updated accordingly. Anyone eager to make a trade, or otherwise acquire something I grow, is encouraged to contact me. However, if you're asking for a common plant I'll most likely refer you elsewhere. I've enjoyed the correspondences with other enthusiasts, so I intend to leave the site up indefinitely so they can continue to find me. But the commercial aspect of this adventure is definitely at an end. At least for now. :-)

4-16-2008 - Iris overdose
I took two trips earlier this month where I got the chance to hunt for wild irises. On my first trip to southwestern Kentucky I found Iris virginica. On my second trip to northern California I found thousands of PCNs (pacific coast natives). If I had to guess I saw over 10,000 wild native irises in bloom!

1-27-2008 - Recollections
I re-collected some seeds of things that I think I lost in last summer's drought. I got a few more seeds of the white Monarda sp., Baptisia sp., and Eryngium yuccifolium. I also got more seeds of Ipomoea pandurata. All of these were wild collected again from my original sources.

1-21-2008 - Crazy year
2007 was indeed a crazy year. Only time will tell which native plants managed to survive that brutal summer. I have no seeds from 2007 for sale, partly due to the poor harvest and partly due to my busy travel schedule. What little bit of seed I did gather will be saved and resown to replace any plants lost in the drought.

8-28-2007 - American lotus
While driving along the coast of Lake Erie I chanced upon a colony of native American lotus Nelumbo lutea in bloom along highway OH-2 near Oak Harbor, Ohio. Luckily I found some of the previous year's seedpods within reach of the shore. Hopefully they are viable and I can grow this regional ecotype material.

4-25-2007 - First expedition of the year
I went on my first expedition of the year and obtained seeds of Liriodendron tulipifera (aka: Tuliptree) and pads of Opuntia humifusa (aka: Eastern prickly-pear cactus). I've read it could take 15 years for Tuliptree to mature and produce seeds, but the cactus pads should begin producing by next year.

4-13-2007 - 2006 SEEDS ARE GONE
All seeds from 2006 are gone. I will begin collecting next month as the first wildflower seeds of 2007 ripen.

3-4-2007 - Spring is coming...
Spring is asserting itself and temperatures are steadily rising. Although it snows and sleets sometimes, it usually melts by mid-day. Over the next few weeks I'll be casting my leftover seeds back into the garden, unless I can find any last minute customers.

1-21-2007 - Cynanchum laeve
Honeyvine (aka: Cynanchum laeve) has been the top seller for me. Nearly two-thirds of my customers have purchased it since I started selling seeds over a year ago. Probably Ipomoea pandurata would be the top seller if those pesky beetles weren't such a concern (see web log entry below for 8-26-2006).

1-12-2007 - New additions
Earlier in the autumn I obtained local ecotype seeds of Helianthus sp., Bidens sp. (this one was intriguing because it was growing abundantly on dry land on an abandonned farm pasture, whereas Bidens has a reputation for being a genus full of wetland species), Agalinis tenuifolia, Helenium autumnale, Asimina triloba, Hibiscus laevis, Cephalanthus occidentalis, & Elephantopus sp.

1-9-2007 - Happy New Year!
The last few months have been hectic. I regret I have not been able to keep this site updated. I also had a problem with my ISP implementing a new spam filter on incoming email. Quite a bit of normal email was being blocked, so if you sent me a message and didn't get a response from me, please try again.

9-16-2006 - New explorations - New discoveries!
On a recent hike I discovered a new species (for me) called Agalinis tenuifolia. It is a relative of the common garden foxglove, except this one is a native species, and it's an annual instead of a perennial.

I hope to collect a few seeds to get it started in my own garden. At the moment the only native annuals I have are Impatiens pallida & Impatiens capensis.

I also discovered a local population of Elephants-foot (Elephantopus sp.). I'm real excited about that. This is a native species I've never been able to keep alive for long in my garden. Maybe the local ecotype will be the key to success.

9-6-2006 - New additions
Some new species have appeared in my prairie: Solidago sp., Oenothera sp., Aster sp. I've added them to my catalog, but I haven't positively identified them yet.

I obtained some local ecotype plants from local nurseries: Orbexilum onobrychis, Eryngium yuccifolium, Physocarpus opulifolius, Liatris spicata.

I obtained some non-local ecotype plants, too: Ratibida columnifera, Iliamna remota, Physocarpus opulifolius, Passiflora lutea, Silphium brachiatum.

9-3-2006 - New additions
I obtained local ecotype seeds of Monarda sp. & Rudbeckia sp. The Monarda had white flowers, but I don't know the exact species. The Rudbeckia are probably R. triloba but I'm not sure yet.

8-27-2006 - New additions
I obtained local ecotype seeds of Sisyrinchium angustifolium & Camassia scilloides. My old plants are not local ecotype material.

8-26-2006 - Ipomoea pandurata
Ipomoea pandurata is the most requested species of all my collection. Unfortunately I can't (won't) sell it to people living far away. I found that the seeds are host to an insect (Nicrophorus tomentosa?) which lays its eggs inside the seed. Warmth triggers them to hatch, and then they devour the seeds from within before emerging as adults.

Almost all the seeds I harvest are non-viable as a result. But if you live in my vicinity, and you want to take the chance, then I'm willing to sell. If you live far away then forget it. I know these Nicrophorus beetles have a worldwide distribution, but I won't ship the seeds far knowing they're carrying hitchhikers.

8-25-2006 - Blog blog blog...
I decided to add a blog, today. This site has attracted lots of interest from all over the USA and even abroad. I will post comments here to let you know what's been going on in my garden.