Grex Gardening Conference

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Grex Gardening Item 22: The Antique and Unusual
Entered by krc on Sat Oct 12 21:22:51 UTC 1996:

A large article in the Detroit "Free Press" last week alerted me to an Ann
Arbor bulb company called Old House Gardens, a mail-order company founded
by Scott Kunst, a former A2 middle school teacher.  The company
specializes in HISTORIC BULBS dating back to the 1500s!  The catalog also
contains insights on the use of bulbs in various eras -- such as that the
Victorians loved hyacinths.  [Author's note:  This means the Victorians
did *something* right after all.]

The catalog offers the first pink daffodil, 'Mrs. R. O. Backhouse'
developed in 1923, as well as such things as the "Narcissus poeticus" also
known as the pheasant's eye or poet's narcissus, with white petals and a
red-rimmed center; and a short yellow-orange crocus called 'Cloth of Gold'
from 1587.  There is also something known as snake's head fritillary from
1572, which is sort of a checkered lily.

Kunst has researched the bulbs' authenticity and offers refunds if any
turn out to be other than the variety described.  (But who knows?  You
might want to adventure into a new variety.)  Kunst is also a landscape
historian and consultant, and will give lectures to groups who are
interested in this.

Besides fall-plant bulbs which bloom in the spring, the catalog also
includes:  Antique spring-plant bulbs such as cannas and gladiolas,
tuberoses and dahlias.  The catalog, which costs $2.00 is available from:

                        Old House Gardens-D
                        536 Third St.
                        Ann Arbor, MI 48103-4957

6 responses total.

#1 of 6 by krc on Sat Oct 12 21:25:57 1996:

Along these same lines, I have a friend who collects old varieties of flowers
and flowering bushes which are no longer available from around abandoned
houses or where contractors are coming in to terraform the place for housing
or a shopping mall.  Does anyone else do this sort of thing?

#2 of 6 by scott on Sat Oct 12 22:33:34 1996:

I recall seeing somebody do that, but I don't know anybody who does it on a
regular basis.  More like "hey, is that bulldozer going to just roll over
those flowers?  Can it wait 5 minutes?".

#3 of 6 by popcorn on Tue Oct 15 19:59:56 1996:

This response has been erased.

#4 of 6 by krc on Tue Nov 5 17:35:10 1996:

I would like that e-mail address, popcorn.  Don't feel bad, most people's
tomatoes and other veggies faired poorly this year.  An excess of wet,
followed by an excess of dry will do that.  Wait until you see the prices on
bread and other such groceries skyrocket, and the results of this summer will
hit where it hurts.  The farmers were *not* happy.

#5 of 6 by popcorn on Wed Nov 6 07:33:41 1996:

This response has been erased.

#6 of 6 by arabella on Mon Mar 3 13:08:06 1997:

I'm very interested in growing heirloom vegetables, and in saving
some of my own seed for next year.  I got a couple of currant
tomatoes from my neighbor last fall, and sprouted them early
by accident (I was trying to ferment them to get off the slimy
covering on the seeds, but they sprouted instead)...  So now
I have a bunch of heirloom currant tomato plants thriving on my
kitchen windowsill.  I may make a couple available for adoption
soon.

I definitely want to get the Old House Gardens catalog.  Planting
heirloom bulbs sounds like great fun.

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