Way back in 2012, I wrote what became a fairly popular and referenced article on the Monsanto buyout of a seed company called Seminis. To briefly recap: Seminis was a provider of lots of garden seed to lots of different seedhouses. Then, overnight, they were a Monsanto subsidiary and seed companies like Johnny’s Selected Seeds…
Johnny's Seed
My Seed Order for 2018
I think we need to add a new term to the general lexicon. Stress-induced Seed Acquisition Syndrome. SSAS. We can pronounce it like sass. SSAS is closely related to other Homestead acquisition and purchasing disorders, such as: Chicken Math Delusion Syndrome (CMDS) – the belief that your 4 x 8 foot chicken coop can totally…
Is Cheap Seed Hurting Your Garden? Germination Rate, Vigor, and Why You Should Care
Sometimes, cheap seeds just cost too much. I’m going to explain why in a second, but first I want you to imagine for a minute that you are pulling up to a gas station to fuel your car. There are two pumps, and each will dispense different fuels. Pump A sells fuel that costs $7…
A Brief History of Monsanto and Seed Houses Who Got Screwed
The following is adapted from a note I published on Facebook in February 2012. Since I’m still getting questions about Territorial Seed and Monsanto, I’m publishing it here to make it more widely available. It’s seed catalog time! The dripping seed lust of gardeners at this time of year, flipping through pages filled with new…