As previously mentioned I have a lot of old, often opened, seed packets. Some of the seeds will still be viable; some won’t. Today I have emptied all of the packets of leafy greens into a jar to make a Pot Luck salad mix. I will sow* some later on and see what comes up. It will make a nice exercise in seedling recognition!
If it works well then the Pot Luck salad will become like an old soup pot – always on the boil, with portions taken out and then new ingredients thrown in as they become available. Home-saved seeds may well make it into the mix later on, but for the moment this is what I included:
Lamb’s Lettuce (collected in August 2006)
Wok Brocc (T&M, expiry date lost)
Spring onion Ishikura (Mr Forthergill’s, expiry 2008)
Purslane (OGC, expiry Aug 2009)
Lettuce little gem (OGC, expiry Aug 2008)
Choi Sum Tsai Tsai (home saved)
Korean Chives (v. old)
Red leaf amaranth (v. old)
Spinach Whale (OGC, expiry Aug 2005)
Mustard Spinach (OGC, expiry Aug 2008)
Kaillaan (Nicky’s Nursery, expiry unknown)
Mizuna (free with Which?, sow by of 2012)
Lettuce Romaine Balloon (Mr. Fothergill’s, sow by 2012)
Beetroot Boltardy (BBC Dig In, from 2009 I think)
Oriental Spinach Torasan (T&M, expiry date lost)
Lettuce Bronze Arrow (HSL, no expiry date)
Head mustard (v. old)
Turnip Greens (Real Seeds, packed in 2005)
Broccoli Raab (Mr. Fothergill’s, sow by 2012)
Red Salad Bowl Lettuce (T&M, no expiry date)
Mixed Lettuce (Suttons, expiry June 2010)
Salad (BBC Dig In, from 2010 I think)
Cima di rapa (T&M, no expiry date)
Siamese Dragon stir fry mix (Nicky’s Seed, packed in 2005)
Mustard Osaka Purple (v. old)
Mizuna (OGC, expiry date 2005)
If nothing comes up, I have lost nothing. I have created space (and a little more order) in my seed box, can recycle the empty paper packets and keep the empty foil packets and plastic bags for my own seeds.
*with all salad mixes, when you sow some you have to be careful that they come out in a mix – the larger seeds tend to rise to the top, and then you get a boring monoculture. Tip some out onto your hand and sow those, so you can check what you’ve got.