Lagniappe Seeds

"The best things in life are free.  The second best things are very, very expensive." -Coco Chanel

Lagniappe.  That means, "a little something extra or a bonus."  Who doesn't like getting free stuff?  I know I do.  Except the other day I got an email from Tractor Supply Company telling me that I could go by the store and get a free suet cake for Mother's Day.  I didn't go get my free suet cake to give to my mom or wife.  I think that is something for the birds.  It was a nice thought, but it didn't really pull me into the store.  I would have been there with the quickness if they had free feed.

In past years we would purchase our baby chicks from Murray McMurray Hatchery.  They would throw in a free "mystery breed" chick.  You wouldn't know what it was until it grew up.  It was always fun to try to figure out what it was.  We purchase many of our heirloom seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company.  With an order, they typically will throw in a packet or two of free seeds.  It is a great opportunity to try growing something that you would have never, ever grown before.  More on that in a minute...

Each afternoon I've been going out to pick fresh tomatoes.  We have been picking so many and have been eating a bunch.  Today Tricia put up 10 pints of stewed tomatoes.  We'll be doing that a lot.  I have noticed an increasing amount of stink bugs, however.  We'll see how the tomatoes fare against this formidable foe.

Back to the free seeds.  Last year I got a free packet of tomato seeds.  The label said "Black Vernissage Tomato."  Vernissage is a French word that originally meant 'varnishing,' but became known as a preview of an art exhibition or a private showing before it is opened to the general public.

So here is our "private showing" of just seven of the MANY Black Vernissage tomatoes we've been picking:

The Black Vernissage tomato is about the size of a golf ball.  Although the photo above that I took in the fluorescent light betrays its true color, it is a dark tomato with deep green stripes.  It is an indeterminate tomato and is a prolific producer.  It seems to thrive in the hot, humid weather and is not as susceptible to blossom end rot as my Amish Paste tomatoes are.  They are meaty and supposedly very good in sauces. 

For a free seed, this has turned out to be a very good deal.  This is an open-pollinated variety, so I'll be saving some of the seed for next year.  Maybe next year, I'll get a new free seed to try.