Hi Antoinette,

We seem to be on parallel paths! I moved from California (SF bay area) to Pennsylvania late last year and this is my first year with a really large garden in a totally new climate. I also went completely overboard with Heirlooms, particularly squash, beans and hot peppers. And tomatoes. Oh, lets face it, I went overboard with everything. Really, who needs six different kinds of onions? Apparently, me.

Partially, this year is to trial different heirlooms, partially to save seed for next year. I hate to be the barer of bad news, but you (and I) will have a tough time keeping your varieties seperate unless you have a REALLY large plot. I don't, so I'll be doing a lot of blossom bagging/taping. I believe everything you listed will cross (including carrots, onions, etc) to some degree or another. Your best bet is to buy the book "Seed to Seed" by Suzanne Ashworth. It is AWESOME. It will tell you the distances you need to seperate varieties by and other methods if you don't have distance. From your list, corn in particular will be difficult (but not impossible). Squash is relatively easy, just tape the blossom and hand polinate (details in the book). Beans can sometimes be seperated by tall flowers to limit crossing, but your scarlet runner and painted lady will cross very, very easily with each other (but not your other beans)

Buy the book! You'll be happy you did. And best of luck with everything. I had to smile - your list looks so much like mine. I think the limited space in California has made be go a little nuts now that I have room :)

Bellatrix

Antoinette, this Winter a good conversation on cross pollination was covered on the seedsave forum.

I think you would find a lot of help there but something of importance - don't give up on the idea. And, hey, a long time ago - I carried my novice gardening skills from coastal northern California to northern Idaho (not all that much different from New Hampshire). Wow, what a change . . . but it all worked out okay. I'd probably have some real trouble if I went back after nearly 40 years of raising gardens on glacial till.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Do I need to segregate my varieties?

Antoinette,

I'd strongly second Bella_trix's recommendation on the book. It is well worth it.

Do you have neighbors within 1/2 mile growing corn? If so, you will probably have to bag and hand pollinate. If not, you could probably get by isolating by TIME. Look at the dates to maturity and calculate a healthy margin of time so that the two varieties are tasseling at different times. (Keep in mind that 1/2 mile isolation distance is just a working number, and only half the official recommended distance.)

Squash seed lasts for years. You might consider cutting back on some of those c. maxima varieties, at least until you know you have hand pollination down. Below, I'll paste in a link to a thread we had last summer on hand pollination of squash.

I have never lived in NH. But I suspect that you shouldn't put anything tender out in the garden until at least the third week of May. Check with your local extension office. They can tell you the average last frost date.

Probably a major difference you'll find, gardening in New England, from California, is that you have a narrower window of time for crops to mature. You can't dilly dally in getting things in. I gardened for some years in Mexico. It was great to have a couple month window of opportunity for planting certain things! Up North you don't have that luxury.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hand pollination of squash

Here's a link to Sandhill Preservation Center's squash and pumpkin page. There, you can determine some of the species of the varieties you mention. There are other companies which do the same, listing this important information. I just can't remember them at the moment :)

If you only grow one of each species, and you have at least 400 feet isolation from others of the same species, then you don't have to hand pollinate.

George
Tahlequah, OK

PS. Get the book. You won't be sorry.

Here is a link that might be useful: Sandhill squash

You have a short and cool growing season. Most will grow and make it to harvest if your lucky. Melons are tricky here.

Members of the curcubit family (squashes) cross breed very easily. Unless you can really put some distance between or don't mind a few experiments don't bother saving the seed.

Sweet bell peppers I've only had luck with one. I'm sure there are others that work but Ace works for me and my dad in Maine. Tried and failed with many others. Hots just barely make it to harvest.

Memorial Day is the traditional planting time here. I've seen frost in every month including June, July and August. After the first week of September anything can happen but I can sometimes make it until around Columbus day. Plan accordingly.

Chard can be cross-pollinated by beets, so careful there. Since the seed lasts a couple years easily and 3-4 if kept cool and dry, you might grow one for seed one year and the other the next year.

And with carrots, be careful there isn't any wild carrot (Queen Anne's Lace) flowering nearby.

I have a little booklet put out by Johnny's Selected Seeds called Growing Garden Seeds. I'm not sure how it compares with the book listed above, except that this is the ultimate in no-frills publications -- no pictures (and only one diagram), only 32 pages, but it's full of information. It certainly seems to cover all the bases. One thing, though, is that Growing Garden Seeds doesn't cover flowers (except sunflowers), or herbs (except parsley).

Definitely get a book of some kind, and have fun!

Here is a link that might be useful: Growing Garden Seeds