A Gardeners Forum Forums Members History Forum Life 2005 Great Gardening Book on Market Bulletins

Hello everyone,

Lately I haven't been doing anything but read. Even my time on the computer has been limited since I feel so crummy (or crumby??). Anyway I haven't forgotten those I promised seeds and/or eggs to, I just haven't been up to preparing either. This experience has made me cut back extensively on gardening plans which kept getting bigger and bigger.

Much of this may be old news to some, but I thought I'd share some of what I've learned. My reading started out 2005 with Katharine White's Onward and Upward in the Garden for the second or third time--though I haven't been in it for many years. (Actually I re-read Austen's Pride and Prejudice first) There is a pb edition of White's book available, but I found mine at one of these 3 used book sources (these are just the ones I use, but check out the shipping charges since I've bought from some sources and the shipping prices were very much higher than necessary)
ABE Books

Half.Com

and of course Amazon.com

Once I got into the book, I had to check the ending--I'm a mystery fan who can't wait until the end. I guess it's cheating but I've never been good at tolerating suspense. Anyway, at the back of this book is a list of catalogs, many of which are no longer available and some of the ones that are listed are no longer top notch according to Garden Watchdog. But I ordered the free ones!

There is also a bibliography, most of which are not in print--but most are available at reasonable prices through one of the three sites above. Some are available but at museum or special collector's prices. Leaves me out!

Katharine White quotes often from Elizabeth Lawrence's books--but they were out of print when the paperback was printed. So I ordered several of her books since she is a "Southern" gardener.

One book I've browsed through talks at length about regional gardeners and says that most garden writers are from the Northeast, but that is never specified. I think that more and more it is necessary to at least specify zone, if not "Northeastern", Northwestern, Southern, etc.

Now to MARKET BULLETINS but not the bulletins for Labor or the Stock Market. Gardening for Love: The Market Bulletins by Elizabeth Lawrence, 1904-1985, is a compilation of wonderful gardening stories and of the value of market bulletins and her correspondence with gardeners she "met" through them. She concentrates on the Mississippi Market Bulletin and mentions several others in the afterword--always have to check that--but my home state of LA is neglected there. I remember as a pre-teen my father received the LA market bulletin which I enjoyed reading, but it was omitted. Soon discovered by reading the preface next that the LA one stopped in 1966.
(I HAD read the introduction first, though and LA was not mentioned.)

LA on-line market bulletin

So LA has resurrected its MB and the SC and MS ones are also fine. LA and SC are made available on the internet at least twice a month--but I haven't researched any other states. SC is the only one I read through and although many will send seeds for a small price with an SASE, the plants will not be shipped. CT was the only state at the time this was written not in the south that Miss Lawrence found at the time.

I highly recommend both books and the market bulletins for interesting reading for gardeners.
Check to see if your state is listed if you haven't already found Market Bulletins.

And thanks for all the entertaining and informative reading here.

Ann

I did a search for a Virginia market bulletin and apparently there is none. I did see mention of market bulletins for West Virginia, Florida, and Mississippi though.

The Virginia Dept. of Agriculture does have a couple of websites that may be of interest however.
consumer services
marketing services

Last night I thought I had lost another post, but was pleased to find it today when I was checking the new topics before starting my own apology for not getting the seeds and eggs out. So I apologize again and will get to them as soon as possible.

As I've been reading about market bulletins and the wonderful people Miss Lawrence corresponded with over the years, I started thinking about gains and losses. I had completely forgotten the LA mb and how much I enjoyed it--much like reading a seed catalog or going to a cafeteria where so much looks so tempting. I wanted chickens, plants, dogs, etc. but the reality of living in a tiny house with little yard ruled that out.

Reality here is that the garden that was here, such as it was, has suffered since we moved in because neither of us was capable of yard work, much less gardening. I'm hoping that I can get most of the seeds you all sent planted, but I may not have space as soon as necessary. I hope to be able to recruit and hire people to help me make some new beds, cut down some old stuff, and do some of the yard maintenance that the neighbor kids haven't been able to do. Next will be getting all I have acquired planted. But all of this takes time.

Gardening for Love and some of the other gardening books I'm reading are great therapy for not being able to do as much as I want to and used to. Many of Lawrence's correspondents are older women who ARE getting older. Another book, Two Gardeners: A Friendship in Letters is correspondence between Miss Lawrence and Katharine White, the author of Onward and Upward in the Garden both of whom are in the last more active career days. I am still going through Gardening for Lovebut Two Gardeners will be my next read.

I checked some other states mb's and found that New Hampshire also has one available on the web NH Marketing Bulletin The current issue is 11 pages instead of the average 8 and has more editorial content than the others. I found no ads for plants or seeds, but someone in Concord NH has free manure and compost available. [Concord was listed elsewhere in the bulletin as a site of a riding stable.]

Sorry to get so verbose, but being concise has never been my strong point.

Ann