That warning about the 'government seed bank' actually came true for my neighbor

A guy named Mike at the hardware store told me back in 2022 to be careful where I buy bulk seed packets from, said some are just experimental GMO stuff the USDA is testing. My neighbor Jim planted a bunch from a freebie catalog last spring, and now his whole garden has these weirdly uniform plants that don't produce fruit. County extension agent confirmed it's a specific hybrid that needs chemical fertilizer to yield anything. Has anyone else run into off-label seeds from those mail-order giveaways?

2 comments

2 Comments

tylermurray20d ago

Oh man, that’s rough for your neighbor Jim. I’ve heard a few similar stories from folks at the local gardening club, one guy ended up with a whole patch of tomatoes that just stayed green and never ripened. It’s really frustrating when you put in all that work and get nothing back. Hope Jim can get that sorted out.

eva_thompson1020d ago

Yeah I saw something like that too. I read this article online about how sometimes if you plant tomatoes too late in the season they just don't get enough sunlight to ripen properly. Or maybe it's the soil being off? I forget exactly but they said something about the plant needing the right balance of phosphorus and potassium to actually turn red. That guy with the green tomatoes probably checked everything else but just missed that one thing. It's weird how such a little detail can mess up a whole crop like that. Idk maybe Jim's got a similar problem with whatever he's planting.