Seeds for AEG

[Brian Cook]

Craig is a little busy to respond to email right now but I have worked with
him for the last 2 years on the seed distribution and we would like to point
out a few things. As Jim mentioned in his message, "cleaning the seeds (i.e.
removing them from the berries) is not part of the job!"  Not only is it not
part of the job, more importantly perhaps it quite often results in having
the seeds arrive rotted beyond saving. It is unfortunate that there have
been occasions in the past where desirable seeds had to be thrown out
because they had turned to mush. If you have ever been on the receiving end
of a package like this you will know how unpleasant it can be. Seeds that
arrive in this condition are simply thrown in the garbage.

If you are sending seeds for the distribution please clean and dry them
first. You should be aware that some people find contact with the fleshy
aril surrounding the seed can be quite irritating to the skin. We recommend
wearing rubber gloves for at least the initial cleaning. After most of the
fleshy part has been removed a final rinse under running water usually
clears up the rest. Placing the seeds in a fine mesh strainer makes this
part of the job much easier. Once the seeds are clean, dry them for a couple
of days on paper towel.

Once the seeds are clean and dry they should be accurately labeled with the
complete name and a rough count of the amount of seeds of each variety and
any other pertinent information including your name. They should be packaged
in an appropriate small envelope and then placed in a padded envelope for
shipping.

Please follow these guidelines as managing this distribution is already many
hours of work for the both of us we would appreciate your cooperation. Quite
a few donations come in and if they are clean and counted in advance it
makes sorting and distributing them that much easier and helps to ensure
success for everyone by having good healthy seeds to plant. By taking care
of these small tasks yourselves, it makes our work a little more pleasant
and encourages us to continue.

Thanks
Brian Cook

Seed donations should be sent to :

Craig Stubbs
15 Princess St.
P.O. Box 596
Brooklin ON  L0B 1C0
Canada