More Hail Storms, More Expansion, & More Seeds!

We continue to battle Colorado hail storms but are making battle plans for next season. We got some help from some friends with growing seeds and we are adding more to our inventory for next season!

My hand holding a large hail stone.

Having spent my formative years in the picturesque landscapes of Colorado Springs, I've grown accustomed to the occasional onslaught of hailstorms. However, the ongoing year has undoubtedly presented us with the most daunting challenges in this regard. Since the advent of Spring, our property has weathered no less than 14 hailstorms, each leaving its mark. These meteorological events have ranged from diminutive hail pellets to strikingly massive ones, reminiscent in size of golf balls – a visual spectacle evident in the attached image.

Regrettably, despite our earnest endeavors, a significant portion of our carefully nurtured endeavors have fallen victim to these natural forces. The noticeable dearth of garden updates throughout this season bears testimony to the toll it has taken.

In contemplation of the forthcoming seasons, we're strategizing a proactive approach. Our intention lies in procuring a substantial quantity of hail cloth, alongside complementary materials, aimed at fortifying our defenses. As we embark on this endeavor, we anticipate dedicating time to its implementation throughout the winter months. Our collective efforts are steadfastly directed towards ensuring a well-prepared and fortified landscape, primed to face the challenges that the next season might bring.

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A Challenging Gardening Season

Colorado Springs is one of the top hotspots for hail in the entire United States, we are in what's known as "hail alley". Since we faced so many challenges this season, we had a couple of friends reach out both locally and from far away.

Help Growing Pumpkins From Friends Near And Far!

We have been making a strong effort to expand our inventory so we can compete with other seed shops better, but we also want to be the top source for different pumpkin varieties. The hail has caused major delays and set us back quite a bit, but we had a couple of amazing folks reach out to help this season.

Leading the charge was my colleague and friend, Stephanie. Our paths crossed again this year as I encountered her working at our local nursery. Reconnecting, I shared the formidable obstacles posed by frequent hailstorms and the spatial limitations we faced in cultivating our seeds. Communicating our commitment to preserving heirloom varieties while also broadening our inventory for competitiveness, I highlighted the need for expanded growing space. Serendipitously, Stephanie possesses extensive acreage in the picturesque Black Forest of Colorado, graced with both sun-soaked areas and sections shaded by majestic pines along the Palmer Divide. Collaboratively, we embarked on planting a spectrum of heirlooms: corn, sunflowers, morning glories, winter squash, summer squash, and, central to our mission, pumpkins. Additionally, I transported some of our pumpkin hybrid seedlings to her property to facilitate updated visual content for our website and packaging. Despite enduring hail's onslaught in the Black Forest, Stephanie's adept stewardship has shielded numerous plants, fostering their robust growth. The magnanimous offer of her land to sustain our shop's operation has been a true blessing, for which we are profoundly grateful.

The second individual who lent us support is Greg Shelton of Poplar Hall in Delaware, with whom we collaborated last year. Greg's initial connection with us sprouted from his feature of our enterprise on his YouTube channel, "Historic Living Modern Life." Our subsequent interactions revealed a shared passion for heirloom pumpkins, the Victorian Era, Halloween, Watercolor, and various other shared interests. A veritable Artisan, Greg traverses the nation spotlighting diverse entities and locales for his engaging channel.

Last season, Greg cultivated a flourishing pumpkin patch within his English Garden, spotlighting our endeavor on his YouTube platform. Sustaining our correspondence, I apprised Greg of the devastating blow our pumpkin patch suffered from a colossal hailstorm. Despite my endeavors to replant from seed, the persistent hail persisted, necessitating continuous replanting. Undaunted, Greg augmented the expanse of his garden this season and extended a gracious offer to cultivate pumpkins on our behalf. His intention to safeguard heirloom seeds in case we encountered further challenges underscored his unwavering commitment.

Gregory Shelton with Historic Living Modern World

Greg's intervention proved to be our salvation this year. The narrative's inspirational undertones captured the attention of Delaware's local newspaper, prompting a feature See Article by clicking this link: https://delawarelive.com/del-farm-grows-pumpkins-to-save-colorado-business/

I encourage you to visit Greg's YouTube Channel to witness the flourishing progress of the pumpkin patch and his captivating explorations of intriguing locales.

Visit Greg's Youtube Channel :

Seed Catalog Requests & Expanding Inventory

From our humble beginnings on Etsy, our journey has been nothing short of remarkable. While we've made a few attempts to gain our independence from Etsy, our efforts haven't yielded the results we were hoping for as we have realized the core of our business still thrives within its virtual walls. As we look to the future, the upcoming year will be one of dedication and innovation. Our aim is to enrich our website with a captivating array of seeds and explore additional offerings like bulbs, merchandise, and more.

The demand for seed catalogs has been heartening, and rest assured, they're in our plans. However, we want to curate a catalog that truly captivates, showcasing a diverse selection of captivating varieties. Thus, we're momentarily postponing the catalog's launch until our assortment is extensive enough to ensure a truly enriching experience.

Your requests have not gone unnoticed. This fall, we're excited to unveil a selection of new garlic varieties, catering to those who've expressed their interest. Moreover, an exciting partnership with an esteemed seed company has opened doors to a treasure trove of unprecedented hybrid pumpkins. Anticipate a grand introduction to these novel pumpkins on January 1st, 2024, perfectly timed for the upcoming gardening season.

We can't thank our patrons enough for their unwavering support and the outpouring of positivity on social media. This period has been filled with challenges, yet your loyalty and enthusiasm have been our driving force. While distance separates us, we'd personally extend our gratitude to each and every one of you if we could. As we march forward, our sights are set on progress and a shift towards eco-friendly paper envelopes, once we've cleared our current commitments.

Your desires are our motivation. If there's a particular product you wish to see or a specific seed you're keen on, reach out to us. Our network of connections with fellow seed farms across the U.S. has grown remarkably this year, allowing us to explore and potentially source what you're looking for. Together, we're cultivating not just plants, but a community passionate about growth and nurturing nature's wonders.

Fall Garden Plans

As we direct our efforts towards preserving the fruits of this season's labor, I am committed to initiating a fall garden, and providing regular updates as the hail season subsides by late August. Our formidable team, comprised of Sarah, Alex, and my twin sister, Leslie, has been tirelessly managing a multitude of tasks, from gardening and storm cleanup to website maintenance and continuous enhancements. Despite the challenges, we are determined to cultivate a vibrant fall garden and anticipate sharing exciting progress in the near future. Stay engaged for more updates!!

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New and exciting things we are working on 2024 & new pumpkin seed varieties are on the way!

We're excited to share with you some of the new and exciting things we have been working on to better serve our valued customers, whether you're a hobby gardener, a professional gardener, or a small commercial farm or business.

Iron Kettle Farm, NY.

Wholesale account for our small business customers

One of the things we have noticed through our Etsy shop and website is that we have a growing number of small commercial farms and businesses making frequent or larger purchases from us, mainly pumpkins. To cater to their needs, we are in the process of creating a separate mini-site where we will offer seeds in larger quantities at discounted rates. For those who are eligible, there will be a brief but simple application process for you to access the new site. We understand the importance of affordability for our customers, and this wholesale option will provide them with the opportunity to access our seeds in bulk. We run off of Wix and this is something they are working on, but it's not a feature they offer. We have expressed our interest in the feature and are working with Wix to offer this to our customers.

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We are working on new seed packets for our online orders and retail outlets.

Seed Envelopes

In addition to the wholesale option, we are also working on getting envelopes made specifically for our seeds. We understand that packaging plays a vital role in ensuring the safety and quality of the seeds during transit. This has proven to be the biggest project yet as we would like each seed to have its own unique instructions and illustration/image. By finding the most affordable rate for printing envelopes, we aim to keep costs low for both us and our customers, without compromising on the protection of the seeds.

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New pumpkin seed varieties coming soon!

New pumpkin seed varieties are on the way

We were able to secure a connection with a seed farm that offers a large unique variety of pumpkin seeds that we don't offer yet. We are in the process of adding several new varieties by January 2024.

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A filter will help to narrow down our large selection of pumpkin seeds for an easier shopping experience.

Filters to help narrow down shopping choices

To enhance the browsing experience on our website, we are implementing some filters, with a primary focus on our pumpkin page. These filters will allow customers to search for pumpkin seeds based on type (carving, pie, ornamental), colors (black, pink, blue, white, etc.), and shape (stacker, mini, small, medium, large, giant, etc.). This will make it easier for you to find the perfect pumpkin seeds for your specific needs and preferences.

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Ash Hollow Tea Co. is our sister company, we are looking into offering loose leaf teas on our site as well.

Loose leaf teas

While we have our hands full with these exciting projects, we also run a small tea shop on Etsy, where we sell hand-blended teas using some of the flowers and herbs we grow in our garden. We have considered offering loose-leaf teas through our seed shop. If this is something you would be interested in, please let us know, we are open to your input and ideas.

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We understand that we have been short-staffed lately due to family circumstances, but we want to assure you that fulfilling your orders is always our top priority. After that, we dedicate our time to nurturing our garden and ensuring the quality of our seeds. While we may not always be as active on social media during these busy periods, rest assured that we are working diligently to get everyone's seeds out in a timely manner.

Your input and feedback are incredibly important to us. We value your ideas, suggestions, and the seed varieties you are looking for. Whether it's changing to the website or potential blog ideas, we are always eager to hear from you. Please feel free to comment below and let us know how we can further improve our products and services to better serve you.

Thank you for being a part of the Blue Pumpkin Seed Company community. Stay tuned for more exciting updates, gardening tips, and news in our future blog posts. Happy growing!

Comment on any site changes, seeds, or products you would be interested in seeing. Is there a seed you are looking for that we don't offer? If we offered loose-leaf teas would it be something you would be interested in? Is there something on our website that can be improved?

A Bad Start for our 2023 Growing Season

Battling Hailstorms: A Story of Resilience in Our Garden

Introduction:

Gardening can be an incredibly rewarding and fulfilling experience, but it's not without its challenges. As enthusiastic gardeners, we embarked on a journey to cultivate a diverse range of plants, including 95 pumpkin plants, 36 tomato varieties, 28 chili varieties, as well as wildflowers and herbs. However, nature had a different plan for us. A devastating hailstorm on May 26th wiped out all our hard work, leaving us disheartened but determined to start over. In this blog post, we will recount our experiences, share our setbacks, and highlight our resilience as we continue to battle hailstorms and replant our beloved garden.

The calm before the storm. We were doing orders in our shed when the rain started turning into small hail.

The Unfortunate Hailstorm:

On that fateful day, we watched helplessly as a seemingly harmless drizzle of hailstones turned into a destructive onslaught. What started off as small, marble-sized hailstones quickly grew in size and intensity, pummeling our garden for a relentless six minutes. The aftermath was devastating; our thriving plants were reduced to tatters, a mere shadow of their former glory.

Our front lot where the hail started coming down quicker

Resilience in the Face of Adversity:

While the hailstorm dealt us a heavy blow, it did not break our spirits. Determined to see our garden flourish once again, we immediately sprang into action. We direct sowed seeds into the mounds, hoping to salvage what we could. Unfortunately, our efforts were thwarted by an unexpected foe - the squirrels. These mischievous creatures saw an opportunity amidst our vulnerability and ravaged the newly planted seeds.

A short video a couple of hours after the hail destroyed our pumpkins, chilis, tomatoes, flowers, and herbs. It had been melting for a couple of hours so it was slightly bigger than in the video.

Starting Over Indoors:

Undeterred, we decided to change our approach. We gathered our remaining strength and restarted our pumpkin, squash, herb, and tomato varieties indoors. Creating a controlled environment allowed us to protect the tender seedlings from the relentless hailstorms and squirrels that seemed to haunt our garden. Patience became our virtue as we nurtured these seedlings, eagerly awaiting the day we could transplant them and see new life emerge from the soil.

Ongoing Battle with Hailstorms:

As we progressed with our indoor seedlings, we faced the recurring challenge of hailstorms. Despite our best efforts to shield the transplants with containers, the hail still managed to break through, leaving us in search of alternative solutions. It is here that we invite you, our fellow gardeners and readers, to share your experiences and ideas in the comments section below. Together, we can explore innovative methods to protect our beloved plants from these relentless hailstorms.

Conclusion:

Our journey in the face of adversity has taught us the true meaning of resilience. While the hailstorms tested our patience and resolve, they did not break our spirit. Through replanting, learning from setbacks, and engaging with the gardening community, we continue to find hope and inspiration. We eagerly await the day when we can update you on the successful transplantation and growth of our plants. In the meantime, we will keep fighting, armed with determination and the unwavering belief that our garden will once again thrive, defying the odds and proving that nature's challenges are no match for the human spirit.

Do you typically get hailstorms in your area throughout spring and summer?

• Yes
• No
• Not so much anymore
• Yes, and it's getting worse