Wild Oregon Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)
(Sorry for the oxymoron--wild and organic--seed originally taken from a wild stand and subsequently grown out in our organically certified gardens)

These are standard form foxgloves and in my opinion they cannot be improved upon. Historically, seeds making their way to the west coast of the US in ship balast found a likely niche in the acid soils of the maritime forests and sea bluffs, where currently the summer display of these beauties is a sight to behold. We have been known to shake a few plants now and again, and so these purple foxgloves have made their way into our gardens. Strew seed on acid loam soil in the part shade, in late fall to early spring. Another option is to start them in the shade house in pots. Once planted out to the landscape, these do tend to self-seed and acclimatize. Of course, Foxglove is a low dose botanical that should not be taken internally without proper preparation and always at low dosage.
Organically Certified 300 seeds/pkt.

(Qu-mai, Jove's Flower)
Dianthus superbus

Family: Caryophyllaceae

Herbaceous perennial.  Native to China.  The plant fowers in the autumn of the second year, a spreading bush giving forth multitudes of hot pink flowers with firnged margins.  They emit an unforgettable fragrance night and day that is capable of wafting hundreds of yards on a warm, moist breeze.  Qu-mai is used for treating urinary complaints and suppressed menses.  Plant prefers cool soil, partial shade, and occasional side-dressing with compost.  Sow seed in spring and plant in moist, rich soil.   Germ in 2 weeks.  Space plants 3 feet apart.  Flowers to 4 feet. 
Organically grown 50 seeds/pkt.

Addendum:  My son Jeb's significant sweety is attending 5 branches school of oriental studies to become a chinese herbalist and acupuncturist.  She has this iron ring that is given to the students, with a big herbal rollodex on it, plastic bags filled with herb samples, for studying the chinese herbs, their forms and tastes and smells and names.  I was checking it out when I was down there in Santa Cruz building the seed cleaning screens, and the Qu-mai sample was really quite horrid--discolored and truly unrecognizeable as the herb we see in our gardens.  The gyst of this little message is--we can do much better!  Chinese herbs obtained from China are sometimes the dregs of the batch, and chinese herbs grown in our own gardens and properly dried or otherwise processed (which granted can be difficult and we have a long way to go on this in certain cases) are going to be much better medicine!

Gardenia, Common (Gardenia jasminoides) sow spring 50/2.85 WH
(Cape Jasmine, Zhi-zi)

Family:  Rubiaceae

Low-growing evergreen shrub native to and and hardy to 30 degrees F (-1.1 degrees C) .  Cultivated worldwide for its waxy, delightfully fragrant blossoms, Gardenia is best planted outdoors in the south and kept as a container plant in the northern states. The fruits are used in Chinese medicine, considered one of the herbs that drains heat and resolves toxicity.  The flowers are used to flavor tea.  Plant prefers part shade to full sun and moist, rich, slightly acid soil.  Sow in spring. 

50 seeds/pkt $2.95, open pollinated

Germination note on this seed:  Germ in 45 days at 65 degrees F.  Vigorous, high germ rate.  Epigeal.  Was interested in working these up from seed as commercially they are regularly grown from cuttings.  Richo

Gelsemium (Gelsemium sempervirens) (Yellow Jessamine)
Family: Loganiaceae 
Perennial twining and climbing vine native to the southern states. The leaves are shiny, and the flowers are deep yellow and emit a sweetly narcotic fragrance.  The root and rhizome make a low-dose botanical that has been used for treating headache and as a general analgesic (CNS depressant).  "One of the most valued and used of eclec tic remedies" (King's dispensatory)
Regardless of the above quote, ingesting this plant full-strength or consuming its flowers should be strictly avoided--the medicine is a fresh root tincture taken a drop at a time, well-diluted in water.
Sow in spring.  Germination is in 30 days at 70 degrees F.  Plant prefers regular garden soil to forest type soils and part shade.  Work up for a year in a gallon pot before transplanting to landscape.  Provide trellis, or train up bushes and trees.
20 seeds per packet, open pollinated

Geranium, Wild (Geranium maculatum)   (Wild Geranium)              

(Storksbill)

Family: Geraniaceae

Clump-forming woodland perennial native to Eastern and Central US .  Bearing showy, lilac flowers in the spring, this is also one of our premiere astringent herbs.  The dried root is employed in treating dysentery, diarrhea and infant cholera.  Plant prefers moist, woodland soils or regular garden conditions.  Sow in fall or early spring.  Easy.

Giant Anise Fennel (Ferula communis)
Family: Apiaceae
Hardiness: to 0 degrees F
Biennial or triennial.  Native to  northern Africa.  Easier to grow than Asafetida, and at least as inspirational in form.  The circumferance at the base of the dark red, flowering stalk of one plant measured 9 inches, and the plant itself towered to 10 feet.  Attracts beneficial insects./  Source plant for an aromatic gum called "ammoniac of Maroc."  Don't eat the leaves.  Plant prefers full sun and fast draining soils.  Sow in spring. 
2o seeds/pkt $2.95, Organic

Ginkgo (G. biloba) (Bai-guo) seed
Family:  Ginkgoaceae
Hardiness:  to -40 degrees F
Perennial, deciduous, dioecious tree.  Native to eastern China.  Ginkgo figures strongly in legend and lore of China.  This is an extremely resilient and adaptable tree.  Excellent for streetside--it actually filters carbon-based pollutants from the air.  The seeds are edible and nutritious, and the leaves are used in making memory-enhancing drugs.  Tree prefers full sun to part shade and will tolerate most soils, although it does abhor root disturbance.  Plant in gallon pots and grow for at least 2 years before transplanting to the landscape.  Kept indoors, they are charming, and can be made into bansai with good effect.  These trees are slow to grow and appreciate coddling, especially when young.  In China, so revered and protected is this tree, that it is not unusual to see branches and trunks carefully bandaged in cloth strips to protect the bark.   We provide moist, cold-stored seed that will begin germinating 33 days after planting in a warm place.  Typical germination rate is 40%.  Very gratifying to watch germinate.   Highest possible quality and one of our best seeds--do not be fooled into buying dried seeds--they are often duds.  20 large fresh seeds per packet

(Fresh, undried seed delivered in moist medium.  Sow immediately upon receipt.)

Ginseng, American (Panax quinquefolius)
(American Ginseng)
True American ginseng seed to be sent in season.  The best advice is simple advice.  Find a shady area on your land (forest or shade garden) where there is good drainage, scrape the leaf mulch away, plant the seeds singly about 1 inch deep, and cover back up with leaf mulch.  This should be done with STRATIFIED SEED in the FALL OR EARLY WINTER.  The seed we offer has been stratified for an entire year.  You plant this seed (as above) and it will come up in the spring, pretty much without fail.  We highly recommend this seed and encourage you to purchase it in good time and plant as soon as possible after receipt.  We begin selling as soon as we have it, and stop selling when we feel the seed is too mature to give good results.  More questions?  Call us at (541) 846-6704 or read the "ginseng" chapter in our book "growing at-risk."
Open Pollinated 1 oz. conditioned seed (28.4 grams) $22.50 (Fresh, undried seed prestratified and delivered moist.  Sow immediately upon receipt.)

Note:  Ginseng seed not available internationally, due to CITES regulations.

Gipsywort (Lycopus europaeus)
(Gypsywort)
Family:  Lamiaceae
Herbaceous perennial hardy to -20 degrees F.  Strangely and enticingly aromatic, this is one of the best herbs for treating thyroid malfunction.  This is the European species, which we actually prefer due to better yield.  Plant prefers moist, poorly draining ground and full sun to part shade.  Organically grown 100 seeds/pkt.

Goat's Rue (Galega officinalis)
This is the most active of all galactagogue herbs.  Promotes milk flow more reliably than anything I know (except childbirth).  Works equally well for lactating human mothers and also domestic stock such as goats, horses and cows.  Plant prefers poor garden soil and full sun.  Scarify seed by rubbing on sandpaper.  Difficult to get this herb these days, and international trade and some domestic trade in this species has been disallowed due to the misconception that it is an invasive weed.  I've found that it disappears without care.
Organically grown 50 seeds/pkt.

(cannot ship to California)

Golden Rain Tree (Koelreuteria paniculata)

(varnish tree, China tree, pride of India)

Family: Sapindaceae

Hardiness:  to – 20 degrees F

Dediduous tree growing to 30 feet tall and with a spread equal to or greater than its height.  Native to China.  Fast-growing, showy tree with a rounded crown, producing dangling panicles of yellow flowers in the Autumn.  The flowers yield a yellow dye, while the leaves give a black dye.  The flowers are used for treating eye infections.  Golden rain trees are resistant to pollution and will withstand cold winters and poor soil.  They prefer full sun and regular watering.  Sow in spring.  Nick seed and soak overnight, then plant in cool soil for germ in about 30 days.  Prick seedlings into successively larger pots and plant to landscape after growing out for a full year.  10 seeds/pkt $2.95

Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis)
Available from the new harvest only, starting in July and ending with cold-stored seed until the stock runs out.
Family: Ranunculaceae
Woodland herbaceous perennial. Native to the central and eastern hardwood forests of America, Goldenseal shoulders much responsibility for such an unassuming little plant, with its unpretentious flowers and its habit of avoiding humans. Tonic agent for treating any and all afflictions of the mucous membranes, including sinusitis and conjunctivitis. Goldenseal habitat is shrinking, and given the increasing demand from an ever more needy population of herb users, the plant is fast disappearing from our forests. Therefore, organic cultivation of this plant is a high priority. Cultivation: The seed was picked at the peak of ripeness and washed out of the fruit, then stored in moist sand. This conditioned seed must be planted into shady beds in the woods as soon as possible after receipt. Space rows 12 inches apart. Sow seed at approximately 3 inch spacing in the rows. Allow to grow close together for the first 2 years, then transplant over-crowded plants to achieve a final spacing of 6 inches between plants. The plants require 7 years to mature a full sized rhizome, but in the meantime you can use the renewably harvested leaves, picked in the late summer and dried, for the same indications as the root.
Organically Grown 50 seeds/pkt. (Fresh, undried seed delivered moist.  Sow immediately upon receipt.  If your ground is frozen, sow in a gallon pot, mulch well, and place outdoors or in a cold greenhouse.  Germination is in the following spring.)

Note:  Goldenseal seeds not available internationally due to CITES restrictions.