Old Amana Vegetables

~WE ARE SORRY TO INFORM YOU THAT OUR SEED BANK HAS BEEN PERMANENTLY CLOSED ~

About our 100-year-old vegetable garden

We garden organically and no-till. When we sow seeds, we simply lay out a row of compost and sow directly into it. The easternmost part of the garden contains our seed bank. Here we have rescued vegetable varieties that were brought from Germany by the Amana people and raised in their communal kitchen gardens. My wife Wilma and I are both native Amana folks, but we left Amana when we went to college, never thinking that we would return. Upon our return in 1977, we soon discovered that these wonderful old vegetable varieties were grown only in elderly ladies’ home gardens and would disappear forever, once the ladies were gone.

More on Amana history and gardening here: https://cottageinthemeadow.plantfans.com/BlogPosts/GARDENING_THE_AMANA_WAY

THE_SHIPPING_CALCULATOR_FOR_SEED_ORDERS_IS_NOT_WORKING. PLEASE DISREGARD THE SHIPPING TOTAL. SHIPPING FOR SEED ORDERS IS $2.00 per order.

Our seeds are processed for us in mid-April by a local 4-H group. Seeds for the year will NOT BE AVAILABLE until they have been processed.


Gardening the Amana Way

Jan 18, 2015


The Radish: Who knew?

Jan 25, 2015


Article in Radish Magazine

Feb 2, 2015


Vegetable Gardening in Communal Amana

Feb 9, 2015


Contact Info

Cottage-in-the-Meadow Gardens
306 Hwy. 220 Trail
PO Box 107
South Amana, IA 52334
P:319-622-3800
rettigs@southslope.net
Lily Auction Username:Larryr

This site has been accessed 2428441 times.