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14 NORTH LEEDS LANTERN JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1990 January is the perfect gardening month. Snug in the grip of Jack Frost, we can perfectly imagine our spring gardens. We started planting in the greenhouses as I write this (first week in January) and it was really enjoyable to work in my t-shirt, getting the first weak tan of the season. We have finally received all of our gardening catalogues and have sent away for all the seeds our poor garden can possibly grow. We use the following seed companies because they have been reliable in the past for us and the seed has worked out well. If you have any choices not listed here, drop me a line and I'll check them out too. Unless otherwise noted, the catalogues are free for the asking. Most of our seed order comes from Stokes Seeds, Box 10, St. Catherines, Ont. Their catalogue is a good one, describing the seeds accurately and without a lot of hoopla. They have reasonably fast service and all of the common seeds. A good company to deal with. A second Ontario seed house is Dominion Seeds of Georgetown, Ont. They do not sell in commercial quantities, but we do get a few odds and ends from them. One of this year's fanciful experiments, the 'vine peach', is from Dominion. I am not sure what we'll get, but they give recipes for it so we'll grow it once at least. A good source for that odd little bit of seed and they have been good to deal with when I phoned them seeking special seed. The third Ontario seed company that we purchase seeds from is William Dam at Box 8400, Dundas, Ont. We have found some fine varieties of European vegetables at this company. We got some very good Horseradish roots from them as well. Selling only untreated seed, this is a good source for gardeners not wanting fungicide on their seed. The last Ontario source for seeds is Otto Richters and Sons at Goodwood, Ont. One of the best herb specialists in North America, the catalogue is $2.00 but well worth it as a source of information about various plants and their herbal qualities. Richters has been the source of a lot of our own herb plants. Slow delivery but good seeds. We also purchase seeds in the U.S.A. which are not available from Canadian companies. Johnny's Seeds at Foss Hill Rd., Albion, Maine, is a good company if you are looking for untreated seeds of varieties that will do well in northern climates. A breeder as well as a seed salesman, we make it a point to try their own breeding stock for our own gardens, especially in AsofJanuary1,1990 you no longer pay 0an premiums All" you are Still BBVBI‘BII When will premium payments end? January 1. 1990. Ontario residents are responsible for paying their premiums until the end of December 1989. for the period through March 31. 1990. Will my health care coverage continue? Yes. If you were covered you will continue to be covered under your present OHIP number. Payment of the final premium will ensure continuous coverage to March 31. 1990. After April 1. 1990, coverage will automatically remain valid for all eligible residents of Ontario. Ontario's health care system covers all residents of ~ the province including students. senior citizens. retired people. people on social assistance, people who are employed, unemployed or self-employed. What should I do if I do not have an OHIP number? Contact your local OHIP office. Will the change affect personal coverage under company plans such as semi-private coverage or company drug plans? No. Why did the Ontario Government eliminate OHIP premiums? 1n the past. many companies paid all or a percentage of OHIP for their employees. Other companies paid nothing. Many Ontarians paid OHIP premiums on their own. Unfortunately. many of the people who had to pay their own premiums were those who could least afford them. The new Employer Health Tax and the elimination of OHIP premiums will make the system fair for everyone. g“_ things like beans, beets, etc. A second company from the tomato seed, and this year we will be growing them in Will there be enough money to maintain the quality of health care we enjoy today? Yes. Last year nearly fourteen billion dollars. one third of the entire provincial budget. went towards providing health care for Ontario residents. The elimination of premiums in no way affects the amount of money the government has committed to health care. It simply changes one of the sources of the money. In the past OHIP premiums only paid for a very small part of the Ontario health care sys- tem. Most of the money for health care came from general revenues collected through the tax system. What do I do when I go to the doctor or the hospital? Do what you usually do. Use your OHIP number. It's still the same. Present your number to show that you are eligible for health care services. Dld we miss answering one of your questions? If you have further questions here are two ways we can help you: ’ 1) Call your local OHIP office. You'll find the number in the blue pages of your local telephone directory. or 2) Call the Ontario Ministry of Health toll-free number: 1-800-288-1154. TDD 1-800-387-5559. Ministry of Health Ontario Ministere de la Santé programme , SO news releases describing the interested U.S. that we use regularly is the Park Seed Co., Cokesbury Rd., Greenwood, S.C. Park is one of the larger U.S. companies doing a lot of breeding as well as commercial selling. They have a lot of varieties in their catalogue which are not available anywhere else. We have not had any problem dealing with their retail division. Park sent several pounds of tomato seed into space with the space shuttle in an experiment to see what effect long term exposure to a space environment (radiation, etc.) would have on seeds. We have a pack of these seeds, 'Rutgers' our garden to try and see if there is a difference between them and arother pack of Rutgers that did not go into space. I will let you know about these space tomatoes in a future column. Park is providing small quantities of these seeds to schools interested in setting up experiemnts with them (from college to kindergarten). Teachers interested in doing something about this can contact the NASA Seeds Project, Educational Affairs Division, Code XEO, NASA, Washington, DC 20546, stating the grade level and asking for information. I have several teachers could get a look at it here at the farm. One last source of seed catalogues. If you want to find out where all the major seed companies in the U.S. and Canada are, simply write to the Canadian Garden Council at 6 Nesbitt Drive, Toronto, Ont., M4W 2G3 and they will send you a free listing. Happy dreaming.