Seed Catalogs
It's that time of the year again. Seed catalogs have been pouring into my mailbox over the past few weeks. I'm a sucker for them. During this time of the year I will spend hours poring over them, a pen in hand, dreaming of growing green things while the landscape outside is cold and dreary. I have all ready gotten nine seed catalogs this year. Of course, I do not order from that many companies but I seem to have a talent for getting on gardening mailing lists. Here are my favorite seed companies:
Bountiful Gardens, out of Willits, Ca -they are part of Ecology Action, which does research into Sustainable Gardening. They are not a big seed house, but their products are affordable and the quality is high. All of their products are open-pollinated.
Territorial Seed out of Cottage Grove, Oregon -They have a huge selection, but some of their things are hybrids. I've had good luck with the things I've tried.
Seeds of Change -all organic, the corporate 'good guy'. They have a lot of nice offerings you can't get elsewhere, especially not organically.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds -all open-pollinated and the owner started it when he was in his teens.
Southern Exposure Seed Catalog -a worker owned collective focusing on producing seeds for the Southeast U.S. I had problems with some of their seeds last year, but that might be a fluke as everyone else I know has had good luck.
This is what I would like to grow this year:
Pole Beans
Dry Beans
Corn
Carrots
Beets
Brussel Sprouts
Broccoli
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Collards
Cucumbers
Eggplant
Garlic
Onions
Kale
Lettuce/Salad mixes
Beetberry
Mustard
Melons
Watermelons
Okra
Parsnips
Parsley
Peas
Peppers -Sweet and hot
Sweet Potatoes
Pumpkins
Radishes
Turnips
Spinach
Swiss Chard
Summer Squash -yellow crookneck, zucchini, and scallop at least
Winter Squash -butternet, acron, and vegetable spaghetti
Tomatoes -several kinds, including yellow pear, roma, and cherokee purple (three of my favorites)
More herbs
Is that enough? Lol. But with my situation, I probably will not grow anything.
Labels: eating locally, farming, food, gardening, self-sufficiency
posted by RAS at 7:39 PM
3 Comments:
LOL Not a bad list for a 2 acre garden. Course you have better growing conditions where you are than we have. Went through your list and we grow about 1/2 of the assortment and we are still eating off last years garden.
We also have been besieged by the seed companies catalogs. This year I plan to find out how viable saving our own seeds will be. We will be trying a few new varieties and again experimenting with some so far failed species. But, then again, we are dealing only with a garden patch of about 600 sq ft and a small greenhouse, about 200 sq ft. Starting to up our egg production,(hens are cooperating) and rabbits still viable. Can hardly wait till it gets time to start plants.
Good luck. Hope it works out for you.
Try Egyptian Walking Onions!
They provide massive chive like greens all year long, and they will take deep freezing weather without any problems. We used the greens (not the small bulbs) like chives and green bunching onions. Plus, what I have read, they are incredibly medicinal as far as the onion family goes. Best of all, they are very productive and self propagating...
The flavor is almost like having garlic all year long fresh out of the garden...
Murph, lol. I could grow all of that and more in my backyard if it was flat and completely suuny, which alas, it is not. No need for 2 acres!
Give me 1/3 of acre and I would have plenty of extra to sell. Give me an acre and I'll not only have enough veggies and fruit to supply my family but enough extra to make a significant contribution to the family income. Give me 2 acres and I would have an organic orchard business. Beyond that, I'd get into goats and stuff.
*sigh*
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