It’s hard not to over order seeds in the winter when everything is gray and snowy. It’s also hard to not order seeds when you are stuck at home social distancing yourself. It’s been astonishing to see the trickle down effects of the virus panics. First the grocery store shelves were ransacked and now even seed companies are being bombarded with shipments. It does make me laugh because I hope people realize squash takes 80-100 days to mature. Hopefully by then this is all a distant memory. What I do hope comes from all this is that people have more respect for their local farmers who despite Costco shortages still continue to put out boxes of beets, carrots, cheeses and milk. I think after this has passed us our nation will have a new reverence for growing their own food even if it’s an herb pot on your kitchen counter.
This year I am only starting flowers from seeds and a handful of unique vegetables. You can read more about my favorite seed sources here. Last year I found awesome, organically grown vegetable plants at the different farmers markets so I saved my seed starting space for unique flowers because those were harder to find. I also ordered a handful of seeds from two new places, park seed and row 7. Row 7 I found in my current issue of Food Network Magazine. They have about 7 different types of seeds for very unique vegetables for your culinary garden. Their website is also stunning and super informative. I am starting some seeds using a few new growing kits. My friend Mrs. Robin is helping me with some seeds and I’m excited to see how they compare with growth rate. Last year my garden exploded and this year I’m going to yet again, keep it more manageable focusing on less waste and even less maintenance. I’ll share those lessons in another post.
Here is what I ordered for seeds
- Sweet Pea Bix
- Sunflower White Lite
- Snapdragon Madame Butterfly Pink
- Snapdragon Madame Butterfly Dark Red
- Snapdragon Chantilly Salmon
- Pincushion Flower Summer Sangria
- Pincushion Flower Fata Morgana
- Phlox of Sheep
- Ornamental Squash Black Futsu
- Larkspur White Cloud
- Larkspur Earl Grey
- Foxglove Camelot Cream
- Foxglove Apricot Beauty
- Eucalyptus Silver Dollar
- Eucalyptus Nichol’s Willow
- Cosmos Rubenzas
- Cosmos Double Click Mix
- Cosmos Double Click Rose
- Cosmos Apricot Lemonade
- Cosmos Cupcake White
- Corn Cockle Ocean Pearls
- China Aster Tower Chamois Apricot
- China Aster Rose Quartz
- China Aster Lady Lady Coral Chamois
- China Aster Apricot Swirl
- Celosia Texas Sherbert
- Celosia Texas Vintage Rose
- Celosia Pink Champagne
- Celosia Pampas Mix
- Celosia Fruit Punch
- Celosia Coral Reef
- Carnation Chabaud La France
- Carnation Chabaud Orange Sherbert
- Carnation Chabaud Jeanne Dionis
- California Poppy Thai Silk
- Amaranth Coral Fountain
- Bee Balm
- Zinnia Senora
- Zinnia Lilac
- Zinnia Oklahoma Ivory
- Zinnia Oklahoma Salmon
- Zinnia Creamy Yellow
- Zinnia Golden Hour
- Zinnia Zinderella Peach
- Hollyhock Peaches ‘n’ Dreams
- Hollyhock Summer Carnival
- Snapdragon Twinny Appleblossom
- Lisianthus Charisma Yellow
- Morning Glory Second Split
- Habanada Pepper
- 898 Squash
- Hollyhock Queeny Lilac Rose
- Titan Sunflower
- Tall Orange Sunflower
- Lemon Queen Sunflower
- Nasturtium Jewel Peach
- Pink Dandelion
- Bells of Ireland
- Baby’s Breath
- Snapdragon Tequila Sunrise
- Cucumber Yamato
- Parisian Pickling Cucumber
- Mexican Sour Gherkin
- Collards Morris Heading
- Snow Pea Green Beauty
- Tom Thumb Garden Pea
- Rattlesnake Pole Bean
- Purple Dove Bush Bean
- Borlotto Di Vigevano Nano Bean
- Little Gem Lettuce
- Butter King Lettuce
- Five Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard
- Bloomsdale Long Standing Spinach
I know this seems like a lot of seeds but most have about an 80% germination rate so not all will take. Also most of these are seasonal. By the time peas are done you’ll replace them with tomatoes (succession planting). I can’t wait to get my hands dirty! Until then it’s all about prepping the garden and getting it ready for spring!
Excited to follow along as seeds grow!