Seeds for the New Year

There are some really cool seeds out there! My gardening world will never be the same because of that discovery. Due to my short growing season and busy schedule, I often take a gardening shortcut by buying and planting potted plants. I'll grow sunflowers, corn, green beans, cucumbers, and squash from seed because they grow quickly and don't always transplant well, but when it comes to tomatoes and peppers and melons I've had more success with plants from a nursery or garden center. That will change in 2011 as I focus on growing more plants, and more interesting plants, from seeds.

It's not so much a new year's resolution as it is new inspiration from my cousin Laurie. I didn't realize Laurie and her husband Don were avid gardeners until I visited them at Christmas. As is often the case with me, gardening was an early and common topic of conversation. Laurie turned me on to a seed catalog unlike any I'd ever seen. I have gardening friends who refer to new catalogs as "gardening porn". This seed book is the best porn I've ever seen.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds specializes in heirloom varieties with a large selection of seeds from the 19th century. They produce an over-sized, glossy-papered abundance of ravishing photos. The engrossing volume draws you in to a world of produce that will have you salivating by the third page. Laurie mentioned the 49 varieties of eggplant when she gave me my own copy of the catalog. I was enthralled by the 111 varieties of squash and pumpkins. I was captivated by the 227 varieties of tomatoes in green, orange, pink, purple, red, striped, white, and yellow options. I wanted to start ordering and growing immediately.

I journeyed through the tome, slowly turning the pages, finding new surprises with each section. Upon reaching the end, I began again with a pen in hand as I highlighted fascinating opportunities. After the third reading my imagination exploded with visions of how my garden would come alive with plants that have never been seen, much less grown, in my region.

Laurie gushed about the seeds she ordered last year and produced a box of colorful packets she hadn't been able to plant. The effusive description of her garden led to the proud display of individual tomatoes still ripening on her windowsill.  She looks forward to planting the unopened packets and many new selections this year.


Baker Creek offers more than a listing of seeds for purchase. It opens a world of wonder and possibility. That's what gardening is all about.

Four seed catalogs from other popular, well-known companies arrived in my mailbox this week. They all produce a typical magazine-style publication. Between them are thousands of plant possibilities, but none as intriguing as "Dragon Tongue" beans or "French Breakfast" radishes or "Tigerella" tomatoes from Baker Creek (all of which I plan to grow). I will continue to order seeds from other companies for a few tried-and-true plants to populate my garden, but the unique opportunities from the growers at Baker Creek offer a new era.

I encourage you to check out rareseeds.com for a peek into another realm of gardening reality. The website is not nearly as exciting as the catalog, but allows quick and easy ordering. Request a catalog to awaken your senses.

The Baker Creek catalog does a good job of describing each seed selection with number of days until harvest a prominent feature. Descriptive commentary helps you envision the plants for which there are no photos. The number of seeds per order is generous and the prices are amazingly low, lower than many of their competitors. I can find few reasons not to order from them.

As my journey through this new, bewitching world continues, I'll document my experiences. I've selected seeds that should do well in my challenging environment. I expect success, but also anticipate the few failures that usually accompany new gardening attempts. For now I'm basking in the glow of resonating images that spring from the pages of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, 2011 Pure Seed Book.

There are some really cool seeds out there! My gardening world will never be the same because of that discovery. Due to my short growing season and busy schedule, I often take a gardening shortcut by buying and planting potted plants. I'll grow sunflowers, corn, green beans, cucumbers, and squash from seed because they grow quickly and don't always transplant well, but when it comes to tomatoes and peppers and melons I've had more success with plants from a nursery or garden center. That will change in 2011 as I focus on growing more plants, and more interesting plants, from seeds.

It's not so much a new year's resolution as it is new inspiration from my cousin Laurie. I didn't realize Laurie and her husband Don were avid gardeners until I visited them at Christmas. As is often the case with me, gardening was an early and common topic of conversation. Laurie turned me on to a seed catalog unlike any I'd ever seen. I have gardening friends who refer to new catalogs as "gardening porn". This seed book is the best porn I've ever seen.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds specializes in heirloom varieties with a large selection of seeds from the 19th century. They produce an over-sized, glossy-papered abundance of ravishing photos. The engrossing volume draws you in to a world of produce that will have you salivating by the third page. Laurie mentioned the 49 varieties of eggplant when she gave me my own copy of the catalog. I was enthralled by the 111 varieties of squash and pumpkins. I was captivated by the 227 varieties of tomatoes in green, orange, pink, purple, red, striped, white, and yellow options. I wanted to start ordering and growing immediately.

I journeyed through the tome, slowly turning the pages, finding new surprises with each section. Upon reaching the end, I began again with a pen in hand as I highlighted fascinating opportunities. After the third reading my imagination exploded with visions of how my garden would come alive with plants that have never been seen, much less grown, in my region.

Laurie gushed about the seeds she ordered last year and produced a box of colorful packets she hadn't been able to plant. The effusive description of her garden led to the proud display of individual tomatoes still ripening on her windowsill.  She looks forward to planting the unopened packets and many new selections this year.


Baker Creek offers more than a listing of seeds for purchase. It opens a world of wonder and possibility. That's what gardening is all about.

Four seed catalogs from other popular, well-known companies arrived in my mailbox this week. They all produce a typical magazine-style publication. Between them are thousands of plant possibilities, but none as intriguing as "Dragon Tongue" beans or "French Breakfast" radishes or "Tigerella" tomatoes from Baker Creek (all of which I plan to grow). I will continue to order seeds from other companies for a few tried-and-true plants to populate my garden, but the unique opportunities from the growers at Baker Creek offer a new era.

I encourage you to check out rareseeds.com for a peek into another realm of gardening reality. The website is not nearly as exciting as the catalog, but allows quick and easy ordering. Request a catalog to awaken your senses.

The Baker Creek catalog does a good job of describing each seed selection with number of days until harvest a prominent feature. Descriptive commentary helps you envision the plants for which there are no photos. The number of seeds per order is generous and the prices are amazingly low, lower than many of their competitors. I can find few reasons not to order from them.

As my journey through this new, bewitching world continues, I'll document my experiences. I've selected seeds that should do well in my challenging environment. I expect success, but also anticipate the few failures that usually accompany new gardening attempts. For now I'm basking in the glow of resonating images that spring from the pages of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, 2011 Pure Seed Book.