January and February are seed catalog and seed starting months. We’re at high altitude with a weird growing season and issues with pests, so my previous years of gardening have not been as productive as I’d like, though still satisfying because face it, playing in dirt is fun.
So I sat down today and went through my seed packages, some of which go back to 2006 (yikes), some of which I’ve saved from previous year’s crops in the hopes that they’ll be better adapted to our weird climate. My favourite seed source is Freedom Seeds, run by the Dervaes family in Pasadena – non-GMO, non-Monsanto seeds that have GREAT germination rates and seem to do really well up here.
I thought I’d list my current holdings. Most of the listed flower seeds are old and will be tossed out into the yard with crossed fingers in the hopes that they might, you know, do something. A lot of the veggies are fresh though, and if I can keep the raccoons out of my pots and the voles away from my root crops, I might actually get to eat something I grow this year.
Of course, I think that every year.
TOMATOES
Tomato, Valencia
Tomato, Thessaloniki (best variety I’ve found for this dry altitude. Tasty)
Costaluto Genovese
Tiny Tim
PEPPERS
Mulato Isleno Peppers
Cal Wonder Bell Pepper (I can’t keep peppers alive, the chipmunks strip them to the stems. Last year had 2 tiny peppers that I harvested the day after the first frost. They were a little soft – but that plant grew from a stem the chipmunks stripped that I didn’t have the heart to tear out, so there’s hope. The climate’s good for them anyway)
MELONS, SQUASH
Sugar & Pie Pumpkin
Sugar Baby Watermelons
Charentais Canteloupe
Black Zucchini
Poinsett Cucumbers
ROOT CROPS
Cherry Belle Radish
Little Finger Carrot
Chantenay Carrot
Thumbelina Carrots
Baby Carrots
Red Burgundy Onion
Ciboule (perennial) Onion
PEAS & BEANS
Dwarf Grey Sugar Snap Peas
Sugar Daddy Snap Peas
Filet Tavera Beans
Aiguille Verte (tiny and sweet)
Cannellini
Garbanzo Beans (these do FABULOUSLY up here. But the chipmunks like them too)
BRASSICA
Romanesco Broccoli (haven’t tried broccoli yet)
(Kale, but I list it under greens ’cause that’s how I use it)
FLOWERS
Dandelion Red Rib (grown for xorta/Greek braised wild greens)
Campion (these do brilliantly up here and seem to be native. They’re also native to Paros. They are currently showing green on the hill above our driveway, so I’ll sow more of them up there)
Poppy
Lupin
Marigold
Nasturtium
Borage
Forget-me-not
Skyscraper Sunflower (I can only dream. The chickadees are all over these when I direct sow them, and they don’t do well started indoors)
Dwarf Sunflower
GREENS
Lacinato Kale
Raddicchio
Sylvetta Arugula
Arugula (Heirloom)
Summer Bibb Lettuce
Little Gem Lettuce
Rhubarb Chard
Sorrel
Cutting Celery
HERBS
Dwarf Basil
Mammoth Dill
Greek Oregano
Spearmint
Summer Thyme
Sage
Parsley
CORN
Golden Bantam Corn