This post is for all you gardeners out there, in the hopes that some of your wisdom will rub off on me. :) I've been thinking about ordering seeds for this spring (if spring ever arrives in NH, that is!) and I'd like to go with all heirloom seeds this year, if possible. We've done some heirloom varieties of stuff before, but mostly tomatoes, and I've never actually ordered seeds from anywhere online. So, here are my questions:- What are your favorite places to buy heirloom seeds? (Either online or a local store.)
- Can you refer me to any good sites which give info about saving seeds from one year to the next (i.e. harvesting them from veggies, drying and saving them)?
- Do you usually start tomatoes or other veggies from seed, or buy heirloom plants? If it's the latter, where do you buy the plants from--local store or online?
- What are your favorite (or easiest) veggies/herbs/etc. to grow (esp. for those of you who live in the New England area)?
Also, I just ordered a variety of "mystery" seeds from Seeds of Change for only the cost of shipping and handling ($4.99). For 25 packets of organic seeds, this seemed like a good deal. However, it will be a surprise as to what seeds we receive. :) Which is fun . . . I like surprises! But I have no idea if any of these will be heirloom seeds or not--I don't think "organic" and "heirloom" are interchangeable terms in this case, but someone correct me if I'm wrong. :)
4 comments:
I can only answer one of these - and not from personal experience! :-) The Amish farmer that we get milk and produce from gave me a hint about saving seeds - specifically tomato - spread the seeds out on TP spaced out like you would plant them, and let them dry, then roll it up and save it for next year. Here's the kicker - when you're ready to grow seedlings, you just put the TP down and cover it with a thin layer of dirt, then water and presto you have seedlings. :-) I thought it sounded great!
(I also think your mystery seeds sound super fun!)
Last year and this year we ordered seeds from https://www.superseeds.com/ We have been very happy with them. Their prices are good and in my experience the seeds have sprouted well.
We have this book http://www.amazon.com/Seed-Growing-Techniques-Vegetable-Gardeners/dp/1882424581 I have not been willing to invest the time and energy....yet. However, from what I have seen in the book it is very easy to do. If you are interested in reading it sometime let me know.
Our easiest veggies to grow so far have been peas, squash (summer and winter), potatoes, and sometimes cucumbers. We haven't tried herbs yet. I'm hoping to try some this summer.
Happy garden planning,
Linda :)
We've only returned to gardening the past couple of years. Our soil isn't the best, so nothing has done great. But lettuce has done the best -- we've had a great crop of that both years. (Too bad lettuce isn't preservable!) Last year both our summer and winter squash did very well, although we had to replant the winter squash as it didn't come up the first time. That happened to some experienced gardening friends too, so I don't feel so bad about that.
I've heard nice things about Renee's, but never ordered anything from there. Happy gardening! I'm itching to get out there, too!
http://www.reneesgarden.com/
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