seeded player catalogue and nursery catalogs provide a wealth of data that can greatly increase productivity in the vegetable garden and the fruit grove . At first glance , catalogue may look like collections of pretty pictures but do n’t be dissipate . Once you know how much crucial growing information they contain , seed catalogue look more like denotation book — book of facts book you’re able to take out of doors with you and even send packing in the clay .
seminal fluid companionship and nursery take superbia in their annual catalogs and each catalogue has a personality that speculate the ship’s company ’s inheritance , specialties and client service . Technology and tastes may interchange , but a collection of passee seed catalogue shows that some companies have endured for a 100 or more . generation of experience go into producing garden catalogs , so read them carefully and follow their advice .
Think of seed and nursery catalogs as garden putz . They can be every bit as important as shovels and tearing fundament .
What Growing Information Is In Seed Catalogs?
Here are eight pieces of basic info that can be find in most seed catalogs .
1 . Names : Along with the flora ’s vulgar name , the seed catalogue will heel the botanic ( Latin ) name . When you compare plants orseedsfrom various source , using the botanical name will insure you ’re getting exact info , as some plants may have multiple common name calling or multiple plants may share the same common name .
2 . When To Plant : Not all semen are found in leap or summertime , and the correct planting date hold a frightful dispute in the success of your crop . Some seed only germinate in the ardent soil of summer or early fall , while others only germinate in the coolheaded dirt of former bounce or late fall .
3 . How Deep To Plant : Like the clip of yr you plant , depth of planting matters greatly . Lettuce seeds , for example , must be sow practically on the surface of the soil or they wo n’t germinate , while garlic garlic clove and seed potatoes are plant several inches deep for best termination . Catalogs take aside the guessing .
4 . Spacing : There ’s no need to over - flora — it wastes seed and money . Instead , expend catalogs to determine how tightlipped together to engraft seeds or starts . as well , many seedlings must be thinned early in the growing summons to allow maturing plants the space they need .
5 . Germination Rate : Radish seeds are famous for pullulate within a few days of planting , while crop like carrots and parsley seem to take ages to emerge from the solid ground . Knowing the germination time can help you design your garden layout so that fast - grow crops lie within easy reach and slower - growing plants can engage back portions of the garden .
6 . day To Maturity : Here ’s one of the most important bit of information you need for garden provision and right crop . Catalogs list honest harvest times , which can place from a mere 20 days to 120 days or more . make out day to due date can also help you make successiveness planting so that you have crops quick to harvest over a long stop rather than too many all at once .
7 . Seeds Per Packet or Ounce : Another planning tending , ejaculate per packet , merge with the duration of rows in your garden , can severalise you how many packet you will need . Some caller number seed per snow leopard instead . Either way , do the maths and save money by buying the right measure .
8 . Heirloom , Organic or Non - GMO Designation : Many gardeners like to have it off how their seeds have been produced , so depend to catalogs for current designations .
Seven Helpful Seed Catalog Features
Below are seven features of seed or nursery catalog that can be helpful for garden planning .
1 . Photographs or Illustrations : How overnice to see what your garden industrial plant will look like at matureness , from bean to greens , and from turnip to tomatillos . Nursery inventory for yield trees , fruit vine and bramble fruits can add long - condition beauty to the landscape .
2 . Shipping Times : Some crop are only shipped in spring or fall and must be planted promptly . Catalogs will inform you about special order and delivery time so you may have bed prepared .
3 . Seed Viability : In some suit , seeds can retain their viability — the power to germinate — for many years , but sometimes seed viability lasts only a yr .
4 . Frost Tolerance : For gardener everywhere , it ’s helpful to know if plants can tolerate sub - freezing atmospheric condition and still keep producing . Northern gardeners may require to found during a narrow window of time , while southern gardeners may be able to plant for year - round harvest home .
4.Companion Plantings : Catalogs often sell seeds for blossom that do well alongside your herbs and vegetables . Double your pleasure by savor harvest and ornamentals together .
5 . Accessories and Books : Many germ and nursery suppliers deal their favorite garden tools , soil supplements and books .
6 . Planting Guides : A particularly helpful feature is a complete planting guide that list planting times and all other relevant entropy in a board or chart .
Know Seed Catalog Lingo
There ’s a wealth of entropy in a good source catalog , but there can be a lot of short - hand and confusing terminology , too . Here are three sets of damage that are good to cognize .
1 . Open - pollinated ( OP ) and Hybrid ( F1 ) come
capable - pollinated varieties are necessary for saving seeds , tend to mature over a longer harvest windowpane and are often chintzy . Hybrids ( often shout out F1 , for first filial coevals ) tend to maturate into a very logical , uniform harvest , might show better energy than OP varieties , are more expensive and can not reliably be used for come preservation .
Some seeds are usually open - pollinated , like beans and gelt , and some are more ofttimes hybrid , like cauliflower . Some , like tomatoes and corn , can be found in both open - pollinated and F1 versions . If your destination is to salve seeds , you ’ll desire to adhere with open - pollenate seminal fluid . Otherwise , pick whichever seed best beseem your indigence . I tend to pick hybrid seeds for more finicky crop , such as cauliflower and Brussels stock ; otherwise , I favor the monetary value point of open - cross-pollinate germ .
2 . Heirloom
Heirloom seeds are open - pollinated varieties that have been save up over multiple generations and are n’t used in large - scale commercial cultivation . There is n’t a consistent standard for how one-time a seed variety show must be to be labeled an heirloom , but gardeners by and large disqualify varieties introduce after World War II .
heirloom have proven their worth by being highly hardy , tasty or reliable in someone ’s backyard for a very long time . But that does n’t necessarily have in mind anything for your farm or garden . germ adaption is local . The quixotic history of an heirloom can be captivating , but unless your garden can provide conditions interchangeable to those to which the heirloom is adapted , the smorgasbord might conk out to live up to its full potential .
Gardeners particularly interested in help preserve come diversity will receive their full selection in heirlooms .
3 . AAS Winner
All - America Selections , an independent nonprofit horticulture establishment , tests newfangled plant life varieties and recognizes the superior performers . Past winners let in Honey Bear squeeze ( an lovely acorn ) , Siam Queen Thai basil , the now omnipresent Bright Lights Swiss chard and ( right smart back in 1937 ) Bloomsdale spinach , a variety that ’s still a garden and farm darling . An AAS Winner variety in your seed catalog is likely to perform well .
Go for Built-in Disease Resistance
Various blights and fungous disease can ruin your harvest , and bar is typically easy than try therapeutic . Stack the pack of cards in your favor with varietals that be given to maturate healthy and robust . Many vegetable varieties have electric resistance or tolerance to multiple disease , and a good seed catalog will list these .
Disease electrical resistance means a sure kind is less likely to be infected by a particular pathogen ; tolerance suggest a variety that is less damage by the disease even if infected . Choose assortment bred to stand firm pathogen in your orbit .
Watch for Keywords
Even the most forthright seed catalogue wo n’t draw a variety as “ miserable - tasting and hard to germinate . ” The catalog writer do want to sell seeds , after all . Read between the lines to notice if a particular variety is correct for you . Beware of musical phrase like “ with a little extra endeavor , ” “ well deserving the extra time ” or “ harvest promptly for best quality ” unless you fuck that you may provide your crop that supererogatory coddling .
Phrases like “ consistently high producer , ” “ flying , vigorous sprouting , ” “ especially resistant to bolting ” or “ excellent quality even at bigger sizes ” signal varieties that are comfortable to cultivate and glean successfully .
Buy Local
Despite your locus , there ’s a come sign of the zodiac that ’s right for you . In the Maritime Northwest where I endure , we want seeds that germinate in cool grease and summer harvest that can handle parky night . In the South and Southwest , resistance to bolt is an important thoughtfulness for greens and Brassicas . unlike regions have different gardening challenges , and a seeded player house that particularise in your region is more probable to betray ejaculate that will fly high and cater info that is relevant for your farm or garden .
A beneficial seed house sell locally conform seeds , but a great seeded player house trials them , too . Seed house that grow their own offerings are able to clean evaluate the merits of dissimilar smorgasbord and provide accurate info , such as days to maturity and flavor maturation , that more close reflect what you could expect in your own garden .
