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Making My List

January 10th, 2013

It’s that time of the year to start ordering my seeds. Every year, I go through my seed stash and figure out what I need for the upcoming season. Since I start all my onions from seed, I do this in early January. Each year, I choose a different company to order from, I like trying seeds from different places. This year, I purchased a seed share from High Mowing Seeds in December (you get 10% off by doing it this way). Now it’s time to sit down and figure out what I need for the upcoming gardening season.
Ordering Seeds
I have a lot more room than I have had in the past, but I’m not 100% positive on how much. Cover crops will be used in any areas that aren’t filled with veggies. There are a few new vegetables I’m excited about trying, celeriac is the one I’m most eager to grow. There’s something so great about this activity, so much hope and promise.

When do you typically order your seeds for the gardening season?

16 Comments to “Making My List”
  1. Robin on January 10, 2013 at 6:31 am

    I’ll send my Fedco order today so I have my leek and onion seeds for next month. Johnny’s will go in soon after, then Renee’s. I’m going to try sweet potatoes again this year. My first attempt was so so, hoping to get it right this time.

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  2. kathi Cook on January 10, 2013 at 6:48 am

    I browse through them several times when they arrive,but typically I don’t order until March. Sometimes I buy my seeds at garden shows and local nurseries instead. I try to reuse as many of my old seeds that I can before I buy new, but the catalogs are so tempting with all the new varieties and promising photos…

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  3. Maybelline on January 10, 2013 at 7:00 am

    Now. Sadly, I won’t be planting this season. I’m blasting for nematodes.

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  4. Beth K on January 10, 2013 at 9:20 am

    I hope to find time to make my list and place my order soon. I did plant some onions that are supposed to stand a chance of overwinterering last fall, so I’m excited to see how that works out. I saved part of the seed packet to plant in the spring, as well, though. I like to order some new and different things from catalogs that I can’t buy locally, but the majority of my seed I buy at the local co-op where we get our livestock feed, etc. They have a seed sale in March, so I stock up on seeds then – especially sweet corn! It’s much less expensive this way than ordering it through the catalogs.

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  5. Marina C on January 10, 2013 at 9:20 am

    I only use seeds that are planted directly, not having the set up with lights to start seedlings.
    I fall planted spinach and mache (lamb’s lettuce) and left some leeks and Jerusalem artichokes to overwinter, as well as some crosnes.
    Celeriac, which I grow from plugs from my dear local organic nursery and CSA farm, grows very well in Southern NH, thus I would expect the same in Maine. They are good keepers, and delicious done in any way you could prepare a potato.
    I suggest that your contributors note which region they garden in…that would be so helpful!
    Do you have a special way to keep your seeds and garden plan organized on a spread sheet?

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  6. Nebraska Dave on January 10, 2013 at 9:30 am

    Susy, I won’t be ordering seeds this year. My daughter, who works for Walgreens, cleaned off the shelf at seasons end last year and bought all the left over seed packs (250) for a penny a piece. Herbs and vegetables of all kinds were in the purchase. I’m set for the seed starting that will begin in Feburary. I’m looking forward to it. The seed catalogs are really tempting though.

    Have a great seed ordering day.

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  7. KimH on January 10, 2013 at 9:55 am

    I dont know.. I’ll start looking thru seed catalogs soon. I still have a ton of seed from last year though I will have to replace some of them.
    One of our local garden stores has a sale in Jan or Feb.. I should call & find out when that is.. I usually get my seed 1/2 off there.. but I still order occasionally from a catalog. Never know with me. I really need to get all my seeds out & take a good inventory.
    Putting that on my to do list.. speaking of lists. ;)

    Reply to KimH's comment

  8. kristin @ going country on January 10, 2013 at 10:08 am

    The first order form is filled out and almost ready to be sent in. The MiL did it, and she, of course, went overboard. Always.

    Oh well. We didn’t order any seeds last year, so I guess this is the year to make up for it. But I doubt they’ll all get planted.

    Reply to kristin @ going country's comment

  9. Xander on January 10, 2013 at 11:27 am

    I ordered my seeds in December and already have my tomatoes and peppers sprouting along with a few spring items. Being in Texas it gets hot so early here tomatoes don’t set fruit after about late May or early June very well. I am hoping by starting so early I will get more than a handful of tomatoes before the heat sets in. This year I have 8 varieties of tomatoes I am trying along with 12 varieties of peppers. That along with the usual cucumbers, herbs and beans will keep my small plot pretty full.

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  10. whit on January 10, 2013 at 11:50 am

    I like Marina’s suggestion for us to note where we are from. Here in the foothills east of Seattle we are zone 7, but we have a greenhouse to plant in that would then be zone 8, according to Mr. Coleman.

    My daughter helped me sort seeds, as i usually stock up on seeds from out of state companies like Botanical Interest and Renee’s at the end of season sales in the city. I am embarrassed to say i have 15 packets of lettuce. Ei yi ei. Ordering tomorrow from Uprising Seeds. Like to get those onion seeds, tomatoes, and peppers started next month. What i can’t find there i will find from Irish Eyes. And if it it can’t be found there, then i look out of state. (Have you heard the new results of 2 climate change studies? Potential of a six degree increase in temps by 2050!!)

    Looking for interesting crops this year as i have the potential of a deal worked out with a small local grocer to stock our produce. Hooray!

    Reply to whit's comment

  11. Songbirdtiff on January 10, 2013 at 12:38 pm

    I made my list over November and already have everything. I’m so ready to start! Of course we start a bit earlier here.

    Reply to Songbirdtiff's comment

  12. misti on January 10, 2013 at 12:43 pm

    We’ll be using a lot of what we have saved up currently but I can’t help but want to grow things like celeriac too! I can’t wait to get our garden in!

    Reply to misti's comment

  13. Anne-Marie on January 10, 2013 at 4:26 pm

    I am working on my fedco order right now. I don’t have a good place to seed start indoors right now, but I like to order early anyway. I’m hoping to do a better job with getting my early spring greens in this year so hopefully it will be motivating. I’m in central Maine.

    Reply to Anne-Marie's comment

  14. laura on January 11, 2013 at 9:42 pm

    i usually purchase seedlings from a local market, but have become very worried about how their seeds are acquired/treated, etc. this year i’m planning to order seeds and have already marked up and tagged way too many listings in my pinetree seeds catalog. i need to see what i already have and then go back and weed (pun intended) through what i want and order what i can handle. i’m notorious for taking on too much and not getting anything done. :-)
    blessings
    ~*~

    Reply to laura's comment

  15. EL on January 12, 2013 at 3:01 am

    I am in Southwestern Montana, close to Missoula. I have some leeks overwintering, but they are going fast as I keep eating them. I am going to grow some more this year.

    I was also thinking about celeriac. Shredded salad with caraway!! Yum!!

    If it weren’t for the leeks, I probably wouldn’t order this year, as I have a lot of seeds. But I will get leeks, Black cherry tomatoes (I saved some seeds, but I want to determine if plants grown from commercial seeds will have different growth/taste) and I’m thinking of parsley root.

    I did a lot of seed saving and saved black cherry tomatoes, blue flowered snow peas (these had light blue flowers that turned pink and were a bit fragrant as well as large pods and vines, so they were all around great!), potatoes (we’ll see how that works) and I let my lettuce go to seed. The last time my lettuce went to seed, I ended up with a dark purple variety that lasted forever if kept properly. We’ll see what happens this time!

    I also have old lettuce packs that I am working through. I don’t know exactly how many I have, as I inherited seeds from my mother and am trying to plant them all.

    Anyway, to cut this off, I hope to order soon.

    Reply to EL's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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