Shopping for desert garden seeds in winter
Seed Shopping in August in California is equivalent to seed shopping in January back home. We just sit in front of the air conditioner while they sit by the fire.
Our vegetable garden planting season is right around the corner in October. It’ll be here before you know it, so if you’re ready for a good start this year, now is the time to begin. Otherwise the season starts, everyone gets busy and nothing else gets done. Strive to get it sown early for warm germination temperatures. Wait until a cool week in October to plant the seedlings. This ensures they are well along by the cooler, shorter midwinter days.
Begin by investigating what you want to grow – not what you should grow, or what’s in the store, but what you want to eat personally. So many small gardeners with raised beds have limited space, which demands you make every inch count. The beauty of fall sowing of winter greens is you can pack ‘em in. Then as you thin seedlings out to proper spacing you can eat them prematurely. Pull gently, wash well and throw them – roots and all – on the day’s salad or into the stew pot. This is the secret first harvest that makes winter greens such an extended food source with limited effort.
Desert gardens demand economy, so be conscious of how large the plant will become in our mild winter climate. For example, Swiss Chard Fordhook Giant is just that, a huge chard not suited to small spaces. Yet for a big in-ground family garden with lots of mouths to feed, this is the best variety for long term, high yields. The central rib can grow wide and fibrous like celery so it offers a unique textural change to many dishes without growing a different plant. For those more focused on flavor,
many smaller varieties of chard a offer beautiful colored leaves. Mix them up this year to see how each one behaves in the garden, and more importantly, how they look and taste on the plate.
The cabbage family often called “brassicas” includes popular greens such as collards and kale. This group is sensitive to heat and therefore strictly limited to winter cultivation from seed or by seedling.
To make this August into the equivalent of sitting by the fire with a seed catalog, go online and start shopping. Start with these well-proven seed houses online today. Both offer topquality, glossy print catalogs upon request as well. Be prepared for a sophisticated shopping experience.
Johnny’s Selected Seed, JohnnySeed.com: Dedicated to organic market gardeners, they offer an incredibly vast selection of greens, microgreens, sprouts and those snappy new veggies that are so in demand by organic gourmet restaurants. In terms of the standard crops, Johnny’s tends to offer fewer choices, but those they carry are popular and reliable for largescale cultivation over a wide range of climatic limitations.
For example, most broccoli are varieties of Brassica oleracea, but Johnny’s offerings of seeds for mini broccoli is from Brassica rapa, called Spring Raab. This may prove an ideal winter crop for the desert as it’s longlived – overwinters if it’s mild enough – and provide continuous new flowering stems in lieu of traditional broccoli.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, RareSeeds.com: This catalog is always eagerly awaited due to its large size and beautiful design. Offering the widest selection of heirloom vegetables, there are both well-known American landraces and exotic ones. Those originating from arid climates around the world will make the best candidates for our desert vegetable gardens.
Whether you sow in-ground or start seeds in a cup on the porch, the result is exactly the same at maturity. Choose a method right for your personal taste and lifestyle. If you don’t cook, sow radishes and carrots at intervals to pluck and eat for maximized nutrition throughout the winter season. Above all, keep it simple and exploit our unique winter growing season that ends when all goes dormant in the heat.