Helen Chesnut
The 2017 seed catalogues have begun arriving, with their alluring array of offerings for foodies and flower lovers. And though most of my gardening purchases are made at local garden centres, I still spend many a dark evening lost in the new catalogue pages, imagining fresh garden adventures with the new and unusual.
Here is a list of catalogues I use regularly. Unless a price is noted, the catalogue is free. Print catalogues can be ordered from the websites. Consider ordering a catalogue or two as gifts for keen gardening friends and relatives.
West Coast Seeds in Delta. westcoastseeds.com. More than 750 vegetable, herb and flower varieties, all pictured with full descriptions directly beneath the colour photo. More than a catalogue, this is a must-have guide for west coast gardeners, with detailed growing instructions for every kind of vegetable and major class of herb and flower. Three colour charts supply at-aglance information on planting times for vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Numerous helpful articles appear throughout the catalogue. This company’s seeds are available in some garden centres and at Seedy Saturday events.
Salt Spring Seeds on Salt Spring Island. saltspringseeds.com. This source grows all the seeds, including the seed garlic, that it sells. A source for all openpollinated grains, beans, lentils, tomatoes, peppers, lettuces, flowers and herbs, many of them heirlooms. Long Green Chinese heirloom pole bean is an elegant and delicious favourite. Look for SSS at Seedy Saturday events.
William Dam Seeds, Ontario. damseeds.com. One of my favourite catalogues, with a broad selection of reasonably priced vegetable, flower and herb seeds, among them European vegetable varieties. Their Siderno patio tomato, bred in Germany, routinely gives me the first tomatoes of the season.
Stokes Seeds, Ontario. stokeseeds.com. An esteemed Canadian seed catalogue for home gardeners and professional growers since 1881. Huge selection of pansies and violas. Detailed seeding information.
W.H. Perron, Quebec. whperron.com. Formerly Dominion Seed House. Allpurpose catalogue. Best sellers and award winners indicated. Navarino is an unusually sweet, refined, flavourful carrot.
Veseys Seeds, Charlottetown. veseys.com. An ever-expanding, colourful catalogue. Vegetable, flower, and herb seeds for easy growing in short seasons.
T&T Seeds, Winnipeg. ttseeds.com. Catalogue $5 to new customers. A family owned business for 72 years. A catalogue with fun and unique surprises, such as a purple-flowered, dwarf snow pea, the prolific Little Napoli Roma tomato for pots and small space gardens, and a pumpkin carving kit. Reasonable prices.
Lindenberg Seeds, Brandon. lindenbergseeds.ca. A new format for the 2016 catalogue has brought magazine-size pages filled with colour photos and expanded listings of flowers and vegetables, still at the most economical prices available.
Johnny’s Selected Seeds, Maine. johnnyseeds.com. Johnny’s is an employee-owned company well known for its vegetable breeding program. Several of the most impressive growers at my local farmers’ market use Johnny’s lettuce, pepper, tomato and cut flower varieties. Astounding pumpkin selection and dazzling lettuces. For something as gorgeous as it is delicious try the Salanova Home Garden Mix of red and green oakleaf and butterhead lettuces.
The Cottage Gardener, Ontario. cottagegardener.com. An heirloom seedhouse offering historic perennials, old-fashioned annuals, heirloom vegetables and traditional herbs.
Seed Savers Exchange, Iowa. seedsavers.org. A stunning catalogue showcasing heirloom vegetables, flowers and herbs. Nine pages of tomatoes. Pennsylvania Dutch Crookneck is the best winter squash I’ve ever grown. SSE is a non-profit dedicated to preserving our food crop heritage and promoting genetic diversity.
Florabunda Seeds, Ontario. florabundaseeds.com. Heirloom and unusual cottage garden flowers, wildflowers, antique sweet peas, heritage vegetables.
Chiltern Seeds, Oxfordshire, England. chilternseeds.co.uk. A massive listing of annuals, perennials, climbers, shrubs, trees, cacti, house plants, exotics for the greenhouse, vegetables and herbs.
Plant World Seeds, Devon, England. plant-world-seeds.com. Rare and unusual perennials, climbers, shrubs. Heirloom tomatoes, vegetables. Seeds gathered from all over the world.
Richters, Ontario. richters.com. Canada’s premier producer of herb seeds and plants. Source for exotic and unusual herbs.
Eagle Creek Seed Potatoes, Alberta. seedpotatoes.ca. Conventional varieties as well as the new and unusual, such as All Blue and Pink Fir Apple. Small packs of just four seed potatoes allow for sampling.
Mapple Farm, New Brunswick. mapplefarm.com. Unusual vegetables including seeds for dwarf corn plants. Tomatoes, rooted sweet potato cuttings.
ferncliffgardens.com. Breeders and suppliers of dahlias for 96 years. Over 200 varieties in the catalogue. Peonies listed and described on website.