Seed and bulb websites

Think spring.  Think spring.  Think spring.

For those of us who garden, it is definitely time to start thinking spring. Anything started by seed must be planted soon in order to be ready for outdoor planting (and blooming and fruiting – oh, sweet, warm tomatoes from the garden…) The seed packets that are being sold in stores right now are great.  But if you are a bit of a garden geek (like me) or if you are a little intrigued by becoming more “green” in your garden this year, you might want to check out the following websites dedicated to heirloom seeds.

www.victoryseeds.com/index.html An Oregon farm with lots of vegetable seeds (also flower and herb seeds). The site also has great educational value, explaining heirloom plants and open-pollinated plants, offering almanac links, and providing  information on how to plant from seed and how to save seeds.

www.seedsavers.org An Iowa farm that maintains some 25,000 endangered varieties of vegetables. It also offers a large seed bank of herbs and flowers. An interesting site to visit.  Check out the “About us” and “Saving Heirlooms” sections if you visit.  (And honestly, I never knew there were so many kinds of garlic.  They sell 18 different seed packets.)

www.jungseed.com Ok, so this is not an heirloom site.  But it does have WAY more variety than the grocery store. And it has some absolutely lovely bulbs and roses for reasonable prices. May the natural growers forgive me for including this site.

(Heirloom seeds are seeds from heirloom plants – obvious.  This means that the plants have not been genetically engineered. Heirloom plants are often more naturally pest-resistant than their genetically engineered counterparts, with better flavor.  Some fruits also add interest to a garden because they look unusual – and are indeed becoming more unusual, in the sense that they are endangered in this world of mono-crop homogenization.)

Happy growing!