Gardening, Containers, Planning, Garden Coaching, Perennials, Annuals, Shrubs, Evergreens, Bulbs
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Lettuce Dream
It is afternoon,and weattherbug says it is still only 11 degrees. My fingers are actually cold typing this! I did manage to peruse some internet catalogs today, Select Seeds (vintage flower seeds), saw a great vining fragrant petunia. I may go back and order these as plants - not seeds. Then I went on to imagining what my vegetable garden will be this year.This is the one type of garden that can be started before the snow stops flying. Several years ago, I used to start all of my vegetables under lights. I would begin in February with tomato plants, then a few weeks later with peppers. I prefer to start my cucumbers and basil right in the soil when it warms up - late May. By starting your own seeds, you can grow unusual varieties that do not come in the seed packets at the grocery store.
I really got the bug today to grow some unusual lettuces this year. For the past few years I have bought those seed packets at the grocery. They were just fine, and I always got an abundant crop, but nothing new! This morning I moved on from Select Seeds to Johnny's Selected Seeds, and ordered several of their new introductions. Some of their introductions don't even have names, just numbers - what could be more mysterious! It was a good thing I recognized the pictures as lettuce. The ones I ordered had names like Guardsman, Skyphos and Panisse - nothing like what I was used to like Salad Bowl, Buttercrunch, Romaine and Bib. Come March, I will put these experiments in the ground along with radishes and green onions. I can't wait to throw these names around, but probably no one will even ask!
I really got the bug today to grow some unusual lettuces this year. For the past few years I have bought those seed packets at the grocery. They were just fine, and I always got an abundant crop, but nothing new! This morning I moved on from Select Seeds to Johnny's Selected Seeds, and ordered several of their new introductions. Some of their introductions don't even have names, just numbers - what could be more mysterious! It was a good thing I recognized the pictures as lettuce. The ones I ordered had names like Guardsman, Skyphos and Panisse - nothing like what I was used to like Salad Bowl, Buttercrunch, Romaine and Bib. Come March, I will put these experiments in the ground along with radishes and green onions. I can't wait to throw these names around, but probably no one will even ask!