Ordering Garden Seeds

I have been going over my garden plans and making adjustments here and there.  I think I finally figured out where I want to plant everything.  Of course the final arrangement is never fully set in stone until the plants are in the ground, but I have a pretty good idea of how much space I have for all the varieties of veggies I am going to grow this summer.  The last thing I needed to do was figure out which seeds I already had so that I could plan my seed order for this spring.  I still had plenty of seed for tomatos, peppers, winter squash, carrots and beans.

My general guidelines for choosing veggies to plant are fairly straightforward.  I plant heirloom varieties whenever I can.  I also prefer to use open pollinated varieties as well to help add genetic diversity to my crops.  I look for crops with the shortest growing season possible so I can make better use of my garden beds by planting multiple rotations to extend my harvests.  I also look for plants that do better in hot, dry climates and can tolerate heavy clay soils.  I want to choose plants that I know will thrive in this area.

This year the majority of my new seeds are coming from Baker's Creek Heirloom Seeds.  I have ordered from them in the past and have always been happy with their plant varieties.  I get their seed catalog every year, but I have found that their online selection is even larger.  This year I am trying new varieties of onions, broccoli, cucumbers, watermelons, and lettuce.

Other types of seed such as seed potatoes will be coming from the local co op or hardware store.  I have found that getting potatoes from local sources generally means that they will grow better in this climate.  I will also buy onion sets from local sources if I have trouble germinating my onion seed.  It's nice to be able to have a back up plan to fill in holes in the garden if you need to.

Something else I wanted to try in the garden this year was small scale grain raising.  I want to be able to supplement some of my chicken feed with things that I can grow in the backyard to try to save a little money in the long run.  I wanted to try a few varieties of amaranth and quinoa and mix in some sunflowers and pole beans or peas to see if I can grow a mixed pasture for the chickens.