Seed City

Last week, I sorted seed packets, and updated my seed list of everything we've got.  I also started a couple of flats of seeds sometime in the last week.  So naturally, I started to buy some more seeds to replace things that we ran out of last season, and I had to get some new stuff to try, too! 

Things are a little complicated at the moment, as you can see from the picture at the top of the page.  The most snow on record that we've ever gotten has collapsed my hoophouse.  I finally got inside it today, and cleared some of the snow off.  I thought the spine had snapped, but it was just buckled quite badly.  The hoops themselves ripped out of the frame, though.  I need to fix and reinforce them when spring comes.  Until then, I think it will hold up ok. 

Back to the seeds.  I started 2 flats of onion seeds (last year I did 4 flats, with 3 packets each, plus some closer to spring.  I also started them a few days before January).  sometime this week.  Plus I need to start some leeks, too.  In the fall, I wanted to get some bulbs for a few different kinds of perennial onions, but Naomi talked me out of it, as the future of our garden was a little uncertain at that time.  I think our problems have blown over, at least for now, but that leave us without those new varieties.  I'll also try replanting some of our onion bulbs from last season that are about the size of onion sets you can buy at the store.  No loss on those either way, as they're much too small to peel when you use as many onions as we do. 

So we took a trip to Comstock, Ferre, & Co. which is my favorite place to get seeds.  In no particular order, here are the things we got:

Detroit Dark Red Beets ( Grandma said her mother wouldn't grow anything but Detroit Reds)
Five Color Silverbeets (new for us this year)
Chinese Five Color Peppers (new for us this year)
Giant Prague Celeraic (new for us this year)
Florence Fennel
Rock Soapwort (new for us this year)
Early Snowball Cauliflower (new for us this year)
Wild Rocket Arugula (new for us this year)
Mammoth Sandwich Island Salsify
Michihli Cabbage (new for us this year)
Witloof Di Bruxelles Chicory (new for us this year)
Extra Large Carentan Leeks (these grew well for us last year)
Black Spanish Radish  (these also grew well for us)
Giant White Stuttgart Onion (also grew well)
Southport White Globe (also grew well)
Wethersfield Red Onion (didn't do so hot, but let's try it again)
Early Scarlet Globe Radish
Australian Brown Onion (grew well last year)
Fordhook Giant Swiss Chard (grew really well)
Vates Collards (was ok last year)
American Flag Leek (was ok last year)
Salad Burnet (new this year to us)
Ransoms (new this year)
 Hamburg-rooted Parsley (trying this again after limited success last year)


I also ordered a pile of stuff online, including sweet potato plants that will arrive after the last frost.  Here is a list of the other stuff that will be all new to us this year:
Red Foliated Cotton
Erlene's Green Cotton (Naomi is excited about trying to grow some cotton, just for the experience)
Creeping Thyme
Scorzonera
Green Globe Artichoke
Wild Garden Kale mix ( a bunch of different kales mixed together.  I really like kale)
Strawberry Spinach (not a strawberry, nor a spinach, but parts of the plant are used like each)
Siberian Pea Shrub (this is going to be a crapshoot, but I'm excited about it!)
Colorado Quinoa (long and short of this variety is that it was brought back from South America in the early 80s and had to get a curse lifted from it by a shaman)
Good King Henry
Minutina
Seakale

that'll about do it for now!