Dreams get growing

Ideas bloom with arrival of garden catalogs

By Journal staff and wire service reports | Saturday, January 10, 2009

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Christmas may be children’s favorite time of year, but for gardeners, the season of dreams comes after the holidays. Just when the dark days of winter settle in, a bit of spring comes calling when the seed catalogs begin to arrive.

Seed catalogs have been a direct-mail staple for generations of backyard growers, whose appetite for fresh fruits, vegetables and lively splashes of flowering color are building as our cold winter drags on.

There are the familiar and proven plants and shrubs along with many promising heirloom, hybridized or exotic plants entering the market.

“Catalogs are dream books,” said George Ball, chairman and chief executive officer of W. Atlee Burpee & Co., one of the nation’s pioneer seed catalog companies. “People use the catalogs to plan out their gardens. Catalogs sit on bedside tables. They’re placed in workrooms and carried around in briefcases. Our catalogs are battered and dog-eared long before the planting season begins.”

Louis Cowherd gardens in his yard on Canyon Lake Drive in west Rapid City, and orders occasionally from garden catalogs. 

“I like the ones from Wisconsin,” Cowherd said. “They come from real cold country, so theirs are more hardy and more stable,” he said of the seeds he orders.

“I grow some of the hardier things, like different kinds of squash. I swap ideas with friends here in the neighborhood,” Cowherd said, listing the requisite tomatoes, peppers and onions he plants, as well.

Gardeners who order from seed catalogs may be folks who look upon their garden as more experimental in nature, according to Bill Keck, retired Pennington County Extension agent.

“People who use seed catalogs usually plant a lot of varieties,” Keck said. “Those who typically buy seed are into starting seeds,” not buying off the rack at the local greenhouse.

Cowherd likes to dabble in planting different kinds of peppers, grapevines and various trees.

“I like dwarf fruit trees,” Cowherd said. “Lots of different dwarf trees.”

For peppers, Cowherd has tried several varieties.

“I’ve planted purple ones, brown ones. I like to experiment with those to see what they are like. I have always had good luck with peppers,” he said.

The Mailorder Gardening Association estimates total mail order and Web site sales of more than $3 billion in 2009, said Randy Schultz, a spokesman for the group. “The average household will spend about $125,” he said.

Prices this year should rise an average 3 percent to 4 percent, Ball said. He blamed the higher prices on production costs tied to competition for bio-fuel crops, greater demand for food and fodder and fewer acres under cultivation.

“We produce about half our seeds ourselves, but rely on vendors and contractors who breed and produce for us around the world,” Ball said.

Despite the troubled world economy, however, suppliers appear optimistic.

“Sales of gardening products tend to be recession-resistant because people spend money planting gardens and sprucing up their yards,” Schultz said. “Strong sales for vegetable seeds and plants will continue during 2009.”

Many seed catalogs and Web sites report the average order size has grown. Customers who already were vegetable growers are expanding their gardens to increase harvests, Schultz said.

Gardeners will have many appealing new varieties from which to choose once the catalogs land in their mailboxes.

Among the innovative products ready for launch are larger blooming begonias (Park Seed Co.); flavorful micro-green growing kits (Thompson & Morgan Seedsmen); a fragrant dwarf variety of Angel’s Trumpet (Brugmansia “Angel’s Dream”) that blooms all year and makes a great choice for hanging baskets (Logee’s Tropical Plants); multi-colored chile peppers suitable for growing in containers (Cross Country Nurseries); the organic “Prairie Blush,” a tasty, golden-fleshed potato with outstanding storage qualities (Wood Prairie Farm); and a sweet, personal-sized acorn squash (“Honey Bear” from Johnny’s Seeds).

There’s a songbird flower seed mix that adds beauty to the yard and value to the landscape. After blooming, the flowers develop plump seed heads that help foraging birds and other critters survive the winter (Botanical Interests Inc.).

And then there’s the “Sweet Seedless,” a meaty hybrid tomato that Ball calls “by far the most exciting new variety from Burpee in 2009.”

“It has an entirely new type of tomato texture — juicy yet firm and full of flavorful flesh — rather than the large seed-related chambers found in normal tomatoes,” he said, adding: “No seeds, no bitterness.”

Cowherd has created raised beds in his yard, building along the fence and garage with lawn logs.

“I’ve made a three-foot area, filled it with 5 to 6 inches of good black dirt. It gives me area to walk and mow in between,” he said.

Cowherd starts tomatoes from seeds, and says his dream purchase from a seed catalog would be the mammoth tomato plants the catalogs sometimes feature.

“You know they try to sell you these one-pounder tomato plants,” Cowherd said. “I’ve tried those. We get nice vines, but no one-pounders.

“If there was one, I would want one of those!”

On the Net:

Mailorder Gardening Association: http://www.mailordergardening.com.

Seed catalog dos and don’ts

Whether you are buying seeds through the mail for the first time or for the umpteenth time, there are certain dos and don’ts that will make you a smarter shopper and a happier gardener this spring.

Common mistakes

* Overbuying: It’s like going to the grocery store on an empty stomach or hitting the buffet line when you’re starving. When it comes to gardening, even the most disciplined, frugal shoppers can find themselves acting purely on impulse. Seed packs are pretty cheap. At just a buck or two, it can’t add up to much, right?

Wrong! It adds up quickly. And besides, although seeds can be stored and saved, over time they lose much of their viability. The best germination rate occurs on seeds that are packaged for the current year. Order only what you intend to plant, and then buy fresh seeds again next year.

* Buying without regard to appropriate conditions: Buying seeds (or plants) simply on the merits of their beauty and without regard to the appropriate zone or conditions is a common but avoidable mistake. It’s fun to experiment, but no matter how good they look in the catalog, lilacs won’t thrive in the Deep South nor will blueberries prosper in non-acidic soil.

The photographs and artwork you see in catalogs are as good as it gets. The plants are grown under ideal conditions by professionals. In the garden of your mind, the seeds you plant will come to look just as good. But in reality, your true garden is likely not picture-perfect — yet — so don’t expect perfect pest- and disease-free plants, either.

The best way to start off right is to order seeds and plants that are appropriate for your growing conditions, so don’t try to put a square peg in a round hole. Although you might eventually get it to work, in the end, it won’t be pretty.

What you should do

* Plan ahead: In order to avoid the mistake of biting off more than you can chew, do a little planning. First, try to calculate how many plants you can realistically add to a given space.

Next, consider how much time you have to devote to planting and maintenance. Even if you have unlimited room, there’s still work to do in planting the seeds and subsequent care. Gardening should not be a burden or chore. Keep it manageable to fit your schedule and lifestyle.

* Find reliable catalog companies: There are plenty of companies out there and seed quality can vary from one to the next. Companies that offer bargain-basement prices may be able to do so only because of inferior quality or stale seeds. If you’re not sure about a company’s reputation, consider making your first order small. You can always buy more, but don’t bet your garden’s success on an unknown company.

* Investigate shipping and handling costs: This could be the largest part of your order and the biggest variable between two companies. Some companies offer a minimal flat rate for shipping, while others base the rate on weight or by the size of your order.

* Make sure “customer service” is for real: If in doubt, call before you buy. If you do have questions before or after the sale or encounter problems with your order, a responsive service department with real people to talk to can (hopefully) resolve your problem.

Although this list is not exhaustive, it gives you some guidelines and reminds you to look beyond the pretty pictures.

—Journal staff and wire reports

Popular seed catalogs

There is a mail-order catalog or Web site for nearly every gardening specialty or need, from 150 varieties of hydrangeas at Hydrangeas Plus, to water gardens and plants, supplies and garden gear.

Burpee

www.Burpee.com

800-333-5808

According to the company’s Web site, Burpee “was founded in Philadelphia in 1876 by an 18-year-old with a passion for plants and animals and a mother willing to lend him $1,000 dollars of “seed money” to get started in business. Within 25 years, he had developed the largest, most progressive seed company in America. By 1915, Burpee was mailing a million catalogs a year to America’s gardeners.

Gurney’s Seed & Nursery Co.

Gurneys.com

513-354-1491

Gurney’s sells vegetable seeds, vegetable plants, fruit trees and nut trees, perennials, roses, bulbs and grasses.

White Flower Farm

www.Whiteflowerfarm.com

800-503-9624

White Flower Farm calls itself “the premier American source for plants, shrubs, bulbs and gardening supplies delivered to your home.”

Richter’s Herb Specialists

www.Richters.com

905-640-6677

Richter’s has been growing and selling herbs since 1969. Its Web site says,”Our first catalogue dedicated to herbs came out in 1970. We have lived, worked and breathed herbs ever since.”

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

www.Rareseeds.com

417-924-8917

Baker Creek calls itself the largest heirloom gardening resource, boasting 1,275 unique heirloom varieties of vegetables, herbs and flowers.

Park Seed Company

www.parkseed.com

800-213-0076

Park Seed Company has been selling vegetable seeds, perennial seeds, flower seeds and seed starters since 1868.

Seeds of Change

www.seedsofchange.com

888-762-7333

Seeds of Change is a purveyor of organic seeds and plants, this year celebrating 20 years of organic agriculture.

Select Seeds

www.selectseeds.com

800-684-0395

Select Seeds’ specialty is “heirloom treasures for modern gardeners.” They sell seeds, plants and bulbs for “antique flowers,” which they say are open-pollinated varieties that originated 50 or more years ago, that are pollinated naturally by insects, birds or wind.

—Journal staff