Garden Catalogs

The garden catalogs are arriving.   I want to order everything - well, almost everything. Not eggplant.  Or okra.

My friend at Nyack Backyard has an interesting post about Monsanto and hybrid seeds.  Frankly, this is something that I never really considered when buying seeds.  I always just bought what I wanted to try from a couple of favorite nurseries.  There is a list here of seed companies that are supposedly not affiliated with Monsanto so I'll spend some time browsing.

Nyack has also rated all her plants she grew last year. J, will you come live with me?!  I'll plant, water, weed and cook while you document.  That is one task I just don't do.  In the past, I have used a notebook to write down what is planted at the beginning of the season and then never pick it up again.

I have given up on trying to grow melons.  I do want to plant sweet potatoes again especially since my friend will split the plants with me (one orders 12 "slips" and boy did they all produce this year).  Other than that, I'm open to trying new things.

I was also considering starting my plants such as tomatoes and peppers but here is the problem.  I usually like several varieties - so there will be 6-8 tomato plants, each a different kind.  It doesn't make sense to buy 6 packages of tomato seeds to start - I'll have a gazillion plants and it would be cost effective to just buy the plants.    My favorite place is Debaggio's in VA.  So the question is, what do I try from seed?  Broccoli?  Lettuce?  something else?

Plus, what new vegetable should I try this year? I think I'll browse my catalog and pick out a few things and post for comments.