don't make these mistakes when ordering seeds

I'm deep in catalog mode this weekend, circling all the seeds I plan to order for the year. I'm also diving into my seed inventory spreadsheets, marking varieties I need to refill and seeds I probably won't order again.

Even after 16 years of doing this, I still get tempted by all the shiny new seeds I could fill my garden with and then have to scramble to find a spot for the hundreds of seedlings I start every season. (That's when biointensive planting comes in handy.)

Maybe you're the same? Or maybe you have better self-control than I do. 😅

So if you're still shopping for seeds:

Don't make these 5 simple mistakes

The last mistake is one I see gardeners make most often!

(Want to know what I'm ordering? More on that below. 👇)

Seasonal Tips

83 Fast-Growing Short-Season Tomato Varieties for Cold Climates

Germinating Seeds In Paper Towels: A Quick and Easy Way to Start Seeds Without Soil

31 Perennial Vegetables to Plant Once and Enjoy for Years

25 Evergreen Ground Covers That Add Year-Round Color

A Huge List of My Favorite Edible Flowers and What They Taste Like

Your Guide to Spider Plant Care (Chlorophytum Comosum)

If you're looking at your garden this season and thinking blaaaaahh... I'm here to get you excited again. 😄 Over the next few emails I'm going to share what I'm ordering this season and WHY... because part of the fun is trying something new that you'd never see in the store or farmers' market.

So today, I'm starting with my favorite herb nursery: Richters in Canada.

They ship across North America and I've never had issues with seeds or live plants ordered from them, though currently, seed delivery times are taking a bit longer than usual due to border processing. If you order now, you'll get them in time for late winter sowing.

Here's what's in my cart:

Winged bean seeds - This is a tropical perennial species that produces edible pods with fringed edges. I've never been able to grow them in Central Oregon, but this variety is supposed to be day-neutral and produces much earlier (in about 75 days). So I'm gonna give it another shot! (The leaves and tubers are also edible, so all is not lost if I don't get a good crop of pods.)
Strigolo seeds - A rare Italian leafy green with edible leaves and flowers. It's said to have a mild flavor and can be cooked like spinach. Richters also says this is a perennial hardy to zone 3, so I'm excited to add this to my perennial vegetable bed.
Strawberry spinach seeds - Not a true spinach, but a leafy green that tastes like spinach. The interesting thing about this variety is that late in the season, small strawberry-like "berries" appear along the stems and they're edible too! (With a flavor similar to mulberries.)
Chocolate-scented daisy seeds - Okay, I'm really curious about this one! The yellow flowers are said to smell just like chocolate, and the stamens (which are edible) actually TASTE like chocolate. (And it's perennial to zone 5.)
Purple mitsuba plant - I grow the green variety but can't resist anything purple. Mitsuba is a Japanese parsley with large leaves and a delicate parsley flavor, and it's perennial to zone 4. I grow my green mitsuba in the shade of taller herbs.
Black gojiberry plant - I have a red gojiberry plant but have never seen one with black berries. I've been slowly adding to my "superfood garden" over the years (including seabuckthorn, which I ordered last year), so this will be part of that.
Phenomenal lavender plant - Lavender's hardiness is hit or miss in my microclimate, but this variety sounds promising. It's said to have exceptional fragrance, long flower spikes, fast growth, and extreme tolerance to heat and cold.

What do you think? Do any of these pique your interest?

P.S. Don't make these 5 common mistakes when ordering seeds.

Garden Betty