I love browsing through my seed catalogs and planning out what to plant and where. This year I discovered Seed Savers Exchange and I’ve ordered the majority of my seeds through them.
I keep a little spreadsheet each year of what I'd like to have in the pantry at the end of the season and what I actually end up with. This year I have a few new things I want to try putting by like pesto, sauerkraut and crock pickles.
Here is the list of what we're planting and the variety, if known:
Beets - Cylindra and lots of them because, like I've said before, Hubz loves pickled beets.
Green beans - Roma II. They are the wide bean to the left in this picture and they are SO tasty. Growing up we always planted and canned Half-Runners. They have great flavor, but the strings can be a pain. Roma II beans remind me of the flavor of Half-Runners, but they're stringless, so Win-Win!
Broccoli - I've tried broccoli in the Fall and one year it did really well, the next year, not so much. This year I'm going try it as a Spring crop and see what happens.
Cabbage - Early Jersey Wakefield - We're starting cabbage from seed this year.
Cauliflower - same as the broccoli - trying it early this year.
Cucumber - National Pickling - We've had good success with this variety in the past.
Kale - Lacinato - I think we'll plant the kale as a late crop and see how it does.
Melon - Ha'Ogen - I am hoping this is the 'Israel Melon' we get at the Farmer's Market each year. We love it and growing our own would sure save us a few bucks each week during melon season!
Onion - Australian Brown - We've not tried this variety before, but I've heard good things about it from other gardeners, especially that it stores well.
Pea - Champion of England - This will be our first year growing peas.
Peppers - Not certain on the varieties yet, but a mix of sweet bell and jalapeño
Tomatoes - Amish Paste and Brandywine - Not sure of other varieties yet, but another slicer and a sweet cherry tomato as well. We're hoping for more consistent rain this year to help prevent the blossom end rot we dealt with last year.
In addition to veggies, I want to plant Genovese Basil for pesto and a variety of sunflowers for chicken treats.
We haven't made a decision about potatoes this year. They don't produce well enough for us in the garden to make it worth dedicating a whole section of rows to them. We'd like to try them in a container, but haven't decided how we'll do that.
Who has experience with container potatoes? What has worked or not worked for you?
What about melon growers - any advice for us? We want to do our best to get it right this year.
Linked up with Rural Thursday at Two Bears Farm and Farmgirl Friday at Deborah Jean's Dandelion House.
Wow, I'm impressed at your goal-driven organization. I'll be back to check out some of your other project reports on the sidebar. They sound interesting.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you are getting ready for a big year!
ReplyDeleteMy MIL grew potatoes in a five gallon bucket with holes drilled in the sides and bottom. If you have chicken manure, make sure to use some. :) Thanks for sharing your garden list with us at Rural Thursday, Carrie!
ReplyDeleteIf your melons aren't too big, you could try growing them up a trellis maybe using slings to support the melons if needed. There is less chance for disease and bugs because they aren't laying on the ground and get better air circulation. I have heard good things about Seed Savers Exchange but haven't used them myself. Have fun!
ReplyDeletePickled beets are one of my favs too. I only have one jar left from last summer - I'm hoarding them! We're still working through our pickles too.
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried that seed catalog before - I'll have to check them out.