Seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company
If you haven't yet ordered your garden seeds there's still time!
The process of ordering through seed catalogs and web sites can be daunting, but it also provides many advantages, such as being able to choose seeds based on how they are grown and how they are treated. One can also find seeds for more unusual and hard-to-find flowers, herbs, and vegetables. Every year, I plant trays of seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company - it's one of my favorite sources. Started in 1998 as a hobby, it has since grown into North America’s largest heirloom seed establishment.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- This is my flower garden when so many of the flowers are in bloom. I start a number of them from seed in my greenhouse every year.
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- Some of the flowers I start include dianthus. Dianthus flowers belong to a family of plants that includes carnations and are characterized by their spicy fragrance. Dianthus plants may be found as a hardy annual, biennial, or perennial and most often used in borders or potted displays. There are numerous types of dianthus – most have pink, red, or white flowers with notched petals.
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- Achillea millefolium, commonly known as yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is a hardy perennial with fernlike leaves and colorful blooms. The large, flat-topped flower clusters are perfect for cutting and drying.
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- And this dainty perennial is the sweet pea or everlasting pea flower. The sweet pea is a herbaceous climbing vine with beautiful bright flowers that grow up to 10 feet long.
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- Baker Creek in Mansfield, Missouri, offers one of the largest selections of 19th century heirloom seeds from Europe and Asia, and now features more than 1,000 different seeds in its catalog.
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- I plant many Baker Creek seeds every year and love how they grow. Each of the colorful packets shows how the flowers look when in bloom or how the vegetables look when mature and ready to harvest.
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- Baker Creek also carries so many different and sometimes hard-to-find vegetable seed varieties. And, the seed packets have helpful information on how to grow a particular type.
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- I test what grows best in my garden and what I should plant the next season… or not.
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- Basil is a big crop here at my farm – I always grow lots of basil. I enjoy using it in my cooking and try as many different varieties as I can.
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- We begin ordering seeds in January and February. It is important to get seed orders in as promptly as possible so one is not disappointed when popular or rare selections sell out.
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- My garden is filled with poppies, another wonderful perennial. Poppies are those papery, tissue-like blossoms that look stunning both in the garden and in the vase.
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- Sweet pea seeds can be sown into small pots of compost in autumn and overwintered indoors, or planted directly into the ground come spring.
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- Here are some of the snapdragons I’ll plant this year. Snapdragons are available in most colors except blue and coordinate well with other garden bloomers. Snapdragons are known for wispy jaw-like upper and lower petals. A single stem averages 10 to 15 of these unique blooms, grouped closely together.
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- The head house counters are stacked high with seed starting trays ready for the next batch.
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- Ryan fills seed trays every day this time of year. These are Aster seeds. Aster seeds range from light to dark brown, and are long with pointed ends. They’re also fairly large and easy to see and handle.
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- As with all the seeds, Ryan drops one to three seeds into each cell. It’s always a good idea to keep a record of when seeds are sown, when they germinate, and when they are transplanted. These observations will help organize a schedule for the following year.
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- Every tray is well-marked. Ryan places a label at one end of each row indicating the variety of seeds that are planted.
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- And then after each tray is filled, it is covered with more Miracle-Gro Seed Starting Potting Mix, watered and left in a warm location to germinate. Even when it’s blistery cold outside, it’s busy inside getting ready for the next exciting growing season.
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