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Allotments

Ordering vegetable seeds

Posted by: Jane Moore, 04 January 2008, 10.07AM

Jane Moore looking through a seed catalogue Now the chaos of Christmas is over, I can settle down to some serious shopping. In January and February I like to get all my seed and plant orders underway; it's usually the perfect weather to stay indoors, warm and cosy, contemplating the season to come.

I do an awful lot of shopping by mail order, not because I don't like my local garden centre (on the contrary - it's fab) but because it's fun flicking through all the catalogues, working out just how many varieties of salad potato we can physically eat and deciding whether to give sweet potatoes another go.

This is the time I order shallots and potatoes, bare-root fruit bushes and all my seeds for spring and summer sowing. It just gets it all out of the way and then I can relax and wait for the parcels to arrive. It's Christmas all over again!

I'll probably forget to order something - but that's where the garden centre comes in handy.

Comments

  • Anne

    05 January 2008, 12.00AM

    This is my lst go at growing vegetables, and would be grateful of advice as to what to do this month (January), i.e. what to sow, & where to get the seeds etc.

  • Stephanie S

    07 January 2008, 12.00AM

    What are some of the best seed ordering sites for a potted veggie garden with delivery in the US? Thanks!

  • Mel

    07 January 2008, 07.57PM

    I would like to grow sweet potatoes, are they difficult to grow from seed?

  • Sue D

    11 January 2008, 01.40PM

    After I've ordered by vegetable seeds, I then make a sowing/planting calendar so I know exactly what to do with my seeds and plants. It's so easy to enthusiastically order the seeds but forget to sow them.

  • Chiswickian

    11 January 2008, 11.47PM

    I disagree with ordering the bulk of your seeds by mail order. Support your local garden centre. It gets you out of the house and keeps garden centres thriving. Order the seeds that they don't stock by mail order. And if they have a poor selection , tell them!!

  • Craig Baker

    15 January 2008, 03.29PM

    I do a mixture of browsing seed catalogues and making lists, then taking an afternoon to visit the 3 or 4 local independent G Centres and buying what I can locally then ordering everything else online (there's often a bargain or freebie thrown in with online purchases). I then have my crop-rotation and vegetable layout planned and store all the seed to be sown in big envelopes for each month. How on earth do I have time for work?

  • ben gunn

    18 January 2008, 08.53PM

    I ordered my veg seeds on line from realseeds.com they specialize in old established varieties and are definitely anti GM and hybrids. Check out their website it is most interesting.

  • Ian

    29 January 2008, 05.03PM

    Hi can any one help me im going to help out at a school and get the children to grow their own veg but what can we pant or do this time of year. Much help needed Ian

  • Kate Hutchinson

    30 January 2008, 01.52PM

    Ian, at this time of year the thing to do is get the beds sorted. Our local school has beds raised about a foot which works well. I'd suggest you grow cherry tomatoes which you can atart as seed indoors in Feb and if we have a good summer should produce fruit before the summer holidays. I'd also grow french beans as they grow quickly and maybe squashes but only if someone will be able to water them in the summer.

  • Colin Bullard

    09 February 2008, 01.41PM

    I have found a good way to sow small seeds so that they are not bunched up in the rows. I use a sweetner container which can easily be opened and the seeds dropped in. Thus you can plant the seeds 1 inch 2 inches or whatever apart. This does not guarantee 1 seed with a click but it saves on seed and on thinning.Keep digging! Colin

  • Sue D

    01 April 2008, 02.06PM

    When sewing seeds I would recommend not sowing them all at the same time. After the bad weather we suffered over the Easter holiday, I lost a few of my small plants which I'd put in my greenhouse (I live in the North East). As I'd only sewn a few seeds from each packet, I still had plenty left for a second sewing.

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