SAGE AND SNOW GARDEN CLUB – JANUARY 17, 2012

SEED SELECTION AND SEED CATALOGSBy: Arlinda McLaughlin

 You can buy seeds from Amazon.com and eBay.  Can you believe that?  Just Google a variety of seed and you can see all the sources where the seed is available.  I have some favorite seed catalogs and internet sources that will become obvious as you read my notes.  Mother Earth News just published a list of their readers’ favorite seed catalogs (list attached).  There is new research on day length and plant productivity and the recommendation is to plant seeds that are grown in same latitudes.  Pinedale’s latitude is 43 degrees.  Some plants are day neutral and their growth is not subject to length of day, though.  Choose varieties that mature early – have short growing seasons—for Sublette County. But, be careful about choosing varieties that have the shortest days to maturity.  Sometimes those very early varieties are not very prolific or flavorful.  Always read the descriptions to get a good idea of what you are buying.  Some very early hybrids are bred for farmers that want to get a jump start at the farmers’ markets, sometimes sacrificing flavor.  Send a message to the seed catalog folks with questions, don’t guess.  They are the experts! I save leftover seeds from year to year.  Keep the seeds dry and cool.   It sounds like it does not hurt for the seeds to freeze.  Since we know seeds can be saved, I am willing to try seeds of different varieties each season.  Yet, we are all limited by space and money so choices have to be made.  One of the fastest growing trends in vegetable gardening is harvesting and saving seeds that work for you.  Nicole Thiele and Sandy Bousman are seed savers.  There may be other folks that do this, too.  Seeds Trust (mentioned below) is the pioneer in seed saving.  There is an excellent site for guidance on when to sow seeds for transplants:www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/seed-starting-chart I don’t have catalogs for these excellent sources of seeds for high altitude gardens:Seedstrust.com (Cornville, Arizona --near Flagstaff) and bestcoolseeds.com (Alaska).   Check both online.     

Page 1 of 13

VEGETABLES: ARUGULA Arugula is a peppery green, very popular is baby green mixes.  It grows very well here.  I plant a short row every couple of weeks and it is enough to feed an army!  Arugula does best in cool weather so start it early.  I planted “Roquette” from Johnny’s Seeds the last two years.    There are two types of Arugula:  broad-leaf and lobed-leaf.  I prefer the broad leaf but the other is very slow to bolt and stands up to July heat.  ________________________________________________________________________ ASIAN GREENS and MUSTARD GREENS Johnny’s Seeds has a fantastic selection and great descriptions to match.  I use an Asian Green mixture to get a little bit of everything.  These greens are quick to bolt and get stalky so they need to be planted early and picked frequently. I plant new seeds every two weeks.   Plant very short rows if you plan to use these as salad greens.   Asian and mustard greens are very spicy and flavorful and make a salad pretty and delicious.   Pac Choi is described with “cabbage” below.   ________________________________________________________________________ ASPARAGUS It is best to buy the crowns for planting.  There are 3 main types:  Purple Passion, Mary Washington,  and Jersey Supreme.  Jersey Supreme is an all male variety and is higher yielding than Purple Passion.   Both grow well here, but the spears cannot be harvested from either variety for 3 seasons.  Look through catalogs to find roots bundled in a number that works for you.  They have to be planted  8-14 inches apart, so check the size of your space before ordering.  I bought mine from Park Seed because they bundled 12 roots which is exactly what I needed for my space.  ________________________________________________________________________ BEETS Look for varieties that mature in 50-60 days.  Some Pinedale favorites are “Detroit Dark Red” and “Early Wonder.”  I tried “Red Ace” from Park Seed in 2011.  (Johnny’s Seeds says it is the best “all-around red beet.”)  There is a very cold-tolerant variety:  “Bull’s Blood” from Johnny’s Seeds.  Bull’s Blood matures in 55-60 days, but needs to be harvested when beets are 2-3 inches in diameter for best flavor.  I have not tried Bull’s Blood but plan to do so in 2012.  “Ruby Queen is a midseason beet sold by bestcoolseeds.com and is an All American Selections winner.  “Chioggia,” also sold by Johnny’s Seeds and bestcoolseeds.com matures very early.

Page 2 of 13

BROCCOLI Look for seeds that are early for spring harvest (which is summer in Sublette County).  Start seeds indoors or buy transplants from a nursery.  Look for early varieties:  Blue Wind (49 days), Decicco (48 days) (both from Johnny’s Seeds).  Seeds Trust claims Decicco is the best broccoli they’ve ever tasted.  They list it as a 65 day broccoli.  Packman (52 days) is a popular nursery variety (available at Johnny’s Seeds).  We had all the broccoli we could eat (and then some!) from 3 Packman transplants in 2011.  Organic Gardening magazine recommended “Apollo” (60-90 days – because it produces good side shoots for a long part of its growing season) (from Territorial Seeds)  in 2011 as an exceptional variety.  “Green Comet” is a very early variety (40 days) that was an All-American Selection winner, but the seeds were not easy to find.  “Premium Crop Hybrid”, also an All American Selection winner, from bestcoolseeds.com (Denali Seed Catalog) is recommended for high altitude and short season gardeners by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension.  “Atlantic,” “Calabrese,” and Nutri-Bud” are also sold by best coolseeds.com and recommended for high altitude gardening.  Burpee and Seed Savers Exchange also sell “Calabrese” and call it 58 days to maturity.  Organic Gardening magazine recommends “Decicco” (mentioned above) as it has a long season of harvest, and  “Green Goliath” (55 days), a classic with massive blue –green head (Burpee).  Romanesco broccoli has a frilly head and is available from Seed Savers Exchange and Johnny’s Seeds.  It may be more of a cauliflower than a broccoli.  It requires lots of space and a long growing season Organic Gardening magazine recommends three types of Chinese broccoli:  “Happy Rich” (55 days)—a vigorous broccoli-Chinese broccoli hybrid, sold by Johnny’s Seeds;  “Green Lance,” (45-60 days) is an early flowering broccoli from Kitazawa Seed Co.; and “South Sea” (35-50 days)—an early broccoli with tender leaves and shoots, also called Chinese kale, sold by Evergreen Seeds. ________________________________________________________________________ BRUSSELS SPROUTS Start seeds indoors or buy transplants from a nursery. Brussels sprounts are good for small gardens as they take up less room than cabbage.   “Churchill” (90 days) is good for diverse climates (from Johnny’s Seeds and Pinetree).  “Franklin” (80 days) is available from Irish Eyes and Territorial Seeds.  “Long Island (85 days) is available from Pinetree.  “Jade Cross” is a variety with an 80 day maturity (one of the earliest), also an All American Selection winner, and is available from bestcoolseeds.com .   Organic Gardening magazine recommends:  “Falstaff”—has purple sprouts and is an early variety (85 days), sold by Territorial Seeds; “Igor (95 days), sold by The Cook’s Garden; and “Long Island Improved” (100 days) sold by D. Landreth Seed Co. ________________________________________________________________________ 

Page 3 of 13

BUSH BEANS – GREEN  FOR EITHER GREEN OR YELLOW BUSH BEANS, IT IS BEST TO USE “DARK” BEAN SEEDS FOR GOOD GERMINATION IN OUR COOL SOILS.   IF THE DESCRIPTION DOESN’T SAY, JUST SHOOT THE SEED COMPANY AN e-MAIL TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE COLOR OF THE SEED. I sow bean seeds directly in the garden but cover the rows to keep the soil warm until the seeds germinate.  I then cover the rows at night when the plants are small.  When the temperature dips below 50 degrees at night, I cover the mature plants at night.  When there is a threat of frost, I use double row covers at night.  I harvested beans until October 1 in 2011.    Last year I used “Contender’ from Vermont Bean Seeds.  They were very prolific and hardy (with row covers in the cool and cold weather), but the mature beans were a bit tough and did not have a strong bean flavor.   For 2012, I am going to plant “Provider” (50 days) from either Johnny’s Seeds or Seeds Trust.  Bestcoolseeds.com recommends “Contender” or “Provider” for early season green bush beans.  They germinate well in cool soils.   A green filet bush bean was recommended by ORGANIC GARDENING as an exceptional variety: “Fin des Bangols” (50 days) available from Cook’s Garden. The seed is reddish brown.  I am going to plant some of this variety in 2012. Another French filet bean, recommended by Organic Gardening magazine, is Beananza (55 days), sold by Burpee (a Burpee exclusive), sweet flavor and very productive.  ________________________________________________________________________ BUSH BEANS – YELLOW I planted “Cherokee” (48 days) from Vermont Bean and Seed in 2011.  The beans were prolific, tender, and tasty.  It was an ORGANIC GARDENING recommend in 2011.  Another early yellow bean that I have not tried but plan to do so in 2012 is “Golden Rocky” (50 days) from Seeds Trust.  It was recommended by a high altitude Colorado gardener.  The  “Rocdor” variety (Johnny’s Seeds) has black seeds and  are suppose to germinate well in cool soils.  I used “Rocdor” in 2010 but without row covers the beans froze before harvest.  Other short season varieties are:  “Pencil Pod” from Pinetree and “Surigold” from Seeds Trust.  Bestcoolseeds.com and University of Alaska Cooperative Extension recommends “Topnotch Golden Wax” as their pick for a good yellow bean for cool climates. ________________________________________________________________________ CABBAGE Start seeds indoors or buy transplants. 

Page 4 of 13

Johnny’s Seeds and bestcoolseeds.com has a red cabbage (“Red Express”) that matures in 63 days and is recommended for northern climates.  Another red cabbage:  “Red Acre” (76 days) from Seeds Trust stores well after harvesting.  There are some early compact heads that are popular for small gardens:  “Gonzales” (66 days) from Johnny’s Seeds, Pinetree,  and Territorial Seeds; “Kaboko” (60 days); “Golden Acre” (65 days)  from bestcoolseeds.com and Seeds Trust  is compact and conical.  Johnny’s Seeds has a  full-sized cabbage that is early:  “Farro” (64 days).  High Mowing Seeds has a “Primax” variety that matures in 60 days.  “Early Mountain Wakefield” (65 days) (Seeds Trust and D. Landreth Seed Co.)  is a tried and true variety for cool season climates.  “Early Jersey Wakefield” is a 3-lb. conical cabbage from Burpee and bestcoolseeds.com that matures in 63 days.  It was recommended by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension as an excellent choice for raised beds as it is a very compact plant.  “Early Copenhagen” from bestcoolseeds.com is a full-sized mid-season cabbage. Organic Gardening magazine recommends:  “Copenhagen Market” (63-100 days) from Seed Savers Exchange, 3-4 lb. heads; “Early Jersey Wakefield” see note above) (60 days) compact heads from D. Landreth Seed Co; and “Red Ball” (78 days) firm, round red heads that are heat and cold tolerant (from Territorial Seeds).  Chinese cabbage (Napa cabbage) grows well here.  Johnny’s Seeds has “Minuet” that matures in 48 days. “Tah Tsai” from Seeds Trust  is also a recommended Chinese cabbage.  Seeds Trust also has a 50 day Pak Choi that is very slow to bolt.  ________________________________________________________________________ CARROTS I buy pelleted carrot seeds as they are much easier to plant to avoid overcrowding.  Thinning carrot plants is hard on the other carrots.  If you do need to thin carrots, “cut” the extra plants rather than pulling them.  Most of the early varieties are “nantes” carrots, of which there are many sub varieties.  I plant two crops of carrots: one in early June and the other two weeks later.  I’ve tried and loved  “Mokum” and “Nelson” from Johnny’s Seeds.  Other recommended varieties are Early Sugarsnax from Irish Eyes and “Yaya” from Territorial Seeds and High Mowing Seeds.  “Scarlet Nantes” is an old Pinedale favorite and is always reliable and sweet; it can be found at bestcoolseeds.com and Seeds Trust.   Bestcoolseeds.com recommends “Sweetness II Hybrid” as an Alaskan favorite.  “Tendersweet”, an All American Selection winner, is a late carrot and is sold by bestcoolseeds.com.  I prefer nantes carrots, but Chantenay and Danvers carrots grow well in Pinedale and store very well after harvest.  Bestcoolseeds.com has several varieties of Chantenay and Danvers carrots they recommend for cool season gardens.  There is an excellent site that describes all carrots and the varieties:  www.mastergardeners.org/projects/ninepalms/2004/carrots.html. ________________________________________________________________________ CAULIFLOWER 

Page 5 of 13

Start seeds indoors or buy transplants from a nursery.  There are two types of cauliflower plants:  self-blanching and those that need to be tied to protect the heads as they grow.  I use clothespins to clip some of the leaves together to protect the heads.  Purple and Cheddar heads do not need to be tied.  Bestcoolseeds.com recommends “Snow Crown Hybrid” as their earliest and easiest cauliflower to grow under adverse conditions.  It was tested by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension and is an All American Selection winner.  They have two other varieties:  “Igloo” (late season) and “Snowball” (midseason).  Johnny’s Seeds has a cheddar variety that matures in 58 days.  “Snow Crown” matures in 68 days and is available at Territorial Seeds.   “Snow Crown” received the stamp of approval from the Ohio State Cooperative Extension and Texas A & M Cooperative Extension services as being one of the easiest cauliflowers to grow.  Seeds Trust says “Early Snowball” (65 days) is the best cauliflower for home gardens.  ________________________________________________________________________ CHARD – SWISS There are three main types of Swiss chard and they all grow well in Sublette County:  Ruby Red (red stalks and veins), Fordhook Giant (white stalks and veins), and Bright Lights (multi-colored stalks and veins).  Bestcoolseeds.com offers Ruby Red and Fordhook Giant.  Fordhook Giant is very bolt resistant, but I’ve never had Swiss chard bolt.   Johnny’s Seeds and Territorial Seeds offer Bright Lights.  I think most seed companies carry Swiss chard.  CLAYTONIA (MINER’S LETTUCE) Claytonia is the most cold-tolerant lettuce (from Territorial Seeds and Johnny’s Seeds).  High altitude Colorado gardeners plant is as soon as they can dig in the ground.    ________________________________________________________________________ CUCUMBERS I have attempted to grow cucumbers in containers.   “Pickle Bush” is good for containers (55 days).   Diamant (47 days), Rocky (46 days), “Bushy” (45 days, “Alibi” (50 days)  from Territorial Seeds.  “Salad Bush” (Pinetree) is good for containers.  “Spacemaster” (58 days) is available from Nichols and Johnny’s.  bestcoolseeds.com offers some good varieties for greenhouses:  “Beit Alpha Hybrid” and “Muncher” are self pollinating in greenhouses.  “Morden Early” (bestcoolseeds.com) is a short season, cold-tolerant cucumber developed at the Morden Experimental Farm in Manitoba, Canada.  “H-19 Little Leaf” (bestcoolseeds.com) grows well in containers and under adverse conditions.  It was developed by the University of Arkansas.  

Page 6 of 13

________________________________________________________________________ GARLIC “Hardneck” varieties grow best here, at least that is what I’ve read:  Rocambole, German Red, Spanish Rojo, Sandpoint, Chesnok Red.  ________________________________________________________________________ KALE There are two types of kale:  smooth-leaved and curly- leaved.  “Red Russian” (bestcoolseeds.com) develops a magenta hue after frost. “Red Russian” is very tender and cold-hardy.  “White Russian” and “Winterbor” are also very cold-hardy.  “Black Tuscan” is very flavorful.    “Vates Dwarf Curled Scotch” (Vermont Bean Seed and bestcoolseeds.com)  is also very frost resistant and is recommended by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension as one of the “sweetest” kale varieties.(I grew this variety in 2011 and loved it.)  Kale thrives in cold conditions, withstanding temperatures down to 10 degrees.  In fact, it gets sweeter after it gets cold.  After all the lettuce and other greens are gone, it is so nice to go out and pick kale.  We like the tiny leaves raw and the larger leaves cooked.  In fact, you can cut it at any time during the growing season and it will re-grow new leaves.  _______________________________________________________________________ KOHLRABI I grew kohlrabi several years ago and have not done so lately.  Bestcoolseeds.com has two early kohlrabis:  “Vienna Early White Bulb” and “Vienna Early Purple Bulb.” The white bulbs grow well in containers and thrive in cool weather.  The purple bulb was tested by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension service and highly recommends it for cool season climates.  _______________________________________________________________________ LETTUCE Seeds can be direct sewn or transplanted.  There are so many types of lettuce to choose from.  You can either use lettuce leaves as they grow or make  heads of lettuce.  Slugs love crowded lettuce plants so take precautions by giving each plant plenty of room.  Here  are some Organic Gardening magazine winners from 2011:  “Sweetie Baby Romaine” (Renee’s Garden),  “Midnight Ruffles” (John Scheepers), and “Sea of Red” (Renee’s Garden).    

Page 7 of 13

  MACHE Mache is the most cold-tolerant salad green.  It can be planted as soon as you can dig the ground. It grows close to the ground.   Mache may be the newest rage in gourmet lettuces.  It is described as “nutty-flavored and sweet.”  There are two good sites to learn about mache:  www.veggiegardeningtips.com/mache-salad-greens and www.mastergardeners.org/picks/mache.html.   It is also known as “lamb’s lettuce,” “corn lettuce,” “rapunzel,” or “field salad.”  The cultivated varieties are:  “Verte de Cambrai,” “Medallion,” “Large Seeded Dutch,” and “Bistro.”  Seeds are available from Seeds Trust, Johnny’s Seeds, and Cook’s Garden.  I’m going to try it this spring. ________________________________________________________________________ MESCLUN MIXES I use a mesclun mix as we prefer loose leaf lettuce to head lettuce (just can’t wait for the heads to mature!)  Johnny’s Seeds has so many lettuce and lettuce blend choices with great pictures and descriptions.  ________________________________________________________________________ONIONS - BULBS I just buy yellow onion bulbs wherever I can get them locally.  We start using them as scallions as soon as they grow a little, then we let many of them mature into onions.  _______________________________________________________________________ ONIONS – SEEDS I buy a pretty little red scallion seed from Johnny’s Seeds,  “Mini Red Purplette.”  Last spring,  I was in  a hurry and dropped too many seeds in a small area of my garden.  Voila!  I took each little baby and made transplants from them.  ________________________________________________________________________ ONIONS – TRANSPLANTS I have never purchased transplants but they are a very popular nursery item, now.  ________________________________________________________________________    

Page 8 of 13

 PEAS – SHELLING “Little Marvel” (also called “Early Marvel”) is an old Pinedale favorite.  It is an early pea but a better producer than “early” peas.   I grew it last year and it was very productive and flavorful. I got the seeds from Vermont Bean and Seeds.   Seeds Trust  loves their “Montana Marvel” (64 days) variety for cool season gardens. Bestcoolseeds.com   has several varieties for cool season gardens:  “Early Frost” is very early and cold hardy and recommended by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension; “Freezonian” is a main season pea with very high sugar content (it is an early pea that produces pods over a long season); “Green Arrow” is a mid-to-late season pea and is very cold tolerant (needs no trellis); “Olympian” is a mid-season pea; “Progress” is an early pea.  “Dakota” (57 days) is good for northern gardens and good for freezing and canning (Seed Savers Exchange, Burpee, and Territorial Seeds).  ________________________________________________________________________ PEAS – SNOW –LONG AND FLAT WITH EDIBLE PODS Seeds Trust  has two varieties that they love:  “Mammoth Melting” (70 days)  and “Oregon Sugar Pod” (68 days), which has a sweet mild flavor.  “Oregon Sugar Pod” is also available from Vermont Bean and Seed.  I planted Oregon Sugar Pod in 2011 and it was the best snow pea I’ve ever tasted. ________________________________________________________________________ PEAS – SNAP – FAT WITH EDIBLE PODS Seeds Trust has one variety that does not need trellising:  “Sugar Ann” (56 days).  They have two other varieties that need trellising:  “Sugar Sprint” (52 days), sweeter than Sugar Ann,  and “Super Sugar Snap” which is recommended by Santa Clara Master Gardeners as being the sweetest of all snap peas.  ________________________________________________________________________ POTATOES – PURPLE, RED, RUSSET, YUKON GOLD, FINGERLING, ETC. Irish Eyes has the best description of potato seeds I’ve ever seen.  We can usually grow early and mid-season purple potatoes successfully.  I just buy potato seeds from local nurseries as they are very expensive to ship from the catalogs and you have to buy fairly large quantities.  The easiest potatoes to grow in our climate are:  “Red Norland” and “Yukon Gold.”  But, be brave and try others.  Some times they work and some times they don’t.  Last year, out of a 100 sq. foot raised bed, I got 125 lbs. of potatoes (Red Norland, Yukon Gold, Pontiac Red, and Viking Purple.   ______________________________________________________________________

Page 9 of 13

 RADISHES My favorites are:  Cherry Belle (an old Pinedale favorite and an All American Selection winner) from bestcoolseeds.com and Territorial Seeds and  “Pink Beauty” from Johnny’s Seeds.  Bestcoolseeds.com also sells “Sparkler,” “Champion,” “Crimson Giant,” “Early Scarlet Globe,” and “French Breakfast.”  I have not had good luck with Champion or French Breakfast.  _______________________________________________________________________ SPINACH Spinach is sensitive to day length, that is why it tends to bolt early.  Plant spinach very early, as soon as you can dig, or in mid-July.  Or, choose bolt resistant varieties.  Spinach leaves are smooth, semi-savoy, or savoy (curly).  I like the smooth leaves because they are easier to wash. Organic Gardening magazine recommended “Okame” spinach (47 days) as a top ten vegetable in 2010 (Nichols Garden Nursery).  It is a smooth-leaved Japanese variety.I grew “Emu,” a smooth-leaf variety (Johnny’s Seeds)  last year; it was very prolific and did not bolt the entire summer.  I also grow “Red Cardinal,” (Johnny’s Seeds) a red-veined miniature spinach salad green.  It bolts very quickly but it is tender and pretty in salads.  The most cold-hardy spinach for cold frames are:  “Olympia,” “Space” (Pinetree Seeds), and “Tarpy.”  Bestcoolseeds.com  sells “Bloomsdale,” (48 days and slow to bolt) an old Pinedale favorite that is semi-savoy; “Bloomsdale Long Standing,” a very early savoy; “Renegrade Hybrid,” a smooth, very early spinach; “Tyee Hybrid,” semi savoy and bolt resistant; and “Space Hybrid,” a quick-growing semi-savoy spinach that is slow to bolt.  “Razzle Dazzle Hybrid,” a Japanese hybrid, (Vermont Bean and Seed) is the earliest spinach on the market (30 days).  It is smooth leaved and prolific, but it would need to be planted very early in the spring or it will bolt before harvest.  _______________________________________________________________________ RUTABAGAS I have not grown rutabagas for many years.  The “Purple Top” is an old Pinedale favorite.  Rutabagas are a late season crop and they store well. ________________________________________________________________________ SQUASH - YELLOW CROOKNECK I have never grown Crookneck squash, but Toni and Gary Bohnet (Boulder) grow them very successfully.  Call her if you are interested in growing them.  She loves to talk about her squash.    _____________________________________________________________________

Page 10 of 13

SQUASH - GOLDEN ZUCHINNI Last year I tried a yellow zucchini, “Gold Rush,” (45 days)  from Park Seeds.  It was a very prolific plant and the squash were long yellow zucchinis.  They did not store well, had to be used within a couple of days of harvest, but they were delicious fresh off the vine.  Other yellow zucchini are: “Soleil” (50 days) from High Mowing; “Golden Zebra” (50 days) and “Gold Rush” (50 days  from Pinetree; and “Sunburst” (45 days) from Park Seeds. _____________________________________________________________________ SQUASH - GREEN ZUCHINNI I start seeds outdoors for all my zucchini plants by mounding the soil around the seeds, surrounding it with big rocks, and capping it with a hot cap.  Seeds can also be started indoors successfully.  Zucchini are very tender and need to be covered if there is any hint of frost. I planted “Contender” (43 days) from Park Seed last year and the zuchinni was delicious, though not a heavy producer.  Seeds Trust and bestcoolseeds.com sells “Black Beauty OP” (46 days).  “Cavilli” (50 days) ,sold by John Scheepers, was recommended as a top ten vegetable by Organic Gardening in 2011.  “Greyzunni” (47 days) is an All-American Selections winner and is sold by Irish Eyes.  Irish Eyes also sells “Jackpot” (42 days) and “Salmon” (40 days).   Bestcoolseeds. com sells “BC-2 Hybrid,” a compact plant for cool climates.  They recommend “Jade Bar Hybrid” as an early and prolific zuchinni for cool climates, too.    Their “Storrs Green Hybrid” is a very early squash and popular in Alaska.  Another bestcoolseeds.com recommend and an All American Selections winner is “Early Prolific Straightneck.”  It is very early but not as cold tolerant as zuchinni (apparently this is a bit of a different summer squash.  Another zuchinni-type squash is bestcoolseeds.com’s “Caserta Italian Cocozelle,” which is a dark green striped and ridged  squash that they claim has better flavor than any zucchini.  Cocozelle is also an All American Selections winner.  ____________________________________________________________________ SQUASH - PATTY PAN ZUCHINNI Our favorite zucchini-type squash is “patty pan.”  I grew “Sunburst,” (50 days) from Park Seeds last year.  It was an All-American Selections winner.  It was slow to mature, but stayed productive until mid-October (covered on frosty nights).  The flavor was unbeatable, especially when sliced and grilled.  Another All-American Selections winner is the “Sunburst Scallop” (50 days) from Irish Eyes.  “Papaya Pear” (40 days), another All American Selections winner, is a heavy producer and available from Pinetree.  _____________________________________________________________________ 

Page 11 of 13

SQUASH – WINTER I have never tried growing winter squash, but bestcoolseeds.com has an All American Selections winner that has been successfully tested by the University of Alaska Cooperative Extension for growth in Alaska:  “Gold Nuggett.”  Sounds interesting! ______________________________________________________________________  TOMATOES I am a true novice with cool season tomatoes.  Sandy Bousman and Toni Bohnet are good sources of greenhouse tomatoes that grow well here.  I planted tomatoes in containers last year and babied them well.    Last year I ordered transplants from Territorial Seeds and was very pleased with the plants.  I used “glacier” varieties and grew them in containers.  Ken faithfully pushed the containers into the garage at night while I was vacationing.  That nasty hail storm in August shredded some of the leaves of the plants, but they came back and produced faithfully until mid-October.   I used determinate varieties from Territorial Seeds. Cherry tomatoes:  “Bitonto”Small slicers:  “Beaver Lodge”Medium slicers:  “Glacier” Bestcoolseeeds.com boasts tomatoes that will grow in cool season climates.  These are their determinant varieties that were developed in Alaska; all are cold tolerant and can be grown in greenhouses or containers:  “Early Tanana,” 2 inch slicers; “Polar Beauty,”  2-3 inch slicers, prolific; “Polar Star,” cherry sized; “Sub-Arctic,” cherry sized.  Their “Sweetie” is a globe-shaped cherry tomato, very sweet, everbearing, and great for greenhouses and containers.  “Stupice” is a 60-70 day indeterminate variety for containers and greenhouses.  Stupice has gotten lots of kudos for cool season climates.  Territorial Seeds and Seeds Trust have great descriptions of early season tomatoes for cool climates, too. ______________________________________________________________________ TURNIPS I have only grown the old Pinedale favorite, “Purple Top White Globe,” which is widely available.  However, there are other varieties.  Two others that are sold by bestcoolseeds.com are “Golden Globe,” which are a midseason turnip and good for cooking, and “White Egg,” which is an early turnip with great greens.  Recently, a Japanese turnip has made culinary headlines, “Hakurei,” which is suppose to be small and very sweet.  It is available from Johnny’s Seeds. ______________________________________________________________________ 

Page 12 of 13

HERBS: THESE CAN BE STARTED FROM SEED:  cilantro, dill, parsley, fennel, chervil – seeds are readily available everywhere.  Basil is best grown as a transplant. There is a fabulous description of many different kinds of basil on this site;  www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/17-basil-varieties?page=0,1.  Seeds Trust has a basil that is frost tolerant:  “Italian Mountain.” THESE SHOULD BE TRANSPLANTED FROM DIVISIONS:  chives, mints, oregano, thyme, rosemary, lavender, tarragon, sweet marjoram, winter savory, and sage.  Last year I got some nice transplants from Territorial Seeds and they thrived in my garden.  Some times I get to nurseries too late to get good herbs, so I ordered them in advance of the season and was pleased with the results. ________________________________________________________________________  BERRIES: STRAWBERRIES “Ft. Laramie” is an everbearing plant that is very hardy and an old-time Pinedale favorite.  “Ozark” is another everbearing that may survive our winters. “Seascape” is a day-neutral strawberry, also everbearing.  I planted some from a farmer near Idaho Falls last spring.  We’ll see what happens this spring.   Everbearing varieties  are “day neutral.”  Hardy June-bearing plants are:  “Honeyeye,” “Cavendish,” “Shuksan,” (tolerates alkaline soil),  “Wendy,” and “Earliglow.”  June-bearing plants are short-day plants.    It is recommended that we plant day-neutral or long-day varieties.  I am not a strawberry expert, still learning! www.jungseed.com is a good resource for strawberries. ________________________________________________________________________  CURRANTS, GOOSEBERRIES, AND RASPBERRIES There are so many varieties that grow well in Pinedale.  Ted Weiderander and his wife use to grow raspberries in a huge patch behind their house in Pinedale.  Everyone else was jealous!  Raintree Nursery out of Morton, Washington, (raintreenursery.com) has amazing descriptions and choices for these berries.  Many of their plants grow in our zone 3 climate.  ________________________________________________________________________ 

Page 13 of 13