The Pleasure of Ordering Seeds

 What I dream of as I sift through garden books and seed catalogues in winter

What Life actually looks like as my garden is under  two feet of snow and ice

This time of year, even though I spend a lot of my time going back and forth to the woodpile and shoveling snow, is an exciting time of year. No not winter, or Christmas or New Year's. That's right, seed ordering time! Time to sit with a hot drink, perhaps in front of a fire and pour through seed catalogues, electronic or paper, doesn't matter. There were already plenty of practice runs, the jotting down of seeds to look up and research into new plants to try but now it is time to let go into this decadent, though absolutely necessary, ritual.

Having ordered and read from my library, a great deal of gardening books over some recent vacation time, I had decided to plant a perennial vegetable garden. I started with a look through my favourite, local seed companies to see what they could offer. I found a few and was excited but after an exhaustive search for the rest of my list I came up empty handed. The Canadian seed companies really dedicated to growing perennially seemed to be in an entirely different climate on the opposite coast. I had the idea to try a few seed companies in the UK but most of them don't ship to Canada. The American suppliers were a bit of both, either not shipping, charging a lot to ship to Canada or were from a different zone/climate.

Sigh.

I gave up that night and went to bed not defeated but actually welcoming another session of pouring over more seed resources. I found out that some of the names I had written down were only common in certain places and that perennial kale for example could have many names, none of which are perennial kale! Strictly speaking I think it is more of a self seeding plant then a true perennial but for my purposes I lump them all together. In my garden they mean I don't have to plant them every year!

I regrouped, decided I didn't need and couldn't  fit all of the plants on my list this spring and made my first seed order. Sometimes what I really need are boundaries and obstacles to keep me focused on what I want and not get lost in fantasy! I also ordered tomatoes, squash, ground cherries, cucumbers, radish, green beans and basil seeds. The rest are perennials. They are Sorrel, sea kale (not a kale), Turkish Rocket, Cinnamon vine yams, leeks, asparagus, perennial fennel, German chamomile, and wild ginger.

Seeds I will plant that I saved from my own garden include buttercup squash, cilantro, sweet potato (from vines I am growing) and garlic (I got from my mother in law)I planted in the fall.

I plan to buy two more apple trees, 1 pear, 2 peach, 2 plum, several berry bushes and strawberries. Really how could I have ever thought I could handle more planting than all of that! Of course, the draw to look through the seed catalogues once or twice more is still there so you never know, I will have to try very hard not to order any more.