Friday, January 30, 2009

Star's Influence

When I was in Olympia a few weekends ago Star and I started pouring over seed catalogs. She'd already ordered a good handful or so different kinds and, after looking at all the cool tomatoes I could order, I decided that I'd probably have to order some too. Fast forward a few weeks and here I am, a little giddy because I just placed my order with Territorial Seed. Curious about what's going to be growing in our planter boxes? Yeah, I knew you would be! So here's a list:
Lemon Cucumbers
70 days. These 3-4 foot, semi-bush type plants bear loads of apple-shaped cucumbers with lemon-colored skins. The flesh is VERY mild and sweet, never bitter. Scrumptious and colorful in salads. Best harvested when the size of limes. This old variety is a favorite among many cool season gardeners. HE.
Goldrush Squash
C. pepo 55 days. This bright golden-yellow zucchini yields wonderful, smooth cylindrical fruit on compact plants. The attractive color and gourmet quality sets Gold Rush apart from other yellow zukes. At their best when picked at the 8-10 inch stage. The sweet white flesh is a perfect addition to both raw and cooked dishes. An AAS winner.
Gladiator Parsnip
110 days. You'll be impressed from the start with Gladiator's quick germination and vigorous early growth. The vitamin-rich, cream colored roots have a clean parsnipy sweetness that makes it the most flavor-packed parsnip we've had the pleasure to eat. The smooth tapered roots reach 7 inches when they're ready for the kitchen. Try Gladiator in stews or grated in salads. Seed is from England.Mamoth Sweet Basil
Ocimum basilicum The beginnings of a culinary masterpiece! Hailed by the chefs of Italy, we bring you the largest-leafed basil we have seen. Sought after for its culinary wrapping qualities, Mammoth Sweet has large yellow-green leaves with slight puckering and the most heavenly aroma.
Roodnerf Brussels Sprouts
100 days. One of the last open pollinated varieties in existence that still retains excellent eating quality and uniformity. Bred in Hurst, England, Roodnerf is quite cold hardy. The medium to tall plants yield plump, green sprouts. If you've turned up your nose to Brussels sprouts in the past, Roodnerf will certainly turn you into a fan!
Purple Haze Carrots
70 days. This 2006 AAS winner is the first Imperator-shaped purple carrot. Sure to be the talk of the table, Purple Haze has a sweet flavor with a tender yet snappy crunch. The 10-12 inch purple-skinned roots have vivid orange centers, which make quite an eye sensation when sliced on a relish tray. Purple color will fade when cooked.
Red Samurai Carrots
75 days. We've searched worldwide for a great tasting, true red carrot, and finally found it! Its bold, sweet flavor synchronizes flawlessly with the crisp, bright, rosy flesh. Red Samurai adds panache to salads but the flavor really shines when cooked. It even retains its distinctive color when steamed. The slim, tapered roots reach 11 inches.Oregon Giant Peas
70 days. This snow pea has unusually large, broad pods growing to 5 inches long. They are thick, very sweet, and tender, and remain so longer than others. The plant is 30-36 inches tall, similar to that of Oregon Sugar Pod II. Developed by Dr. Jim Baggett at Oregon State University.
Canoe Peas
70 days. Canoe packs more peas per pod than any other variety we've seen. Approximately a dozen delightfully sweet peas snuggle in each long, slightly curved, boat-shaped pod. The semi-leafless plants reach 30 inches, and provide plentiful crops. This variety is a canner's dream since more peas per pod means less shelling.

We're going to get some strawberries, rhubarb, potatoes and tomato plants locally instead of ordering them and all the rest of the things we'll just buy at Twelve Mile or farm stands around the countryside. After all, what's the point of living out here if you're not going to buy the food growing right down the road?! I think all but two of the seeds is Organic (that damn basil sounded too good to buy the boring organic version and none of the yellow zukes were organic... all hybrids.) and I think 90% are open pollination. Something like that.

3 comments:

BriKi said...

those purple haze carrots are hella cool

Star said...

seeeeeeeds! i'm growing those same lemon cukes! we can see who has the better soil/skillz and compare them in a beauty contest.

Anonymous said...

Han--your parsnips and carrots will be even better if you leave them in the ground until after it freezes. They get really sweet and the freezing doesn't hurt them.