My mailbox since New Year’s Day has been filled with many new “seed” catalogues. My mother and grandmother waited all year for the seed catalogues to arrive, shortening the winter with their promise of spring planting time to come. But the seed catalogues of my grandmother’s day now also carry a raft of plants – from asparagus plants to nut and fruit trees. And the local nurseries of that time, which sent out those precious catalogues, are now often multinational corporations like Burpees and Guerneys. But they still make winter seem shorter and not unfalsely promise that spring is on its way.

While I strongly believe that “local is best” in all things plants it is still hard not to be struck and enticed by a particular picture, or a new plant or a new variety of an old plant, and a “need to really have it” in my garden. My garden is full but the new “black” Hellebore from Heronswood Nursery in Pennsylvania http://www.heronswood.com/ is an absolute must have, as are the Astilboides tabularis and North Hills strain of Candelabra Primroses from White Flower Farm in Connecticut http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/ Well, maybe not in my garden but certainly in one of my client’s. Shady Oaks has one of the nicest selections of hostas around but fortunately they are only a wholesale nursery. Unfortunately I have to wait until their new selections show up locally or in another catalogue.

My favorite catalogue won’t arrive for a few weeks yet but when it does I always drool far more than is seemly. Fortunately most of the plants they sell are for areas farther south, zone 6 or warmer, so it is easy to resist most of their offerings. Plant Delights Nursery http://www.plantdelights.com/ operates in conjunction with Juniper Level Botanic Gardens in Raleigh, NC. Perhaps I should consider moving to North Carolina.

Johnny’s Selected Seeds http://www.johnnyseeds.com/ and Totally Tomatoes http://www.totallytomato.com/ are equally tempting, but fortunately I have outgrown the need to grow tomatoes. More accurately I have almost outgrown the need to grow tomatoes. Last year I had three plants that were unusually overabundant and with gifts from other gardeners I have a freezer half full of tomato sauce.

Websites are not the same as catalogues and never quite seem as precious, but here are several that are favorites and which sometimes accompany a “real” catalogues.
Edmunds roses are some of the best I’ve ever bought, and they have several new varieties every year. http://www.edmundsroses.com/ Schreiner’s Iris Lovers Catalogue is one of the older and best for the northwest. http://www.schreinersgardens.com/ John Scheepers has two catalogues – one for garden seeds, the other for bulbs and a few perennials: http://www.kitchengardenseeds.com/ and http://www.johnscheepers.com/ respectively.

Seeds of Change works to preserve biodiversity, by maintaining old strains of modern vegetables and flowers, and promote organic and sustainable agriculture. They produce organic seeds and a part of their mission is to teach gardening. http://www.seedsofchange.com/
Select Seeds, heirloom treasures for modern gardens the catalogue is subtitled, has a similar assortment of seeds but tends more to flowers than edibles. http://www.selectseeds.com/

High Country Garden is in New Mexico and specializes in drought tolerant plants for xeric landscapes. http://www.gighcountrygardens.com/ I was more impressed before I discovered that their part of New Mexico receives almost twice as much moisture as the Missoula valley does, which may explain why some of their plants have not done well for me. But they are nevertheless worth checking out. The bright red-orange Zuaschneria and purple ice plant are samples of what they sell.

Keep in mind that many of these seed companies are in other parts of the country, not Montana, and that their plant and seed offerings reflect their local growing conditions far more than they may ours. Day length, water, water quality, soil, soil type and conditions all affect how plants and seeds grow and how well they produce, whether it is flowers or food for our tables. Buying locally from local growers and nurseries increases the chance of a bountiful crop.

Garden City Seeds formerly from Corvallis, Montana was absorbed by Irish Eyes Seeds in Ellensburg, Washington which has also absorbed a number of other smaller seed companies. Their products -- seeds, seed potatoes and onion starts mostly – are usually available locally at Marchie’s Nursery, Caras Nursery, ACE Hardware and elsewhere.
http://www.irisheyesgardenseeds.com/

See you again soon, or at planting time in the garden.