Is there anything more cheering on a snowy January day than browsing through seed catalogs or doing a little online dreaming about what you’ll plant when spring finally comes?
In just a few weeks, it will be time to start some slower-germinating seeds indoors. Seeds of other faster-germinating flowers and vegetables should be started indoors in mid-March. And still others do best directly sown right into the soil, usually in May.
Buy your seed from the right source and you’re more likely to have success in turning those tiny and sometimes pricey nuggets into big, beautiful, productive plants.
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Tips For Planning The 2021 Kitchen Garden
After a busier-than-expected 2020, seed companies are gearing up for the coming gardening season. So now s the time for you to be planning your 2021 garden.
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Last spring saw a massive uptick in vegetable gardening. While more gardens are certainly a plus, seed companies couldn’t keep up with the demand.
Gardeners chose from what seed was left or planted their gardens late in hopes that their favorites would become available.
Seed companies are readying for the 2021 spring rush, but will you be ready too? Here are some tips to help you while planning for a successful garden.
Margaret Roach, The New York Times
Published: 19 Dec 2020 05:45 PM BdST
Updated: 19 Dec 2020 05:45 PM BdST Roasted pumpkin seeds, Oct 15, 2019. Food stylist: Barrett Washbourne. David Malosh/The New York Times
Resilience: It’s a buzzword in the vegetable-seed industry, and a mission to breed genetically resilient varieties that stand up to pests, diseases and the rigors of a shifting climate. );
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Each resilient variety becomes a tiny, critical ingredient in a resilient seed system that supports agriculture, the foundation of a resilient food system.
And in the tumultuous 2020 seed-catalogue season, resilience proved a valuable human trait as well, for seed company staff and their customers. Insights gleaned from that chaotic year of record sales can smooth the ground for the 2021 garden season, which officially begins this month, as new catalogues start appearing in mailboxes and online.
Since ancient times, people have sought to inject light, and hope, into the bleak midwinter with fire and light. Evergreen boughs were brought into dwellings as reminders that life continues, and would return to the Earth again as the sun began a rising trajectory toward spring. Berried boughs had particular importance. They bore the seeds of life. We continue these traditions today. They are especially welcome this winter, as the darkness outdoors is overlaid with uncertainty and stress. Still, we defy it all. Coloured lights have been put up early. Trees can be seen lit up in the windows of houses we pass by.