Garden dreams

One of my favorite parts of crafting is looking through the books and figuring out what I want to make next. Turns out that once the kids are sweetly sleeping, another enjoyable wintry evening pastime is a stack of seed catalogs and a cup of tea.

I am still trying to learn what grows best in our zone, and I still don't know the last frost date in our area so I don't know when to begin planting indoors. There's so much to find out for the novice gardener! This doesn't stop me from imagining my way through garden catalogs, though. Reading them is so deliciously exciting and full of promise. Dreaming lacks all the pests, weeds, and heartache of an actual garden. It makes me want to write for these seed companies, with the obvious drawback that I don't really know beans about gardening. Regardless, look what I've found that seems interesting so far, and click the links to see pictures:

• Amish Paste Tomato : Lycopersicon lycoprtsicum, Heirloom indeterminate, 5-7 oz. fruits, Tender annual. This large, meaty heirloom was discovered in Wisconsin although it hails from the Pennsylvania Amish. It has a superior taste, brilliant with a nice balance of sweet and acid. Excellent fresh or in sauces.
• Calabrese Broccoli: Brassica oleracea, Heirloom, 18-28 in. 3-6 in. Hardy Annual. Brought to the US by Italian immigrants at the turn of the century, this is a great broccoli for the home garden. Dark green plant with a blue-green head. Plant remains productive after harvest of the head, continuing to produce many side shoots until frost. For fresh use and freezing.
• Cal Wonder Sweet Bell Pepper: Capiscum annuum, Heirloom, 18-24" Tender Annual. The archetypical bell pepper-tender, sweet and juicy without a trace of pungency. Dark green 3-4 in. peppers ripen to bright crimson. Large, blocky, lobed fruit with thick walls on vigorous upright plants.
• Cannellini Soup Half-Runner Bean: Phaseolus vulgaris, Rare - Heirloom, 3-4 ft. Tender Annual. This classic Italian bean is perfect for minestrone and was first grown in this country in the 1820s. Large, white, kidney-shaped beans have a nutty flavor and make delicious italian-style baked beans. A productive semi-runner plant that grows well even in cool weather.
• Dinosaur (Lacinato Blue) Kale: Brassica oleracea, Heirloom, 2-3 ft. Hardy Biennial. Fondly known as "Dino Kale," the leaves of this extremely winter-hardy variety become sweeter after a hard frost. Delicious and tender when stir-fried or steamed.
• Lemon Cucumber: Cucumis sativus, Heirloom, 3-4 in. Tender Annual. Dating back to the 1890s, these oval to round yellow cukes are juicy and sweet. Thin, tender skins and succulent white flesh make them a joy to eat whole-like an apple-right from the garden. Great for slicing or pickling.
• Red Oak Leaf Lettuce: Lactuca sativa, Heirloom, 12-16 in. Hardy Annual. Stunning oak-shaped leaves mature to a deep burgundy. Somewhat heat resistant but exceptionally vigorous in cooler weather.
• San Marzano Paste Tomato: Lycopersicon esculentum, Heirloom, 3" Fruits, Tender Annual. A classic Italian heirloom paste tomato with a slightly hourglass shape. Later season than other paste types, providing an extended harvest for saucing until the first hard frost. Flavorful cooking tomato. Needs trellising.
• Small Sugar Pumpkin: Cucurbita pepo, Heirloom, 5-8 lbs. This heirloom from the 1800s is a classic for its high-quality stringless, sweet flesh which makes scrumptious pies. Lightly ribbed, orange fruits are perfect for smaller gardens and make great little jack-o-lanterns. Easy to grow.
• St. Valery Carrot: Daucus carota var. sativus, Heirloom, 8-10 in. Hardy Biennial. French heirloom with sweet, tender flesh. This carrot to has a high amount of free arginine, a protein building amino acid.
• Tendergreen Bush Bean: Phaseolus vulgaris, Heirloom, 16-20 in., 5-6 in. pods, Tender Annual. A green, round-podded, stringless and tasty bush bean with slight flecks of purple. A very heavy yielder over a short period, even during hot weather. A great mainstay for the home garden.
• Tom Thumb Lettuce: Lactuca sativa, Heirloom, 3-5 in. Hardy Annual. Introduced by at least 1853, this is a tiny little butterhead perfect for small gardens or those who like the elegance of exquisitely formed small plants. About the size of an apple, it is ideal for serving whole as an individual salad.
• Viroflay Spinach: Spinacea oleracea, Heirloom, 2 ft. Hardy Annual. In 1885, Vimorin called this variety "Epinard Monstreux de Viroflay"---The Monster spinach of Veroflay! Extremely vigorous plants bear 10 inch leaves.
• Yellow Pear Cherry Tomato: Lycopersicon esculentum, Heirloom, 1 oz. Tender Annual. From the late 1800s with very low acid and a mild, sweet flavor. Produces clusters of 1-2 inch fruits all summer long. Excellent for salads, pickling and preserving. Resistant to alternaria stem canker disease.
  

The above list is still a work in progress. I don't know if they're the right ones. And it still doesn't include basil or peas (oh, fresh peas...). Someday I'd like to have strawberries, and maybe even grapes as well. But for now, I'd best stick with a stack of library books and a cup of tea.