West Coast Seeds

Tagetes patula. Red Cherry is an ornate, bi-coloured marigold. The yellow centres of these long-blooming flowers are framed by red petals that feature yellow edging. The foliage on the plants are full and grow 25cm (10") tall. Perfect for patio containers, beds and borders. Marigolds are great companion plants and act as a deterant for some pests.

Annual

Digitalis purpurea. Tubular, nodding flowers are often speckled and tumble on husky spires to 2m (6') tall. They are welcome in the border, woodland, or whenever they randomly self-sow. Foxglove flowers late spring to summer, and may flower again from the tops of the stems in late summer or fall. Sow Foxgloves Digitalis seeds indoors in late winter for flowers the first year. Transplant to naturalize at the back of the border. Foxgloves thrive in moist, shady areas, but can stand full sun if they are kept watered. Each plant produces thousands of tiny seeds - to avoid self sowing, cut the stalks down as soon as flowering has finished.

All parts of the Foxglove plant are poisonous.

Biennial

Satureja hortensis. This delicate, aromatic little plant grows quickly in rich soil. Used in bean, pea and lentil recipes, summer savory has a more delicate flavour than winter savory. Sow Summer Savory seeds in the spring. After flowering, pull it up and hang to dry. Let a few plants go to seed, and it should come back the following year. This herb grows to 25cm (10") tall.

This is the better known savory - it is an annual plant as opposed to perennial Winter Savory. Maritime Canadians know and love it, and use it the way sage is used elsewhere. It's nice with poultry stuffing and stews, and it is a key ingredient in herbes de Provence.

Greek oregano organic seeds are CERTIFIED ORGANIC! Greek oregano offers the best, most pungently flavoured oregano leaves for cooking. Plants are very hardy when established and impart a wonderful wild mountain aroma in the garden with their tiny white or pink flowers. Bees adore oregano when it is in bloom. Germination may be slow, so be patient. Oregano is one of the best herbs for drying because it maintains a strong flavour for months after harvest. Pick and dry whole stalks or whole plants - hang them upside down in an airy place out of direct sunlight. Once the plants are completely dry, they can be stored in open plastic bags. Otherwise, pull off the leaves and store them in sealed jars.

Greek oregano pairs brilliantly with meats, eggs, and roasted vegetables like zucchini and eggplant.

Helianthus annuus. Creamy, nearly white petals surround a honey-coloured central disc atop a stem that can reach 2m (6') tall. ProCut White Lite is a pollenless hybrid sunflower for the professional florist trade. As a cut flower it leaves no mess, but it still bears nectar that will attract and feed bees and other pollinators from far and wide. Harvest the blooms just as they begin to open for the longest vase life, or enjoy them in the field where they look incredible in mass plantings. The day-length neutral flowers grow up to 15cm (6") wide on single stems.

Annual

C. pepo. Brilliant orange little spaghetti squash are stunning nestled in their tidy plants. These have higher beta-carotene than other spaghetti squash. About 1kg (2 lbs) each. Small Wonder spaghetti squash seeds produce heavy yields of fruits that store particularly well. Fruits average 15cm (6") long and 12cm (5") in diameter, so they are celebrated as personal size or single serving size spaghetti squash. Small Wonder performs well out in the field, but also in raised beds. You will get excellent germination from Small Wonder spaghetti squash seeds, and fast spring growth. We recommend interplanting sunflowers with your squash bed, to lure pollinators on site so that you get maximum fruit production from each plant.

Matures in 90 days. (Hybrid seeds)

Our tallest, darkest romaine, Coastal Star Organic performs brilliantly in spring and fall, and even in winter with some protection from hard frost. This romaine is early maturing with a high resistance to corky root. Heads are tightly packed around blanched tender hearts, and have an overall pleasant lettuce flavour. Growth is very upright on plants that average around 30cm (12″) tall. Even the outer wrapper leaves are held off the ground, so there no bottom rot issues. The dark colour of Coastal Star is thought to represent a more nutritious lettuce than the paler romaines like Plato II.

Matures in 65 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Cymbopogon flexuosus. Lemongrass is a tropical plant from the grass family (Poaceae) that will grow well in temperate regions if given the right conditions. Sow Lemongrass seeds indoors in late winter using bottom heat or a seedling heat mat. Maintain moist conditions and a temperature around 21°C (70°F), and the seeds will germinate in 5 to 21 days. Be sure to use sterilized seed starting mix, and either a clear dome over your seedling tray, or sealed into a plastic bag to maintain moisture. Transplant outdoors or into containers in full sun once the weather has warmed up in early summer. At the end of summer move container plants into a frost free environment with good air circulation. Reduce watering to almost none, making the soil barely moist once a week.

When using Lemongrass in the kitchen, remove any loose, outer layers. Either use whole pieces, crushed slightly with a pestle or under the back of your cleaver, or slice sections very thinly in cross section. This will help break up the strong fibres of the grass stalks.

Tender Perennial

This old time heirloom pole bean was first introduced by W. Atlas Burpee back in 1885. Its pods are green and entirely stringless, with a rich and buttery flavour when cooked. Use it as a snap bean, or allow the all-white, pearl-like seeds to develop for use as dry beans all winter. Lazy Housewife was the first stringless snap bean introduced in North America, making it faster and easier to prepare for cooking, hence its name. Times have changed since it was named, but we are pleased to offer this classic taste of gardens past. Provide a trellis for this enthusiastic climber.

Matures in 80 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Among the largest available snow peas, these 10-13 cm (4-5") long pods are produced on 1.2m (4') tall plants that require a trellis. The large white flowers of this heirloom variety are pretty enough to use as cut flowers. Mammoth Melting Sugar snow pea seeds produce pods are sweet and tender, even sweeter and more tender than Dwarf Gray Sugar. Plants are high yielding, early, uniform, and productive. This variety is more productive in cool weather, so it's perfect for early spring planting, and a second planting in early August for fall production. Mammoth Melting Sugar is Wilt resistant.

Matures in 70 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

C. moschata. Waltham Organic butternut squash seeds are CERTIFIED ORGANIC! The extremely vigorous vines of this 1970 All America Selections Winner produce uniform butternut squash fruits with creamy, rich, dry, yellow-orange flesh under smooth tan skins. Waltham sets the standard for butternut squashes, and can store for as long as six months. Expect 4 to 5 fruits per plant, each measuring 23cm (9") long, with thick flesh and small seed cavities. Allow the fruits to ripen completely on the vine, and then give them a quick wipe down with some weak bleach solution to kill any bacteria on the skins. Store in a cool, dry place.

Matures in 110 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

This early maturing popcorn has tall plants with two ears each, that average 13-15cm (5-6") long. Pink Popcorn corn seeds produce excellent popping corn that yields lots of fluffy white kernels with a great rich flavour. The beautiful pink to mauve kernels are attractive for decoration. This is not a variety for eating corn on the cob, but rather for drying and popping. The stately tall plants are attractive in the summer garden.

To harvest popcorn, allow the plants to turn brown and the ears to dry for as long as possible in the field. When harvested, the husks should be completely brown and the kernels hard. Harvest the ears and remove the husks. Hang the ears in mesh bags in a warm, dry, airy room, and let dry for several weeks. The ideal moisture content for popcorn is 13 to 14%. Once a week, extract a few kernels and try popping them. If the popcorn is jagged or chewy, it still has too much moisture. If the flavour and texture are good, remove all the remaining kernels and store them in airtight containers. They should remain in good popping form for several years.

Matures in 85 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Sweet, stringless pods are borne on 80cm (30") semi-leafless vines that do not require support. The pods are about 9cm (3 1/2") long and average 2 pods per node. Sow Sugar Lace II seeds for giant harvests of very sweet snap peas. This variety is resistant to powdery mildew and pea enation mosaic virus, so it handles the cool weather at the end of the season better than others. Try planting as late as early August for harvests into October. It's also a nice one for early spring planting - you can direct sow as early as mid-February on the coast.

Matures in 68 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Ferrari is considered a French filet type bean and has a wonderful flavour. The slim, stringless, round pods develop early on compact plants, and grow to 13cm (5”). This variety has good potential for early starting under cloche protection, and is compact enough for container growing. Ferrari bush bean seeds are resistant to Anthracnose and BCMV, and tolerant to Cucumber Mosaic Virus.

Matures in 55 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Calendula officinalis. Fiesta Gitana calendula seeds are a dwarf selection of double flowers in a rich, warm range of colours from deep orange to pastel cream. Plants are compact, growing to only 30-35cm (12-14") tall, so they are perfectly suited for containers or edging the garden bed. The flower petals are edible, and look superb sprinkled over salads and smart drinks for your summer parties. Keep Fiesta Gitana calendula deadheaded for the tidiest look and the longest flowering period. Simply pull or snip off any flowers the day after they fade. Once established, Calendula need little care, so they make good candidates for xeriscaping.

Annual