By Reggie Solomon

How do seed catalogs and seed magazines (also referred to as “garden porn” by some especially avid readers) stack up against each other in helping gardeners plan and decide what to grow in their gardens?

Fortunately, most gardeners don’t have to worry about basic seed quality when purchasing seeds and plants from major providers.

So what largely distinguishes providers is how helpful they are to gardeners in planning and preparing their gardens.

This three-part article examines catalogs and magazines produced by three major seeds providers and reviews their comparative helpfulness to gardeners who use these magazines to decide what to grow, purchase seeds, and plan home gardens.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Reggie Solomon

Twelve days after placing my online seed order with Burpee, my seeds finally arrived.

The print date on my receipt was April 13, so I really don’t understand why it took them so long to process an order made on April 4?

There was no indication that anything I ordered was out of stock so I’m really perplexed.

I won’t get an opportunity to assemble seed trays until the weekend so this is going to put me even further behind. An email or some notification from them to apprise me of the delay would have been nice. I took a look at my electronic receipt and it indicates I should have received the order within 7-10 days.

One would think a seed-provider company would know time is of the essence when it comes to growing seasons.

Oh well, here’s to planting.

By Reggie Solomon

It can make you feel like a kid again.

Few deliveries have occasioned as much joy as the one I received today.

After returning from lunch I found two big Johnny’s Seeds boxes waiting for me on my office floor.

I’m really impressed with how fast I received my Johnny’s Seeds order since I only made my online order the Wednesday evening before the Good Friday holiday.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Reggie Solomon

Narrowing down a list of what seeds to order online isn’t easy.

Today is my first big seed order day, and I’ve ordered a lot of seeds online (which the seed-provider companies will love) and am storing the leftovers for next year and sharing seeds with friends (which the seed-provider companies won’t like so much).

I want to plant at least two varieties of most vegetables I plan to grow, so that I can grow like a wine-taster. In some cases, like with basil (a personal favorite) I plan to grow six varieties, and am bordering on ordering more than my garden can accommodate.

Read the rest of this entry »