Newsletter: February 2012 Gardening Tips

February 2012 Edition

“Anyone who has a library and a garden wants for nothing. ”
 
~Cicero

Hello Subscriber!

Welcome to the February edition of Terroir Seeds Gardening Tips. Our warm, dry and pleasant winter continues here in Northern Arizona, as it does for many of you we’ve talked to lately. Here’s hoping that we get some good moisture and a real winter before it’s all over!

Our 75th article is up on The Heirloom Seeds Blog! We continue the planning and planting series this month, with more to come. After you read the articles and watch our video, we would love to hear your thoughts on this subject. Did they help you, do you need more information in a specific area, do you have experiences to add that could help other gardeners? Please, let us know!

You have really kept us busy with phone calls and orders and for that we sincerely thank all of you! We realize the amount of trust that is needed to place an order with someone you’ve never met and for some of you have never talked to. We want to earn that trust with our personal service, quick turnaround on orders and quality of seed.

Our focus is the whole cycle of the garden- from the soil to the seed to the food you eat. Simply selling seed doesn’t get the job done, as there are questions on gardening, soil building, troubleshooting and recipes to enjoy your home-grown harvest. That is why we spend so much time preparing articles on so many topics that pertain to your garden. That is also why we personally answer the phone and spend the time needed to make sure that your questions are answered and you get the help you need, not just take your order.

If you are new to gardening and need some friendly guidance on seed selection for this year, please call or email us. We want to help you be successful in your garden. We write The Heirloom Seeds Blog, Gardening Tips and Tricks, and the Recipes and Cooking sections of our website to help you get more out of your efforts!

Look for your mid-February eNewsletter that will highlight some new varieties with their stories and good gardening tips and more.

Let’s see what’s new!

Successful Heirloom Seed Starting for the Home Gardener

We continue the planning, seed starting and planting series this issue with Successful Heirloom Seed Starting for the Home Gardener. We look at starting seeds in this article- the pros and cons, as well as planning the seed starting area and tools and equipment that are needed. The article finishes with a video showing our setup here at Terroir Seeds that we’ve refined to supply our trial garden with transplants.

This builds on last month’s article- Planning and Planting Your Spring Garden where we explore some ideas for this year’s garden and show how the timing and planning work. We are working on the next in the series- planting and starting your seedlings, so watch for it soon.

Burgundy Cockscomb – Celosia cristata

Here is a very striking and unusual heirloom that some folks haven’t seen yet. The Burgundy Cockscomb is native to the tropics, but has adapted itself to almost every climate in America. Grown by Thomas Jefferson as a boy, it has quite a history of being admired! Read Burgundy Cockscomb- A Striking Heirloom Flower for the full story.

This makes a great garden border for attracting attention and in fresh flower arrangements. It is also used as a medicinal herb and a vegetable source in the tropics where the leaves and young flowers are eaten.

Seed Starting Media For the Home Gardener

Choosing the proper seed starting mix is a large step in getting strong healthy transplants ready for your garden this Spring.  It seems that there is some confusion as to what makes up a good starting mix, where to buy it or how to make it.

Read along as we show you what the different elements are in a comprehensive seed starting mix, what they do and get a couple of “recipes” to hand-make your own from readily available ingredients. Seed Starting Media For the Home Gardener shows you how!

French Sorrel or “Lemonade in a Leaf”

We showcase an herb that has been prized for not only its nutritional value, but citrusy zing for thousands of years- French Sorrel. High in Vitamin C and used to prevent scurvy prior to refrigeration, Sorrel was one of the very first greens to pop up along the fencerows every Spring. Early Greeks and Romans prized it for its digestive properties.

Long a standard in French cuisine, Sorrel has been used in a multitude of ways from simply adding to a hot skillet just before the morning eggs to a wonderful Risotto recipe we share with you in French Sorrel or “Lemonade in a Leaf”. Take a look to see the second recipe also!

Our customers are friends that we have not yet met, as you share our interest and passion for growing incredibly delicious foods, preserving heirloom seed traditions and biological diversity for the future through our own home gardens. Sharing this is possibly the most important work, as it helps all of us make a definite, positive impact in our lives and in those that we share.

Thanks for your time this edition, we hope you have enjoyed it. Please let us know your thoughts and suggestions, as we are always working to improve.

Stephen and Cindy Scott
Terroir Seeds | Underwood Gardens