Today is a Good Day to Order Seeds for Bees!

One way I cope with the lack of daylight, rainy weather, and lack of companionship from bees in winter is to grab a hot cup of tea and surround myself with gardening catalogues. I plan, I dream and I order seeds. Last year was particularly dark and dreary. I ordered a LOT of seeds. The West Coast Seeds catalog arrived yesterday, which is a cause for celebration in our household. I love the cover photo of the sunflower, but it is lacking something . . . say, a bee or two. Personally I think every garden catalog should have at least one bee on the cover, preferably more. Anyhow, the good thing is Brian Campbell, the company's resident on all things seed and bee-related has marked bee-friendly flowers with a little graphic of a bumblebee. Eh Voila! It's easy to plan your pollinator garden. There's also a little ladybug graphic for plants that attract beneficial insects, which is also extremely helpful.

Have I mentioned how seeds make great Christmas presents? Don't tell anyone, but this year I am giving packs from the Hudson Valley Seed Library because they are exquisitely designed. You can find them at West Elm Market in Vancouver.

Here is a shortlist of some of my favorite seed companies. For a longer list, check out Empress of Dirt's blog post with the companies broken down into regions.


But first, a photo of a Golden Northern Bumblebee (Bombus fervidus), taken at the Glenbow Ranch Park in Alberta.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

www.rareseeds.com

The catalogues are packed with luscious eye candy for gardeners, offering some really interesting heritage seeds.

Prairie Moon Nursery

www.prairiemoon.com

Great source of information for growing

 native North American plants.

Richter’s Herbs

www.richters.com

Canada’s most extensive retailer of herbs,

with an informative website.

Salt Spring Seeds

www.saltspringseeds.com

Small company created by seed-saving activist Dan Jason.

A good selection of unusual herbs attractive to bees.

Seedhunt

www.seedhunt.com

Interesting hard to find California wildflower seeds

West Coast Seeds

www.westcoastseeds.com

Company based in B.C. with an informative web site and resident bee expert Brian Campbell.

Wildflower Farm

www.wildflowerfarm.com

Ontario-based wildflower company (owned by the author of Taming Wildflowers, Miriam Golderger), with a helpful seed selector tool.

A Mother's Day Gift Idea: Grab-and-Go Seeding Kit

As I headed out to the garden to plant seeds yesterday, I threw all the necessary bits and pieces into an old lunch bag. It dawned on me that a grab-and-go seeding kit would be a great gift for Mother’s Day or for a friend’s birthday. This kit keeps you from hunting all through the house like an idiot for one or other of the bits and pieces needed to get on with putting in the garden.

Here’s what you’ll need:

One small waterproof container for keeping dry seed packs dry.

One small waterproof container for any wet seeds you are carrying.

String for marking lines.

Measuring tape or a small ruler for double-checking spacing between seeds and between rows.

Scissors for cutting open seed packs and cutting string.

A packet of inoculant for legume seeds.

Small package of garden markers for plant names.

A grease pencil for marking plant names.

Sandpaper and nail clippers for last minute seed scarification.

A good pair of garden gloves--the ones with rubber on one side.

Two sticks just long enough to fit in the lunch kit for holding the string to mark the rows.

 A couple of zip-lock baggies for the opened seed packets.

 One large zip-lock bag for holding seed germination notes and garden plans.

Add in a few packages of some beautiful seeds for bees and you’re good to go!

A Warm Spell in January

On Monday I saw the first honeybees of the year. It was 10 degrees at noon and the bees were checking our the flowers at two different florists. I felt sorry for the girls because it was slim pickings for pollen and nectar. One bee had ivory pollen on her hind legs, which may have come from the heather which is blooming. The sweet box is very fragrant these days and some of the the hellebores are blooming as well.

I am well on my way to ordering seeds for the new year. I'm very excited about trying some different kinds of poppies and zinnias and I've discovered some really interesting varieties of nigella to grow. If you are into flowers, I suggest two seed companies: Beauty Beyond Belief, which is based in the States has a good variety of wild flowers. I have had good service from the company. You can subscribe to their newsletter to keep tabs on their sales. Now that the Canadian dollar has dropped, it's also good value to order seeds from companies in Canada and I'm very excited about the flower seed offerings in William Dam Seeds based in Ontario. This is also a great time to order seeds for flowers, herbs and heirloom vegetables from my personal favorite, Salt Spring Seeds. As Dan Jason grows most of the seeds this is a good time of the year to order before the gardening season begins and Dan gets busy in the fields.

Keep your eyes on those snowdrops and crocuses because they'll be up and blooming before you know it!