Friday, February 19, 2010

Chires Baby Corn

"I have been looking for a good baby corn ever since I traveled to Southeast Asia and tasted the tiny ears almost daily, picked fresh and put into stir-fries and soups. This variety produces up to 20 tiny ears on its multi-stalked plants; pick just after the silk shows at the tips of ears, or let mature for popcorn!"
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Aunt Ada's Italian Beans

55-60 days. HEIRLOOM "This seed came to Colorado from Italy with the Botanelli family circa 1900. 6 ft. vines with a prolific set of small 3 in. flattened pods. In summer, we can hardly let a meal go by without including this delectable green bean. The taste is best if picked when the outline of the beans are bulging in the green pod, and steamed about 15 to 20 minutes; it's like a small buttery snap lima bean. When we shared this variety with friends, they said it was the best green bean they'd ever eaten!!! The unusual square brown seeds can also be used as soup beans."
Turtle Tree Biodynamic Seeds

Yellow Crookneck Summer Squash

50 days.(C. pepo) "An old favorite heirloom, this is one of the oldest types of squash dating back to pre-Columbus times and has been popular ever since. Easy to grow and good tasting."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Costata Romanesco Italian Zucchini

55 days.(C. pepo) "Long, slender fruit, ribbed, pale greenish-yellow, striped with dark green, very firm and flavorful flesh, a unique Italian heirloom, tasty."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Canasta Lettuce

50-60 days. "Red-tinged summer Batavian head. Uniform, crisp, sweet, and free of tip burn. Our vegetable gardener at Camphill Village trialed it alongside other recommended summer heading lettuces and found it the longest standing and sweetest tasting of all. This strain has been grown biodynamically at Raphael Garden in California for 16 years."
Turtle Tree Biodynamic Seeds

Boothby Blonde Cucumber

63 days. "HEIRLOOM from the Boothby family of Livermore, Maine. 6 inch fruits with yellow-white tender skin and black spines. Rich sweet flavor."
Turtle Tree Biodynamic Seeds

Marketmore Cucumber

55-58 days. "Multiple disease tolerant variety developed by Dr. Henry Munger from Cornell Univ. Dependable set of even 8-9 in. dark green fruits throughout the season. Resistant to Scab, tolerant to Cucumber Mosaic Virus (CMV), Downy Mildew (DM), and Powdery Mildew (PM)."
Turtle Tree Biodynamic Seeds

Mekti Painted Serpent Melon or Armenian Cucumber

Very long fruit with dark green and pale green stripes, excellent flavor, a rare Armenian-type cucumber that is actually a melon, very unique and is a great selling item at farmers’ markets everywhere.

Suyo Long Cucumber

65 days. "Long, ribbed, dark green fruit can grow to 18". They are very mild, sweet and burpless. One of my personal favorites for fresh eating. This productive heirloom comes from northern China and is very attractive."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

White Wonder Cucumber

60 days. "A great yielder. Creamy-ivory, 7"-long fruits, delicious and great for pickles or slicing. W. Atlee Burpee introduced this heirloom in 1893 after they received it from a customer in New York."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Telegraph Improved Cucumber

"60 days. Smooth, straight, dark-green fruit, to 18" long. Flesh is very crisp, tender and mild, superb flavor. Very few seeds, vigorous high yielding vines, great for greenhouse production; also good cultured outdoors. This is an excellent English heirloom variety, intro. around 1897."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Richmond Green Apple Cucumber

70 days. A unique heirloom from Australia and is still popular there. The fruit are the size of a lemon but are of a beautiful light green color. For eating these are excellent, very mild, sweet and juicy. Hard to find and really fun to grow."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Poona Kheera Cucumber

60 days. "Cream/light green fruits, very delicious flesh, crisp, juicy, sweet and mild, one of my favorite varieties. Fruit shaped like a potato, with skin turning brown as they ripen. One of our best varieties for disease resistance and very hardy. Vines produce early and with very heavy yields. A wonderful heirloom from India that has become our most "asked for" cucumber."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Long de Chine Cucumber

"Types of Long China cucumbers have been mentioned in France since the 1860’s. Long, bright green-colored fruit are mild and tasty. They are the sweet oriental type that so many people enjoy. Vines produce well, and this variety is still commercially grown in Europe."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Delikatesse Cucumber

"60 days. 10"-long, unique fruits are pale green with small warts. Superb taste, excellent for slicing or pickling; bears abundantly. A rare variety from Germany."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Crystal Apple Cucumber

"Small 3" oval fruit are a bright, creamy white, about the size of a small apple, and sweet, mild and very tender. This variety has become almost extinct in America after being introduced here from Australia around the year 1930 from Arthur Yates and Co. But this type of cucumber is likely to have originated in China. The small fruit are so tender you can eat them skin and all."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Chinese Yellow Cucumber

"Beautiful, yellow-orange cucumber from mainland China, the young fruit is green. 10" fruit are as crisp as an apple. Very mild and delicious, great for slicing or for pickles. This was our largest yielding variety ever - just a few plants produced hundreds of cucumbers! Our favorite cucumber for 2003. A very rare Chinese heirloom."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Golden Midget Watermelon

70 days "A beautiful miniature watermelon that weighs around 3 lbs. It's easy to tell when they are ripe, as the rind turns a lovely golden yellow when ready for harvest, a very beautiful contrast with the salmon-pink colored flesh. The taste is sweet and refreshing. Very early, matures in just 70 days. Developed by the late Dr. Elwyn Meader, UNH, in 1959. Unique."

Wilson's Sweet Watermelon

85 days "Very unique spotted rind, with very crisp, sweet red flesh that bursts with rich, old-time watermelon flavor! One of the best melons I’ve tried in the last few years. Truly a winner! It used to be grown commercially, and was offered by several seed companies in the 1960s, but has since become nearly extinct. A great variety for home and market gardeners, as it produces 15-to 20-lb fruit that keep well."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

White Wonder Watermelon

80 days "Beautiful, snow-white flesh is so pale it’s almost transparent! The flavor is unique, fruity, and so delicious. The small, round 3-8 lb icebox-sized fruit are very refreshing and perfect for gourmet growers wanting to target high-class markets. These will add contrast to any display and are sure to bring attention at farmers’ markets. White-fleshed watermelons were common in the 1800s, but due to corporate agriculture, these genetic treasures are about to be lost. That is a shame, as white-fleshed varieties date back hundreds of years and were developed in Africa from wild strains. This early variety is not for shipping as it cracks easily, but you will enjoy their unique crispness, fresh from the garden."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Orangelo Watermelon

85 days "Beautiful, deep orange flesh; very sweet, excellent, almost tropical flavor! The best-tasting of ALL orange varieties we tried -- the favorite of many who tried it at our place. High yields. Very resistant to wilt and insects; strong healthy vines. These will sell at roadside stands & markets!"
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Katanya Watermelon

60-70 days "Dark green fruit have beautiful rosy red-colored flesh that is extra flavorful, crisp and sweet. This is an icebox type melon with small to medium-sized fruit that are produced in abundance on healthy vines. This is a Russian variety from Katanya, a Russian woman who lives in Northern Illinois. Fairly early, and one of the best smaller melons we have tasted."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Black Seeded Ice Cream Watermelon

90 days A sweet-flavored, pink-fleshed watermelon that has a pale greenish cream-colored rind. It is an old variety that was popular in the 19th century. 1881 D.M. Ferry said, "Medium size, scarlet flesh, and very sweet; a good variety for main crop." In 1927 Henry Field's catalog stated, "Round shaped melons with thin, ivory colored skin. Pink-meated and of fine quality. It will keep late into the winter. Very prolific; matures very early."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Black Diamond Yellow Fesh Watermelon

90 days This rare variety of Black Diamond has light yellow flesh with a deep black-green rind. The taste is very sweet. Can grow to very large sizes.

Astrakahanski Watermelon

This Russian variety is named for the city of Astrakhan, located on the Volga river near the Caspian Sea. Round 10"-12" fruit have dark green rind with light mottling and streaks. The pink flesh is very delicious and sweet; great for short-season areas.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Petit Gris de Rennes Melon

85 days. Dense 2 lb. fruit have orange flesh that is superbly sweet, flavorful and perfumed. This variety is early and well adapted to cool climates. The fruit weigh around 2 lbs. and have a grey-green rind. This fine French variety is of the best quality, and is the favorite melon of the French melon expert and author Bruno Defay. Rare in the USA. Our #1 requested market melon, specialty growers love them because they command top prices! We continue to receive rave reviews about this melon. Order early.

D'Alger Melon

Another colorful ancient French Cantaloupe (possibly from Africa) it is definitely one of the oldest. Ribbed fruit are dark green (almost black) with silver splashes. As they get ripe they turn yellow with near red splashes. The flesh is highly perfumed and very smooth and creamy. Compact vines, quality French seed, from Bruno Defay. Pre-1800 Heirloom.
Baker Creek Heiloom Seeds

Amarillo Oro Melon

100 days. "Beautiful, golden-yellow oblong fruit grow to 15 lbs. and have sweet, creamy white flesh. A pre-1870 European heirloom winter type. Good shipper."
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Anans Melon

100 days. Sweet and juicy white flesh. A rare white muskmelon, fruit are around 5 lbs. An old 1800’s heirloom.

Isreal Ogen Melon

An excellent tasting early melon from Israel. Flavorful green flesh, good yields, a beautiful melon! Very fragrant.

Swan Lake Muskmelon

A small and beautiful honeydew type. This variety has superb, sweet melting flesh that ranges in color from white to pale salmon. Attractive fruit are prefect for marketing, or for the home gardener who wants a great 2-3lb melon. Pretty, smooth yellow skin.

Tigger Melon

The fruit are vibrant yellow with brilliant fire-red, zigzag stripes, (a few fruit may be solid yellow), simply beautiful! They are also the most fragrant melons we have tried, with a rich, sweet intoxicating aroma that will fill a room. The white flesh gets sweeter in dry climates. Small in size the fruits weigh up to 1 lb. - perfect for a single serving. The vigorous plants yield heavily, even in dry conditions. This heirloom came from an Armenian market located in a mountain valley.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Golden Gopher Melon

85 days. "HEIRLOOM from the Univ. of Minnesota in the 1930s. 6 in. fruit with deep-orange flesh. Resistant to Fusarium Wilt. Our golden gopher was grown for a large CSA where the members commented on the great flavor and helped to save the seed. Upon ripeness, the fruit of this melon slips from the vine when pulled. (If they are not ripe, they will not slip.) Around the beginning of August, begin to check the melons and when they start ripening, pick the melons each day. Otherwise, the tendency of this variety is to pop open when over-ripe. One of the sweetest melons ever, so it is well worth attentiveness to the harvest."
Turtle Tree Biodynamic Seeds

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Hokkaido Stella Blue Winter Squash

(Cucurbita Maxima) Prefered squash of Japan, this is a particularly high yielding cultivar. A moister texture than other Hokkaido and Kabocha squash, it is slightly drier and flakier than Buttercup. Slightly flattened, bluish-gray 2-5 lb. fruits are very uniform with consistently high eating quality and a delicious nutty, sweet flavor. Excellent keeper.
Seeds of Change

Butternut Rogosa Violina Gioia Squash

(C. moschata) An Italian Butternut-type squash, these have a violin shape and wrinkled tan skin, the flesh is deep orange and sweet, perfect for desserts, roasting, stuffing and baking. Good for marketing.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

White Egg Turnips

This very old pre-1880s heirloom was a top market variety in the US. A smooth, white turnip with quality, mild, white flesh; an early variety.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Navet des Vertus Marteau Turnip

The very tender, white roots are cylindrical, 5"-6" long and 2" wide, with a mild and sweet flavor. This old French heirloom was one of the most popular varieties grown by French market growers in the late 1800s. Imported European seed.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Rainbow Swiss Chard

60 days. A beautiful chard, its colors are brilliant (pink, yellow, orange, red and white). This chard originated in Australia. Very mild, ornamental, and tasty. Great for market growers and specialty markets. Pretty enough to plant in the flower garden, so delicious, one of our favorite greens! (Sold in stores as "Bright Lights")
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Flamingo Pick Swiss Chard

60 days. Neon, hot pink chard is so pretty and is perfect picked small for salads or larger for braising.

Monstrueux De Viroflay Spinach

50 days. Big leaves to 10" long, smooth and deep green in color. Very fast growing plants are popular for fall planting. This 'monster' of Viroflay is a gourmet French heirloom that was developed prior to 1866.

Giant Noble Spinach

This is the giant of the spinach clan, plants spread to 25"! Tender leaves are great for canning, steaming or salads, for those who want quantity and quality, introduced in 1926.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Myashige Daikon Radish

A delicious white Daikon type radish from Japan. Long white roots grow to 15" or more! Mild and very crisp; perfect fresh in salads, or for making wonderful pickles. These are planted in late summer and harvested in fall and early winter.

Helios Radish

So unique! This bright yellow, olive-shaped radish is truly one of the most beautiful and tasty radishes I've ever grown--sweet and mild. Looks like yukon gold or fingerling potatoes! This heirloom came from Alzbeta Kovacova-Pecarova of Kosice, Czechoslovakia.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Chinese Watermelon Radish

The colorful "Beauty Heart" radish of historic China. The 4" round roots have white and green skin, but the magic is in their rose-red center which is so sweet, crisp, and delicious. A good radish to add color to salads and stir-fries; must be grown in cool weather and does best when fall planted. Sometimes called "Red Meat Radish" at market.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Chinese Green Luobo Radish

A popular radish from North China, the tasty flesh is bright green. Very unique and colorful, they are shaped like Daikons. These only grow well in cool weather, great for fall planting. An old Chinese standard. Rare.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Crimson Forest Bunching Onions

Beautiful brilliant red stalks, flavorful and tasty. Very unique and colorful, a bulbing type.

He Sho Ko Bunching Onions

An heirloom Japanese, perennial bunching onion, stalks grow and divide from the base. Mild and tasty. These are an essential ingredient in both Oriental and American foods. A non-bulbing white type.

Rocky Top Salad Mix

Our Improved formula blend is now better than ever! With more brightly colored and unique lettuces, it makes a flavorful and brilliant salad. A top selling item for us - our customers just love it! Perfect for better markets or your home table. People love the rich, old-fashioned taste. Includes some unlisted rare varieties.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Henderson's Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce

60 days. Introduced in the 1870's by Peter Henderson & Co. Sweet and tender leaves, light yellow-green, very popular.

De Morges Braun Lettuce

65 days. Very rare romaine type with upright, rounded leaves, applegreen in the center and pink-to-bronze outside. Tender and sweet, holds well in the garden, and is one of the last to become bitter. A good choice for early spring or fall gardens, as it tolerates cool temperatures very well. Makes a lovely salad! From Switzerland.

Brune D'Hiver Lettuce

Compact, hardy, French butterhead-type lettuce that was introduced in 1855. Crunchy green leaves are blushed in reddish- brown color. Plants require little space when growing, and are perfect for fall plantings. Hard to find in America.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Early Purple Vienna Kohlrabi

Delicious cabbage-flavored bulbs that grow above ground. Purple skin and sweet, white flesh, good cooked or raw. Kohlrabies make a real staple crop, with high yields; cold hardy. A pre-1860 heirloom.

Red Russian Kale

Very tender and mild, a pre-1885 heirloom variety. Oak type leaves have a red tinge, and stems are a purplish-red. One of our favorite kales. Great flavor.

Komatsuna Tendergreen

Japanese mustard greens, tasty, slightly spicy flavor, great for stir-frying or salads, good for hot or cold weather.

Corn Salad Dutch

This old-time favorite has a mild nutty flavor. Tender leaves are excellent in salads, and also excellent as a cooked green.

Di Firenze Fennel

This is the Anise flavored vegetable that Italians love. Large 1 to 2 lb bulbs are delicious in soups, sauteed, baked and raw in salads. This Italian cultivar is fairly early. The authentic "Finocchio" for growers of quality.

Georgia Southern Collards

A great old southern favorite, pre-1880 heirloom, has a good resistance to heat and cold. Great for the south, but also good up north, huge yield, a real producer, very tasty and flavorful.

Michihli Cabbage

Big tall heads, widely grown in the Orient, mild and tasty, very tender, great for stir-fry

Giant of Prague Celeriac

110 days. Root Celery, this variety is grown for its large, white roots that are superb fried, or in soup. Taste and culture much like regular celery. Introduced in 1871, popular in parts of Europe.

Cosmic Purple Carrot

This one is causing excitement at farmers' markets. Carrots have bright purple skin and flesh that comes in shades of yellow and orange. Spicy and sweet-tasting roots are great for marketing.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Amarillo Carrots

75 days. Lovely, lemon-yellow roots have sweet, bright yellow flesh. Good for a summer to fall crop, large 8" roots and strong tops. Yellow carrots always taste the best to me; they are so crunchy and full of juice.

Long Island Improved Brussel Sprouts

100 days. The standard open-pollinated variety since the 1890s. Heavy yields of delicious sprouts.

Ching Chang Pac Choi

This baby bok choy is a standard for quality, small heads are harvested when just 5" tall, they are so tender and mild. The medium green plants are ready for harvest in 50 days.

Yellow Cylindrical Beets

Oblong, golden-yellow mangel beets are sweet and tasty if picked small. A rare European heirloom that can grow huge. It also makes tasty greens.

Chiogga Beets

A pre-1840 Italian heirloom beet, this variety arrived in the USA prior to 1865. They have light red skin and beautiful rings inside, like red and white candy stripes. The flesh is very tender, mild, and sweet. Named after a fishing town in Italy.

Crapaudine Beets

In 1885, the French book, The Vegetable Garden stated this is one of the oldest varieties. Today some experts feel this may be the oldest beet still in existence, possibly dating back 1000 years. This unique variety is one of the most flavorful, with carrot-shaped roots that have rough, dark colored skin which looks like tree bark. Inside, the roots are very dark, with almost black flesh that is of superior quality and sought after by chefs who want real flavor. We are proud to offer this rare old selection.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Crosbys Egyptian Beet

One of the largest early varieties that will keep shape until fall. Tops can reach 16 inches. Roots are uniform shape, smooth skinned, and flattened heart shaped. "Egyptian" beet varieties were developed in Germany in the 1860s.1 The "Crosby" strain originated from the efforts of Josiah Crosby, an Arlington, Massachusetts market gardener who selected to retain the earliness, increase the depth, and remove the roughness of 'Flat Egyptian.' It was introduced commercially in 1885 by James J. H. Gregory of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Plant produces good yields of purplish-red beet. Ideal for boiling, pickling, baking, and freezing. This smooth round flat shaped beet is one of the best beets on the market.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

LAVENDER RIB ENDIVE

A rare Italian heirloom from the Puglia region. Its long, thin ribs are tinged lavender and its leaf is deeply cut and frilly. Gorgeous! Great cooked or in salads.
Cherry Gal Heirloom Garden Seeds

VIOLETTA DI FIRENZE EGGPLANT

An Italian heirloom from Florence that needs lots of heat to produce well. A large, stocky beautiful eggplant if you are in an area that can grow it. Good for Southern and Southwestern gardens! 97 days. 10 seeds.

MARCHIGIANO (MARCHES GREEN) CAULIFLOWER.

An Italian heirloom that produces almost fluorescent green medium-sized heads for October-November harvest. You can leave the heads unwrapped to produce an even more intense green. Tender and delicious! 75 days.
Cherry Gal Seeds

Red Cabeza Cabbage

An exquisitely beautiful Italian heirloom that is a standout for flavor and it is frost resistant! 75 days from transplant.
Cherry Gal Seeds

Di Verona Sabauda Cabbage

A beautiful Northern Italian heirloom with a rose blush to its deeply colored leaves. Color and flavor are enhanced by cooler weather. 63-100 days from transplant. 20 seeds.
Cherry Gal Seeds

January King Cabbage

A wonderful semi-savoyed heirloom dating back to Victorian England (the French also claim it). Extremely cold hardy yet also grows well in the summer months. Dense, green, round to slightly flattened heads have attractive, purple-tinged wrapper leaves.
Cherry Gal Seeds

Golden Globe Turnip

A tasty turnip with sweet, lightly golden flesh; fine flavored.