Easily Seduced

Twenty two and counting--that’s the number of seed catalogs I’ve received so far for the spring season 2012. The first one came shortly after I received the last fall one for ordering spring flowering bulbs like tulips and daffodils. Some years I get two or three from the same company. The covers will be different but the contents inside will be the same. I’ve noticed a lot of catalog companies do this. Do they think the first one was lost in the mail or I unintentionally pitched it into the recycling bin? It doesn’t make me want to order from that company because it seems wasteful. When a company is wasteful it probably needs to charge me more for its merchandise in order to make a profit.

There is one good thing about these multiple catalogs though. They ensure that our local post office isn’t going to be closed down anytime soon. I suppose a side benefit would be that the mail carriers develop stronger muscles from carrying the large number of catalogs I receive. I know just how heavy they are because each month I sort through them and carry them to the curb in my recycling bin. I have a lot more trouble disposing of the seed catalogs than I do any of the others. I’m easily seduced by the pictures of flowers and colorful vegetables. I might want to order some of them and if I throw out the catalog right away I may not find the same plant in a different catalog.

Besides other library users have come to expect that in March I will bring in all my extra catalogs and place them in the book nook with a sign that says free. I don’t know who picks these up but they disappear quite rapidly. Maybe there are others who are seduced by those colorful pictures and just like to turn the pages so they can smell the roses, feel the crunch of carrots or touch the velvety leaves of Lamb’s Ears. Looking at the photographs it’s easy to imagine a weedless garden that requires no work. A place where the temperature never gets too hot and an inch or two of rain falls every week.

I have my long time favorite catalogs that I order from but I also pay special attention to the companies that are sending me their catalogs for the first time. One of the new ones I received this year is from The Natural Gardening Company which claims to be the oldest certified organic nursery in the United States. The oldest? Only 26 years old. I’ve been doing organic gardening all my life and until a lot of chemicals were introduced I’ll bet many seeds from mainline companies would actually have been organic.

The Natural Gardening Company offers culinary herb seedlings; at $2.25 to $4.50 for each. That seems a bit pricey. If I want to try any of these I’ll buy a packet of seeds which they also offer. There are 16 unusual tomatoes along with a couple of standard beefsteaks. The fruits are interesting colors and shapes, probably none that one would ever find in a super market. I might try a couple even though my garden doesn’t grow tomatoes very well. Just turned the page and there’s a whole bunch more of plum and cherry tomatoes. Wonder if I can do something to that garden soil to make it more tomato friendly.

In leafing through the rest of the catalog I can see there are several exotic offerings that I simply must try like the watermelon radish, a daikon variety with a dark red interior and a white exterior, and the Petaluma Gold Rush pole bean. The plant grows up to 10 ft tall and is used for dry beans resembling cranberry beans. They were originally brought to the United States in 1840 from Peru and have been off the market for many years. The seed stock comes from William Woys Weaver, food historian and seed archivist. See how easily I’m seduced by the pictures in a plant catalog. Good thing apparel catalogs don’t have the same appeal or I’d be broke.

Helen Boertje 012512

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