Chiltern Seeds based in Cumbria and offering over 4,500 different seeds. P&P is £1.95 per order.
The Veg Book is the seed catalogue for vegetables and herbs. Cheerful, chatty, enjoyable text and illustrations. My preference wouldn’t be the tall, narrow format. The pages’ upper reaches might place havoc with the whole long/short sighted thing. Not a personal issue yet … but just saying !
For tomatoes the selection is from 16 varieties and one tomatillo. The order – and unlike those suspect Saturday night presenters – this really does seem to be in no particular order:
- Sungold F1/ Rosada F1/ The Amateur/ Aisla Craig/ Moneymaker/ Harbinger/ Gardeners Delight/ Black Cherry/ Golden Sunrise/ Marmande/ San Marzano/ Minibel/ Beefsteak/ Red Brandy Wine/Tumbling Tom Red/ Tumbling Tom Yellow.
The seed for The Amateur/ Aisla Craig/ Moneymaker/ Harbinger is described thus: Unlike so much of the seed of the above four Tomato varieties sold nowadays which is of Mediterranean origin, we offer seed of Essex selected stock, more expensive but far more likely to give good results in typical British summers, either in the greenhouse or out of doors.
I’m not sure what that means – but interesting. It’s the first time I’ve seen that point of difference referred to in a seed catalogue.
And I liked the challenge set down in the Beefsteak description : 16 ounces, one full pound, is what you have to aim for when you grow this fine variety…
There is also a separate comprehensive flower seed catalogue, the cover of which is inscribed with a lovely Indian Proverb, ” All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today”.
Wise words indeed.
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I’m not sure what that means – but interesting. It’s the first time I’ve seen that point of difference referred to in a seed catalogue.
The inference is that fruits ripened in a cool climate will produce seeds that produce plants that endure cool conditions with ease. And so the cycle continues, supposedly producing cold-tolerant sub-varieties with fruit that ripens in the cool. I can’t comment on whether this works, but it’s logical to suppose that plants can adjust to different conditions over many generations. But IDK.
It’s so intriguing – all of that going on in a tiny seed, that ability to adapt to survive !