Eat with Wild Abandon, Farm with Responsibility

What we are growing this year

Name Source company Catalog description
Asparagus peas
Asparagus peas Vesey’s A unique and tasty new addition. This easy to grow vegetable forms small winged pods, which taste similar to asparagus when steamed and topped with butter. The lovely brick-red blooms make this plant as attractive as it is appetizing. Asparagus peas are low growing and spreading and are suitable for container or window box gardening. Seeds should be started early indoors. Grow in sunny location. Harvest the small green pods before they reach 1 inch in length. As they get larger, the wings become tough.
Beans
Boston Beans Seeds of Change Seeds from previous years.
Hutterite Soup Bean Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds This variety is revered for making fabulous soups, having a great creamy texture and fine flavor. The seeds are a creamy color and the bush plants are productive. This variety was grown and preserved by the Hutterite Christian group, who followed the teaching of Jacob Hutter, their Austrian leader. They emigrated to North America 1870s and still have communities set up across America.
Ireland Creek Annie Seeds of Change Seeds from previous years.
Runner Bean: Chaco Canyon Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds This fine native American bean was found in Chaco Canyon of New Mexico in an archaeological dig. This variety is a favorite of our grower who says, “Some of the most flavorful beans I Have tasted, eaten both as a green bean, or cooked as dry beans; you cannot go wrong.” It’s a white-seeded runner that has great tolerance for many growing conditions, and is quite reliable.
Yellow Beans Ferry Morse Seeds from previous years.
Beets
Bull’s Blood Beet Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds This beautiful beet has deep reddish-purple leaves. Very sweet and delicious, the baby leaves are a rage in salads. The beets are tasty, too, and have pretty pink rings inside.
Crapaudine Beet Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds In 1885 the French book “The Vegetable Garden” stated this is one of the oldest varieties. Today some experts feel this maybe the oldest beet still in existence, possibly dating back 1000 years. This unique variety is one of the most flavorful willcarrot-shaped roots that have a rough, dark-colored skin that 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.
Broccoli
Broccoli: Romanesco Italia Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds The true and popular Italian heirloom with spiraling apple-green heads that are so superbly flavored. This variety is widely grown in Northern Italy. A must with many of the finest chefs.
Cauliflower
Cauliflower: Purple of Sicily Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Beautiful, brilliant purple heads weigh 2 - 3 pounds and are of a fine sweet flavor. The heads cook to bright green. Insect resistant. It is easier to grow than white varieties. Rich in minerals. A colorful heirloom. Select Italian seed.
Carrots
Saint Valery Carrot Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds The Vilmorins of France mention this variety in 1885, and said it had been grown a “long time” then. A large, handsome variety with bright-red roots, smooth 10 - 12 inches long and 2 - 3 inches in diameter. Sweet and tender. Rare. Our favorite!
Saint Valery Carrot Seeds from previous years.
Atomic Red Carrot Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Brilliant red carrots are so healthful and unique looking, sure To add color to your garden. The 8 inch roots are high in lycopene ,which has been shown in studies to help prevent several types of cancer. Crisp roots are at their best when cooked, and this helps to make the lycopene more usable. Very flavorable.
Chantenay Red Core Carrot Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds One of the sweetest, this variety was introduced in 1929 and is a large stump-rooted carrot with a deep red-orange center.  Great for juicing or eating fresh. A good market variety that is smooth and refined in shape.
Cosmic Purple Carrot Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds 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 markets.
Amarillo Carrot Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Lovely lemon-yellow roots have sweet, bright yellow flesh.  Good for a summer to fall crop. Large 8 inch roots and strong tops. Yellow carrots always taste the best to me; they are so crunchy and full of juice.
Red Core Chantenay Carrot Seeds of Change Seeds from previous years.
Celery
Celery: Tender Crisp Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds A very large type. Excellent flavor.
Chickpeas
Chestnut Chickpeas Salt Spring Seeds Large-seeded garbanzo with rich, sweet flavor. Great for making hummus.
Winnifred’s Garbanzo Salt Spring Seeds Somewhat smaller chickpea but a very hardy and dependable cultivar.
Corn
Black Aztec Sweet Corn Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Sometimes called “Black Mexican”. It is believed to have originated in Upper New York. Possibly grown by the Iroquois Nation. It was first offered in a seed catalog as Black Mexican in 1864. The 6 foot tall stalks produce large ears that are as sweet corn in milk stage, with the kernel being sweet, tender and very tasty. When mature the corn turns deep blue-blackand makes a very delicious corn bread. This hardy corn grows well in many weather conditions.
Chire’s Baby Corn Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds 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 silk shows at the tips of the ears, or let mature for popcorn.
Longfellow Flint Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Old variety reputed to be basically unchanged from the days when Native Americans grew it in New England. Slender ears carry 8 rows of brilliant, deep yellow orange flint kernels. Ears usually reach 10 inches and occasionally 13 inches long! Seed reputed to sprout in fairly cool soil. Stalks reaching 10 feet in height. Ears traditionally harvested and used in the green stage.As well as making some of the richest corn meal going.
Cucumber
K & C Pickling Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Abbot and Cobb introduced this variety in 1928. The fruit is uniform and deep green. A good variety for salads and for dill pickles. Large yields.
Delikatesse Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds 10 inch long unique fruits are pale green with small warts. Superb taste, excellent for slicing. Bears abundantly. A rare variety from Germany.
Eggplant
Black Beauty Eggplant Seeds from previous years.
Ping Tung Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds A wonderful eggplant from Ping Tung, Taiwan. Fruits are purple and up to 18 inches long and up to 2 inches in diameter. This variety is so sweet and tender, superbly delicious! One of the best Chinese eggplants on the market.
Long Purple Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds This old variety dates back to the 1850”s in America. Plants give good yields of 9 inch long, club-shaped fruit. Mild and firm-fleshed. Plants are very hardy and yield well in the North.
Turkish Orange Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds This beautiful heirloom comes from Turkey. This 3” round fruit are best cooked when they are green to light orange. This variety has very sweet and flavorful flesh. It imparts a strong, rich flavor to any dish. The small plants yield well.
Grains and Cover Crops
Hairy Vetch Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Plant spring or fall for nitrogen fixation and abundance of organic matter, even in acid soils. If mowed just as blossom commences, the plant dies leaving a natural mulch, which can be left as-is for no-ill planting, or incorporated for soil improvement. Perennial if allowed to set seed. Hardy.
Millet, German Foxtail Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Sow in spring or early summer. Used as a cover-crop, hay or pasture. Chickens adore the small, white seeds. Grows 2 to 5 feet tall. Very drought-tolerant crop that is believed to have been used in China for nearly 5,000 years, and grown in the U.S. since 1849.
Ground Cherry
Aunt Molly’s Ground Cherry Vesey’s Delicious tropical taste in an attractive paper wrapper. Ground cherries are very sweet and taste a bit like pineapple. Can be used in preserves, pies, or over ice cream, but here at Vesey’s we love to eat them raw. The fruit from these prolific plants can be stored for 3-4 weeks after harvesting. Start indoors like peppers. Light feeders, so a good application of compost or well-rotted manure at planting time should be adequate.  Growing through plastic or paper mulch is beneficial as it suppresses weeds and makes the fruit easier to find once it has dropped from the plant. Fruit are ripe when the husks turnbrown and drop from the plant. Ground cherries will keep a number of weeks if left in the husk.
Kale
Red Russian Kale Seeds of Change Seeds from previous years.
Oriental Greens
Shanghai Green Choi Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds A delicious baby-type that is in so much demand with Asian chefs. Compact plants are upright and have light-green stems. They are extra tender and finely flavored.
Extra Dwarf Pak-Choi Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds The perfect baby vegetable for marketing. This tiny pak-choi is picked when just 2 inches tall. It has dark-green, wrinkled leaves with thick, white petioles, and can be used whole to make amazing salads and stir-fries. Very tender and delicious.
Leeks
Carentan Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Long, thick, 2 inches across. Vigorous and fast growing. Delicate and deliciously mild flavor. Great fresh or cooked. This leek was mentioned by Vilmorin in 1885. An old European favorite that is becoming rare. Very adaptable and yields are good.
Giant Musselburgh Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds An heirloom that was introduced in 1834 near Edinburgh, Scotland. Large, very thick stems; tasty, mild flavor. Grows well in most locations. Perfect for home or market. This old flavor has huge size and is very winter-hardy.
Lettuce
Grandpa Admire’s Lettuce Seeds from previous years.
Rouge d’hiver lettuce Seeds of Change Seeds from previous years.
Onions & Shallots
Ambition Shallots Vesey’s This “Rose of the Onion Family” is fairly easy to grow and yields well. A high-quality, long-storing shallot from seed. Ambition will produce 2-inch round red/brown-skinned shallot with white flesh.
Red Baron Onions Vesey’s An attractive truly red bunching onion. This non-bulbing onion makes a terrific addition to any salad. Our trial staff found Red Baron to be superior to any other red bunching onion. Well adapted to high density planting.
Red of Florence Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Oblong-shaped, bright red onions. Great for planting spring or fall. Seem to do well in many areas. They are very mild and sweet. Great for salads and pickling. A delicious Italian heirloom; very rare.