Plan next year’s garden now and order seeds at a discount | The Homepage

By Matt Peters

Winter might be a time of rest for the garden, but not the gardener! The Urban Ag Team is gearing up for the annual group seed order from Fedco, a cooperative seed company based in Maine. Fedco offers a user-friendly group ordering process that allows everyone participating to get discounts based on the sum total of the group’s purchase.

Whether you want a packet or two, or you’re stocking up for a market venture, Fedco has a wide selection of heirloom and open-pollinated varieties to choose from. Their catalog is online but I recommend you order the paper copy from their website. It has additional information and even bits of poetry.

The first week of the new year might seem too early to be thinking about gardens, but popular varieties sell out and they won’t be delivered until near the end of February, just as the first crocus are starting to emerge. You can review the Fedco group order policies online.

How to join the group seed order

To buy discounted seeds through our group order, print out a copy of the Fedco order form and write down what you want, filling in the blanks on the form as if you were going to order on your own. Bring that form, along with your payment, to Matt Peters at Dylamato’s Market or the Hazelwood Initiative office at 4901 Second Avenue in Hazelwood (by appointment) BEFORE Saturday, January 7.

We won’t know the discount until all the orders are added together, but we usually reach the 15% bracket when lots of folks participate. Seeds will be delivered in late February, which is not too early for starting indoor flats of early tomatoes or long-season crops like eggplants. Discounts will be returned and all accounts settled when our seeds arrive.

Stay tuned for details about a seed-starting workshop at our local library in March. Follow the Facebook group, Hazelwood Sustainability Forum. Garden beds available, ask about larger spaces! Contact Matt Peters at gardens@hazelwoodinitiative.org.