Originally Published In The Deseret News -- Wednesday, December 25, 1996
Some Are Thick Gigantic Printings Without A Speck Of Unused Space. Others Are Almost Works Of Art.
Larry Sagers Is A Horticulturist With The Utah State University Extension Service.
One certain sign of the coming of the New Year is the arrival of the garden catalogs. Although winter is dark and dreary, the photographs and descriptions stimulate even the sourest imaginations to think spring. Avid gardeners need almost no encouragement to let their imaginations soar.
I must confess that a midwinter break is often a great blessing. I wonder how gardeners in climates that never get cold feel the anticipation of spring. Unless winter spreads across the garden and takes its toll, the great awakening of spring will never occur. Without these dramatic shifts of the season I think gardening might become unappreciated and even a little boring.
Small miracles, in the form of seeds, are truly amazing. These tiny embryos are gathered from throughout the world and hybridized and selected in thousands of situations. These wondrous seeds provide food and beauty for us all.
Catalogs provide the gardening fix for those who have no greenhouse. Descriptions of plants and seeds of all kinds fill the colorful pages. We transform those images from mere ink and paper to a superb garden in our imagination.
I never cease to be amazed at the variety of offerings available. Some are thick gigantic printings without a speck of unused space. Others are almost works of art because they are designed so beautifully. Others may be no more than a few photocopied sheets, but don't let them fool you. Some of the plainest and simplest catalogs contain treasures waiting to be discovered.
Certain publications seemingly try to provide one of everything. Others are, by their nature, very selective and may only feature one or two kinds of plants. They often feature rare specimens that gardeners only dream about.
Although I personally never consider gardening information to be "junk mail," much of it is distributed through bulk mailing. Given the number of catalogs that most gardeners get, I surmised that everyone with an address, mail box or any other bodily identification automatically was deluged with mailings. It truly surprised me when an experienced gardening friend asked how you could get seed and garden catalogs. I thought that staying in the same place for more than 24 hours automatically qualified you for this honor.
Competition is fierce among advertisers, but becoming a mail-order junkie really is not necessary. Local nurseries are well supplied with garden needs and many, many garden wants. You can see what you are getting and have the advantage of local information about what grows well and what does not. Most everything you need is readily available in season locally.
I find that some publications are excellent sources of information. Experts in their fields write the best ones and contain precise information. Some that advertisers produce seem less factual. Exaggerated claims of size, growth rate, beauty or production do no good in helping a company establish credibility. Disappointed gardeners usually don't return to that source for more materials.
Some companies are truly remarkable because they have been serving customers so long. D. Landreth Seed Co. counts both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson among clients who purchased their seeds. Others, including Burpee, R.H. Shumway, Henry Fields and Gurneys, may not be quite as old but could easily have sold to my great-grandparents.
I count among my treasures several old and interesting nursery catalogs. Reading these provides a step back in time to select both varieties and tools that have, in many cases, disappeared from our gardens. Like reading the Sears and Roebucks catalog, these publications carry our imaginations back over the years.
As you relax in front of the cheery fire with catalog and wish list in hand, remember the gardening season is not far away. One great joy of gardening is that it is timeless. Generations have done the same. The light you read by, the chair you sit in, the roof overhead and even the paper and ink you are reading from are all changed. One thing that has not changed is the greatest miracle of all in gardening. That miracle is the tiny seed that grows when we plant it. That same seed also produces offspring that will continue to do the same for future generations.
Free catalogs are available from the following companies on request. They are just a few of the hundreds that are available.
- Mountain Valley Seed Co.
Salt Lake City
(This company no longer publishes a retail catalog but features many excellent varieties adapted for our area. These seeds are available at most local nurseries.)
- Park Seed Co.
Cokesbury Road
Greenwood, SC 29647-0001
- Stokes Seed Inc.
Box 548
Buffalo, NY 14240
- Thompson and Morgan Inc.
P.O. Box 1308
Jackson, NJ 08527
- Johnny's Selected Seeds
Foss Hill Road-Box 2580
Albion, ME 04910
- Harris Seeds
60 Saginaw Drive
Rochester, NY 14623
- Burpee Seed Co.
300 Park Avenue
Warminster, PA 18974
- Twilley Seed Co.
P.O. Box 65
Trevose, PA 19053
© 1998 Deseret News Publishing Co.