-
Guatemalan Gold This is, hands down, our favourite plant. It has it all : beauty, nutrition, and resilience. Plus, it’s easy to grow. When we lived in Guatemala, we promoted the revival of amaranth through our work with the Mesoamerican Permaculture Institute. It’s a true superfood, gluten free and packed with protein. It’s also been part of the Mayan culture for a staggering 8,000 years. Both leaves and seeds are edible. The tender leaves are delicious when sautéed with garlic or onions. Its seeds puff up with a delicious nutty flavour when popped in a hot pan – a great addition to smoothies, granola, and oatmeal. Amaranth thrives practically anywhere, reaching up to 2m tall. Threshing requires a bit of elbow grease, and the flowers need to be paper-dry during harvest. It requires very little water and is naturally pest-resistant. An extraordinary plant. This variety is originally from Guatemala but has been adapted to Ontario. In the seed trial that we led for the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario, we found Guatemalan Gold (Atitlan Dorado) to be the best short-season grain amaranth variety for production in Southern Ontario. Days to maturity: 120 days 300 seeds per packet -
Rainbow Mix Amaranth is, hands down, our favourite plant. It has it all : beauty, nutrition, and resilience. Plus, it’s easy to grow. When we lived in Guatemala, we promoted the revival of amaranth through our work with the Mesoamerican Permaculture Institute. It’s a true superfood, gluten free and packed with protein. It’s also been part of the Mayan culture for a staggering 8,000 years. Both leaves and seeds are edible. The tender leaves are delicious when sautéed with garlic or onions. Its seeds puff up with a delicious nutty flavour when popped in a hot pan – a great addition to smoothies, granola, and oatmeal. Amaranth thrives practically anywhere, reaching up to 2m tall. Threshing requires a bit of elbow grease, and the flowers need to be paper-dry during harvest. It requires very little water and is naturally pest-resistant. An extraordinary plant. The rainbow mix contains a colourful combination of red, gold, and green amaranth. Days to maturity: 120 days 300 seeds per packet -
Opopeo Amaranth is, hands down, our favourite plant. It has it all: beauty, nutrition, and resilience. Plus, it’s easy to grow. When we lived in Guatemala, we promoted the revival of amaranth through our work with the Mesoamerican Permaculture Institute. It’s a true superfood, gluten free and packed with protein. It’s also been part of the Mayan culture for a staggering 8,000 years. Both leaves and seeds are edible. The tender leaves are delicious when sautéed with garlic or onions. Its seeds puff up with a delicious nutty flavour when popped in a hot pan – a great addition to smoothies, granola, and oatmeal. Amaranth thrives practically anywhere, reaching up to 2m tall. Threshing requires a bit of elbow grease, and the flowers need to be paper-dry during harvest. It requires very little water and is naturally pest resistant. An extraordinary plant. The opopeo amaranth produces incredibly flamboyant, fuchsia coloured flowers often used as an ornamentals. Days to maturity: 120 days -
Turtle When we lived in Guatemala, we ate these black beans nearly every day. They are prized around the world for their rich, meaty flavor and high protein and fiber content. These productive and hardy plants yield beautiful, jet black beans that cook down to a dark chocolate-brown color, offering a robust taste perfect for soups, chili, dips, burritos, enchiladas, and vegetarian dishes. Compact bush plants thrive in full sun. Heat and disease resistant, they mature in 90-100 days, producing heavy yields of pods containing 5-7 beans each. Pods can be left to dry on the plant for long-term storage.- Days to maturity: 90-100 days
- Watering: Keep soil consistently moist
-
Bright Orange Cheerful, daisy-like blooms in vibrant orange make calendula a standout addition to any garden. This versatile annual is perfect for cut flowers, edible decorations, and traditional medicinal uses. Calendula petals add a pop of color and subtle flavor to salads, teas, and desserts, while dried flower heads are valued for their healing properties in salves and soaps. We have also used them as a natural dye – the petals yield a lovely butter hue. Calendula thrives in cool weather, and it will be one of the last flowers standing in the fall. As frost-tolerant, self-seeding plant, calendula can provide continuous harvests until heavy frost. Its upright growth habit reaches up to 60 cm (24”) tall, making it a vibrant feature in cutting and herb gardens.- Days to Maturity: 50-55 day
- Bloom: Annual
- 70-120 seeds per packet
-
Santo Bursting with flavour, very leafy, and slow to bolt, cilantro santo is a must-have herb for any kitchen. There is just no salsa without it. Both the leaves and the seeds (coriander) can be harvested. Cilantro is cold-tolerant and can be harvested multiple times. Plant seeds 2 cm deep in full sun. When grown for leaves, cilantro reaches a height of 2-3 feet. If you’re growing for seeds, allow it to grow longer, around 95 days. For microgreens, cilantro offers a sharp, nutty flavor and a quick turnaround.- Days to Maturity: 55 days leaf, 95 days seed
- 100 seeds per packet
-
Blue Blue Columbine plants are breathtaking perennials, with star-shaped flowers in vibrant shades of pastel blue and white. The long-stemmed blooms feature creamy-white and violet-blue petals, creating a two-tone effect that lends a graceful touch to any garden. Plants reach a height of about 2 feet, making it perfect for beds, borders, rock gardens, and as cut flowers. Thriving in part shade to full sun, this easy-to-grow wildflower is a versatile choice for gardens, containers, and window boxes, where it will add a pop of colour all season long.- Days to maturity: Second year
- Bloom: Perennial
-
Magic Mana Make your own masa and tortillas at home with Magic Manna, an early flour corn bred by Carole Deppe of Fertile Valley Seeds. This vigorous corn has been selected for flavour and cooking qualities, producing beautiful mixes of whites and reds. This is our go-to corn for masa – and we make a lot of it! Makes delicious tortillas, and it’s fantastic for cornbread. Magic mana corn is a great option for easy-to-grow heirloom corn. You won’t be disappointed.- Days to maturity: 80-85
-
True Gold The taste of summer! True Gold corn is a remarkable open-pollinated sweet corn, known for its rich, sweet flavour that’s perfect for roasting, grilling, or enjoying raw right off the cob. It produces solid yellow cobs that mature early to a size of 20-25 cm (8-10 inches). It thrives in cooler soil conditions, perfect for our 5a growing zone. The robust plants grow 6-8 feet tall and typically produce 2-3 ears per stalk. True Gold is a fantastic option for late-season harvests. You will be able to save seeds and grow it year after year. This seed was bred by Alan (Mushroom) Kapuler of Seeds of Change in the Southwest USA. Our neighbour Johann has been growing it in Ontario for a long time. He says it tastes just like corn should taste – and we agree!- Days to maturity: 80-85
- 100 seeds per packet
-
Bronze Leaf This is one of our favourite perennial herbs – we use it for making pickles, and freeze it for the winter. It also makes a delightful addition to salads. The sweet-scented plant attracts a variety of pollinators, making it a standout in both the kitchen and the garden.- Days to Maturity: 50-60 days
- Life cycle: Perennial
-
Heirloom Mix Tall, showy, and rich in colour: the quintessential garden divas. This selection offers a variety of colours, from soft pinks to deep purples and lavenders. The sun-loving blooms will last from late spring to frost. Hollyhocks are also drought-tolerant, making them easy to care for. They are a pollinator favourite – we always see butterflies and hummingbirds buzzing around our patch.- Bloom: Biennial
- 40 seeds per packet
-
Sokol White A rare variety. This variety has a sturdy stem and large, showy white blooms. It’s extra fun to harvest, because the seed pods rattle when dry. The white seeds offer a delicious nutty flavor, perfect for muffins and bagels. Unlike many breadseed poppies, the Sokol has no vents in its seed heads, making seed collection easy—simply break open the pods to harvest. Grows well in full sun and well-drained soil, reaching up to 6 feet tall. Ideal for cut flowers or dried arrangements, and attracts pollinators. It thrives with minimal care. A striking addition to any garden.- Bloom: Annual
- 200 seeds per packet
