Seed for next summer, if the freezer doesn't quit

I got a message from a friend of ours in Nebraska, and she asked if seeds would last if she bought them now for next summer. I said they would most definitely last, and I'd keep them in the freezer. We store all our leftover seed in the freezer. I think most seed, if handled right, will last several years. She was a little concerned that seed might not be available next summer, which might happen, so she was ordering now. The only seed we have had trouble storing is flower seed.

Once the seed is frozen, I would leave it there until you are ready to use the next time. What I wouldn't do is take it in and out of the freezer. Once we are through with a crop during the summer, I put it in the freezer. One example of this would be our tomato seed. I start my tomato plants indoors from mid-January to March. So all these tomato seeds after I'm through head to the freezer. I may start some in, say, June to transplant mid-July for fall tomatoes, but these will be only a couple varieties. This summer we planted probably a dozen zucchini plants in one of the tunnels in July or so. Other than these, most of our seed is in the freezer.

A couple weeks ago I ordered a good bunch of seed we will need next summer. These fall along the major crops we enjoy. I ordered two different varieties of tomato seeds, which are our favorites, one red and one yellow or orange. I also ordered a number of Tasty Jade cucumber seeds. We have tried a number of cucumbers, and these are still our favorites, hands down. I also ordered some zucchini seed. All those I ordered are yellow zucchini, which we enjoy. I also ordered two varieties of celery. We have never grown celery, so this will be a first. I did order some Hakurei turnip seed. I believe this seed is about 32 days to maturity and ready to eat. Bulbs are up to about 2 inches, and the tops are pretty good cooked. Bulbs are pure white and tender. The seed we will freeze right now. They are a little pricey.

Virtually everything we grow, we start in the greenhouse and then transplant it into the garden. We even did this with a 48-spot tray of okra. The baby okra was so small and fragile I figured we'd end up killing a bunch of them. We maybe lost one or two. It did amazingly well. So because we start them indoors, we don't need nearly as many seeds.

When we used to start cucumbers in the soil in the garden, we'd plant four or five seeds per spot. Then we'd thin these down to maybe the strongest one or two. By starting the seed indoors, we simply plant one or two seed per spot, which when it's big enough, we transplant into the garden. So for a 48-foot row of cucumbers, we need 50 to 100 seeds by starting them indoors. If we had started them in the soil in the garden we'd have needed around 250 seeds. Big difference.

I usually plant a row about 80 to 90 feet long of okra in our hill garden. I'd plant the seed maybe an inch apart, so in other words we'd need 1,000 okra seeds give or take some. Okra has a hard time germinating so I usually sow the seed and go back later and thin it to about 8 to 10 inches apart. By starting the seed indoors, I only needed about 100 okra seed by planting two seeds per starter plug. Big difference.

Some of the seed you might need for next summer aren't available right now. I tried to order my onion plants, but they aren't available. After the first of the year, I'll try again. Last year I got five bunches of onion plants which figures out to be about 300 plants.

Planning is a big part of gardening and being successful. Planning on what to plant and when and have it ripen when you want it to is important. This planning when you take into account the average last frost in the spring and the average last frost in the fall is also important.

It's kind of strange planning towards next summer's garden, when we are still having a tomato now and then from those we picked last fall. They don't taste as good as a fresh garden tomato, but they're still pretty good. I do think the yellow ones taste better than the red ones. I noticed that Marge has a container with maybe a dozen yellow ones in it on the counter. A yellow tomato is just a pretty tomato.

Marge made a stir fry maybe a week ago with the last of our yellow zucchini out of our high tunnel. We had planted one row of yellow zucchini last fall, and it did amazingly well. We also planted some green zucchini, but it didn't do real well. I don't think we had enough pollinators so the zucchini spoiled on the vine. It started to develop and when about 4 or 5 inches long one end would spoil.

Happy dreaming about gardening.