Seed Catalogs Guide: How to Choose What to Grow

So January rolls around and your mailbox basically explodes with seed catalogs. Page after glossy page of the most gorgeous tomatoes you've ever seen, stunning flowers, and like fifty varieties of lettuce you didn't even know existed.

Here's the thing nobody warns you about—those catalogs are designed to make you want absolutely everything. And if you're not careful, you'll end up doing what I did: ordering 47 different seed packets with no actual plan, planting things in completely wrong spots, and watching half of them fail because they needed way more growing days than Kansas can give them.

I've wasted so much money on this, you guys. Seeds I never got around to planting, seeds that didn't germinate, seeds for plants that needed a California climate when I'm sitting here in Zone 6b.

But after enough failures (and let me tell you, there were plenty), I finally figured out how to flip through those catalogs without losing my mind or emptying my wallet on stuff that won't grow anyway. So let's talk about how to actually choose seeds that'll work in your real garden, not some fantasy garden that doesn't exist.

What Actually Makes a Seed Catalog Useful

Look, not all seed catalogs are created equal. Some are basically just pretty pictures with almost no useful info. Others actually tell you what you need to know to make smart decisions.

Days to Maturity—This One Really Matters

This number tells you how long from planting (or transplanting) until you're actually harvesting. And if you're in a place with real winters like I am, you've only got about 180 frost-free days to work with. So that tomato that needs 95 days? Yeah, totally doable. One that needs 120 days? You're basically rolling the dice and hoping for warm weather to stick around.

Good catalogs list days to maturity for every single variety. The useless ones skip it completely, which basically means you're ordering blind and hoping for the best.

Actual Variety Names vs. Vague Generic Labels

If a catalog just says "Heirloom Tomato," that tells you absolutely nothing. You want specific names—Brandywine, Cherokee Purple, Green Zebra. Each one has totally different flavor, grows to different sizes, and needs different things.

Generic labels mean you literally have no idea what you're getting. Specific variety names mean you can actually research how that particular plant performs and whether it'll work for you.

Those Weird Letter Codes After the Names

You know those random letters you see after some variety names? Turns out they're not random at all. VF means the plant's resistant to verticillium and fusarium wilt. TMV means tobacco mosaic virus resistance. N is for nematodes.

If you've had disease problems in your garden before, these codes are absolute gold. They tell you which varieties already have natural resistance built in, so you don't need chemicals to keep them alive.

Choosing Seeds for Your Actual Garden (Not Your Pinterest Board Garden)

This is where most of us mess up—we pick seeds based on what sounds amazing instead of what'll actually grow in our real, imperfect spaces.

Start With Your Actual Zone and Frost Dates

I'm in Zone 6b, which means my last frost usually hits around April 15th and my first frost comes back around October 15th. That's my window, and literally every seed I order has to fit inside it or it's just not gonna work.

Short-season varieties might not be the most exciting, but they're what actually produces food in my climate. Those long-season beauties bred for California? They'll just sit there looking sad and never really do much.

Be Real About Your Sun Situation

Seed catalogs assume you've got full sun—like 6+ hours of direct light. But maybe your garden only gets 4 hours. Or maybe you've got that brutal afternoon sun that literally fries everything.

And that affects everything you can grow. Lettuce and spinach actually do better with some shade when it's hot. Tomatoes need all the sun they can possibly get. You've gotta match your seeds to the light you actually have, not the light you wish you had.

Actually Measure Your Space

That gorgeous heirloom pumpkin that sprawls 15 feet in every direction sounds incredible. But if you're working with a 4x8 raised bed, that thing's gonna take over your entire garden and crowd out everything else you're trying to grow.

If you're tight on space, look for compact varieties, bush types, stuff that's specifically bred for containers. Save those sprawling monsters for when you actually have room for them.

Are Organic Seeds Actually Worth the Extra Money?

So organic seeds usually cost about 20-40% more than conventional. Worth it or not?

If you're really committed to keeping chemicals out of your garden, then yeah, they're worth it. Organic garden seeds are grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers, which means your garden starts completely clean from day one.

But here's what actually matters more than the organic label—seed quality and whether it's a good variety. A strong, healthy conventional seed is gonna outperform a weak organic seed every single time.

Personally? I buy organic when I can, especially if I'm planning to save seeds from whatever I grow. But I don't stress about it if I need to order conventional for some hard-to-find variety I really want.

Seed Catalog Language You Actually Need to Understand

Open-Pollinated vs. Hybrid—What's the Difference?

Open-pollinated (OP) seeds will give you plants that produce seeds you can save and plant next year. And those seeds will grow into basically the same plant as the parent.

Hybrid (F1) seeds are created by crossing two different parent varieties. They usually give you more uniform plants with better disease resistance and more vigor. But if you save seeds from hybrids and plant them? You're gonna get totally unpredictable results.

Neither one's inherently better. Hybrids often perform more consistently and have better disease resistance. Open-pollinated varieties let you save seeds and help preserve genetic diversity.

What Makes Heirlooms Special (and Also Tricky)

Heirlooms are open-pollinated varieties that've been around for at least 50 years, usually passed down through families or communities. People love them for their unique flavors, crazy colors, and characteristics you just won't find in modern hybrids.

The catch? A lot of heirlooms don't have much disease resistance. They were bred for flavor and uniqueness, not for surviving every disease that might come along. So if your garden's had disease issues, straight heirlooms might struggle.

What I do: grow heirlooms for the amazing flavor and fun factor, but also plant some disease-resistant hybrids as insurance.

Treated vs. Untreated Seeds

Some seeds come with fungicide coatings—you can tell because they look weirdly colored, like bright pink or blue or green. The coating prevents seed rot when you plant them in cold, wet soil.

If you're gardening organically, you want untreated seeds. Good catalogs will clearly label which is which.

Instead of relying on chemical seed treatments, we use biology to protect seeds. Things like companion planting with beneficial plants and good soil prep create conditions where seeds can thrive naturally.

How Many Varieties Should You Actually Order?

This question trips up more people than anything else.

If you're just starting out: stick with 6-8 vegetable varieties total. Pick stuff your family will actually eat. Go for 2-3 super easy ones (lettuce, radishes, beans), 2-3 medium difficulty (tomatoes, peppers, squash), and maybe 1-2 that are more challenging but sound really exciting.

If you've been gardening for a while: you probably already know what grows well in your space. Focus on trying 2-3 new varieties each season while keeping your tried-and-true reliable producers.

Everyone: get variety, not volume. Three different tomato types in small packets will teach you way more and be more fun than 100 seeds of one variety.

The Seeds Everyone Orders—Should You?

Tomatoes: Absolutely yes. Just make sure you pick varieties that match your growing season and any disease issues you've had. Here in Kansas, I need early-maturing types with VF resistance or they just don't make it.

Peppers: Great if you've got patience. They're slow to get going but once they start producing, they'll keep going all summer.

Lettuce and Greens: Perfect for beginners. They're fast, easy, super productive. If you plant some every 2-3 weeks, you'll have fresh salad greens all season.

Squash and Cucumbers: These things produce like crazy, but they need space. Honestly, one or two plants is usually enough for most families.

Herbs: Basil, cilantro, and dill are total no-brainers to start from seed. Most other herbs? You might have better luck just buying plants.

Getting Your Seeds Off to a Good Start

So you've ordered your seeds. Now what?

Successful germination isn't some mysterious magic—it's just biology. Seeds need the right temperature, consistent moisture, and good soil conditions. And honestly, one of the most important things is beneficial microbes to protect them from damping off and other seedling problems.

This is probably where we do things differently than most gardening advice you'll find out there.

Standard advice says to use sterile seed starting mix. The idea is that sterile equals no diseases. But it also means no beneficial biology to actually protect your seedlings and help them grow strong.

We go the opposite direction. Our Elm Power Bundle has everything you need from seed to harvest—Ancient Soil for building your beds, Plant Juice for getting seedlings established with 291 beneficial microbes, and Bloom Juice for when your plants start flowering.

Those beneficial microbes set up shop around your seeds and roots, crowding out the bad stuff before it can cause problems. It's prevention through biology instead of trying to keep everything sterile.

Seed Catalog Mistakes I've Made (So You Don't Have To)

Waiting Too Long to Order

Popular varieties sell out fast. If you wait until March to place your order, you're basically getting whatever's left over. Start browsing catalogs in December and January. Try to get your order in by mid-February at the latest.

Not Learning From Last Year's Failures

If your tomatoes got hit with blight last year, ordering that same variety again isn't gonna fix the problem. Look for disease-resistant alternatives. Actually learn from what didn't work.

Getting Sucked In by Marketing Hype

"Revolutionary new variety!" usually just means "we need to sell more seeds." Stick with varieties that have proven track records and only try one or two experimental ones.

Not Doing the Math on Seed Quantities

A packet of 100 lettuce seeds sounds great, but you probably only need to plant 10-15 at a time. So you're either gonna throw away 85 seeds, or they'll lose viability sitting in storage.

Better to buy smaller packets of more varieties than huge packets of just a few.

My Go-To Seed Catalogs

Different catalogs are good for different things. Here's what I actually use:

For Organic Seeds: Johnny's Selected Seeds, High Mowing, and Seed Savers Exchange all have tons of organic options with really detailed growing info.

For Regional Stuff: Baker Creek focuses on heirlooms adapted to different climates. Territorial Seed Company specializes in Pacific Northwest varieties but they've got stuff that works elsewhere too.

For Disease Resistance: Park Seed and Burpee have loads of hybrid varieties with built-in disease resistance, which is perfect if you've had problems.

For Specialty Varieties: Kitazawa Seed Company for Asian vegetables, Native Seeds/SEARCH for Southwest-adapted plants, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange for heat-tolerant stuff.

I usually order from 2-3 different catalogs each year depending on what I'm growing. No single catalog has everything.

Actually Creating Your Seed Order

Here's the system that keeps me from just randomly ordering things:

1. Make a list of what you want to grow based on what your family actually eats and what did well for you last year.

2. Figure out your space and how many plants you can realistically fit.

3. Work backward from your last frost date to figure out when you need to start seeds indoors.

4. Browse catalogs with your list in hand looking for specific varieties that match what you need—right days to maturity, disease resistance, appropriate plant size.

5. Write down first choices and backups in case your first choice sells out.

6. Order early (January or early February) so you actually get what you want.

7. When seeds show up, organize them by when you'll plant them so you're not scrambling later trying to figure it out.

What to Do When Your Seeds Arrive

Don't just chuck them in a drawer and forget about them. Here's how to store them properly:

Keep them cool and dry: Seeds last longest at consistent cool temperatures (40-50°F) with low humidity. A sealed container in your fridge actually works great.

Organize by planting date: Sort them into groups by when they get planted. "Start indoors 8 weeks before last frost," "Direct sow after last frost," "Plant in midsummer for fall harvest."

Label everything: Trust me on this—you'll forget which tomato is which. Write the variety names and planting dates right on the packets or keep a separate list.

Test old seeds before planting: If you're using seeds from previous years, do a quick germination test. Put 10 seeds on a damp paper towel in a plastic bag. If less than half sprout, those seeds are done.

The Real Deal About Seed Catalogs

Here's the thing—seed catalogs are tools, not wish books. Use them to find specific varieties that'll actually work in your real growing conditions, not to order everything that looks pretty on the page.

What you should focus on:

• Days to maturity that fit your actual growing season
• Disease resistance for whatever problems you've had before
• Plant sizes that match your available space
• Varieties your family will actually eat
• Mostly reliable producers with just a few fun experiments

Order early, start with fewer varieties than you think you want, and actually read the growing information instead of just drooling over pictures.

And remember—great seeds are just the starting point. What really determines whether your garden succeeds or fails is what happens after you plant them. Building good soil biology with beneficial microbes, watering properly, giving plants enough space—that's the stuff that actually matters.

Check out our complete guide to organic vegetable gardening for everything that comes after choosing seeds. You might also want to read about whether to use seeds or starts and learn about succession planting so you can have continuous harvests all season instead of everything ripening at once.