Aromata is a truimph of sensorial plant breeding - intensely selected for flavour and texture, yielding a slim, butter-yellow variety with a firm texture and intense aroma. A brave new world of culinary possibilities has been opened! Say goodbye to bland, spongy parsnips and hello to crisp, tender roots. This variety is well suited to eating raw - think remoulade and coleslaw.Another great variety from Kultursaat breeders in Germany, developed from an accession from the IPK Leibniz gene bank. Read the breeders story below.Sow: April-early May in May. Kitchen: Pairs with savoury (bacon, marmite), fats (blue cheese, hard cheese), spices (nutmeg, cumin, anise), watercress.Notes: Seeds are slow to germinate, keep soil damp. Thin seedlings to 5cm and keep weeded. Roots are sweetest when harvested after the first frost.
1g / ~200 seeds
PnpAro-00023-TMR-OGGerm 80% Nov 24The Story Behind the Variety...Back in the 90s, breeders at Kultursaat noted a big inconsistency in flavour and texture within individual parsnip varieties. Single varieties yield roots which tasted completely different - some were bland, some sweet, some spongy and some bitter. So they embarked on a long journey to create a variety which excelled in flavour and texture. As a root vegetable and biennial seed crop, the challenge was to find a method to taste test each root whilst keeping them in good enough condition to replant and save seed from the following year. Their solution was to remove a small core from each parsnip to taste. Hundreds of parsnips were tested and the roots with the best eating qualities were replanted to save seed from. This was done for years until the variety was just right. The finishing flourish was to test the variety in different soil types, showing it could grow well in clay, loamy, sandy and upland soils.https://www.kultursaat.org/dateien/zuechtung/sorten_englisch/aromata-en.pdf
Often the best things in life are found in unlikely places. Who would have guessed that earliest and most productive pepper would hail from the warm Middle Eastern gardens of Turkey? Not us. But Turkish Dolma produces bountiful harvests of sweet, palm-sized peppers from July to September. The peppers are blocky with shiny skins which turn from green to red.Turkish Dolma has been bred to be picked green and stuffed ('dolma' is Turkish for 'stuffed) then baked. We find them very versatile peppers in the kitchen. Roast the young fruits whole and eat them seeds and all; fry them up for breakfast menemen (Turkish scrambled eggs) or let them ripen fully for the perfect snack pepper.Sow: Valentines day to end March, with heat (25C)Harvest: July-SeptemberKitchen: Pairs with savoury (olives, bacon, cured pork), aromatic (parsley, coriander, oregano, ginger), spicy (paprika, cumin, cinnamon), fats (avocado, soft cheese, eggs).Notes: Grow in greenhouse or similar. Stake plants using a tripod method - they don't get very tall but branches are liable to snap under the weight of their fruit.
~ 20 seedsPepTDma-00135-WNO-C
Germ: 85% Nov 24
The sweet, tender-leaved basil variety from the homeland of pesto A.K.A. Genoa. These plants produce bountiful leaves which can be harvested young to use in salads or whizzed up into pesto to top pizzas, pastas and minestrone soup. A classic basil variety which we grow alongside our tomatoes every year. We find basil benefits from rich soil and a little shade. Remember it grows very happily in containers too - perfect for a sunny kitchen window sill.Sow: mid March-July (at around 22C)Plant: 20-30cm apartHarvest: 8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Eat fresh or just wilted. Think pizza, pasta, pesto (and soup).Notes: Bolted plants bring in a tonne of pollinators. Best grown undercover for unblemished foliage.~0.5g/300 seedsBasSwG-00054-MOL-OGGerm 79% Dec 24
Our pick for a classic salad rocket - green, lobed leaves with strong peppery flavour. A fast growing, vigorous variety which works well as a cut-and-come-again salad leaf. It bolts faster than our other salad rocket variety 'Astro' which is slower growing. Ideally, you'll sow this variety thickly in successions. The flowers are a delicious salad ingredient too. It makes a flavoursome addition to salads from autumn until early spring. Sow: mid March-May & Aug-Sept (undercover or outside)Plant: densely for baby leaves, 20cm for salad leavesHarvest: 4-8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Eat fresh or just wilted. Pairs with citrus (lemon, balsamic vinegar), aromatics (basil, dill, mint) and spices (chilli), salty (capers, olives, feta), fats (blue cheese, goats cheese, pine nuts).Notes: Early sowings benefit from fleece. Sowings bolt around the solstice.~1g/500 seedsRocVic-00112-CNS-CGerm 100% Nov 24
This heritage Italian variety of chicory is one of our favourites. Sweet flavour and crisp texture - this is a variety for chicory noobs. It rivals iceberg lettuce for crispness but with a much more aromatic, complex flavour. Outer, deep green leaves have more radicchio bitterness than the yellow hearts. Pan di Zucchero grow to an impressive size - about 40cm long - a satisfying green to grow. Sowing and planting timing is important to grow chicory successfully. Sow in mid-late July and plant out promptly. Chicory like to germinate in the cool. Sow: mid-late July. Keep seeds cool while germinating.Plant: 4 weeks after sowing.Harvest: October-December. Chicory is frost tolerant but the outside leaves can suffer, looking rotten and slimy. Hold your nerve and peel them away to reveal the jewel-like chicory heart. Kitchen: Best raw in salads but can also be cooked. Cut the hearts in half, marinate and griddle or barbecue. Pairs well with acid (lemon, balsamic vinegar, orange), fats (blue cheese, walnuts, hazelnuts), salty (capers), sweet (winter squash).~0.5g/350 seedsChicPZ-00031-KNG-OGGerm 77% Dec 24
Photo courtesy of Springtail Farm
Purple Top Milan is bred to grow fast and be eaten young. Harvest when they are ping pong sized and cook whole - skins and all. We are really happy with this selection of the variety - the roots are beautifully flattened with excellent bright violet colouring. They have a nice firm texture and well-balanced flavour. Turnips excellent way of making use of any gaps in the vegetable garden which begin to show in late summer. It's worth having a packet of seed spare just in case!Sow: Valentines day-March (undercover), July-August (direct)Plant: multisow and plant 20cm apart or sow direct and thin to 5-10cm apart.Harvest: 6-8 weeks from sowingKitchen: Eat fresh, pickled or stir fried. Pairs with acid (lemon, lime, ponzu, balsamic, wine), aromatics and spices (coriander, ginger, five spice, chilli, thyme), alliums (spring onion, garlic), fats (bacon, sesame, cashew).~1g/450 seedsGerm 97% Oct 24
Uber has all the vigour of a salad rocket with wild rocket flavour. It adds another dimension to a salad mix. Plant grow fully upright, even in winter, making them easy to harvest. It makes a flavoursome addition to salads from autumn until early spring. Leave to bolt - the flowers are delicious and provide early forage for pollinators.Sow: mid March-May & Aug-Sept (undercover or outside)Plant: densely for baby leaves, 20cm for salad leavesHarvest: 4-8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Eat fresh or just wilted. Pairs with citrus (lemon, balsamic vinegar), aromatics (basil, dill, mint) and spices (chilli), salty (capers, olives, feta), fats (blue cheese, goats cheese, pine nuts).Notes: Early sowings benefit from fleece. Sowings bolt around the solstice.~1g/500 seedsRocUb-00110-CNS-CGerm 89% Nov 24
Syrian oregano is a beautiful species of oregano with silvery, downy leaves which have an aromatic oregano-thyme flavour. It's the authentic herb used in za'atar and a distinctive flavour in Levantine cuisine. Rarely grown in the UK, we find it grows really well from seed, happily adapting to life in a container or herb bed.This is a perennial herb which you can expect a smaller harvest from in the first year. It will bulk out over the next few years. Cut back old growth in early spring to encourage new soft growth.Sow: March - April (at around 18C)Plant: 30cm apart in MayKitchen: The it herb for greek, mexican and italian dishes. Pairs with fats (eggs, yogurt, halloumi, soft cheese, parmesan), aromatics (basil, parsley, chives, mint, thyme), spicy (chili), acid (white wine, red wine vinegar)~0.1g/1000 seedsHrbZat-00119-CNS-CGerm 72% Dec 24
Pizzo is a lovely broad-leaved salad mustard with squiggly serrated edges. It adds verdant volume to winter salad pickings. Its visually similar to 'Green in Snow' but much milder. Definitely our preference for a productive winter salad leaf.Sow: mid March-May & Aug-Sept (undercover or outside)Plant: densely for baby leaves, 20cm for salad leavesHarvest: 4-8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Eat fresh or stir fried. Pairs with citrus (lemon, lime, ponzu), aromatics and spices (turmeric, ginger, five spice, chilli), alliums (spring onion, garlic, garlic chives), fats (sesame, cashew).Notes: Early sowings benefit from fleece. Sowings bolt around the solstice. Long harvest period, particularly over winter - you'll have greens from October into spring.
Also available in our 'Cool Greens' winter salad seed collection. Download our Winter Salads Growing Guide to learn more about growing winter greens.~1g/450 seedsSaLPiz-00111-CNS-CGerm 91% Nov 24
An early spring treat for anyone who loves butterhead lettuces. Leaves are bright green, buttery soft, lightly dimpled and pleasantly sweet from growing in the cool. A key addition to my quest for a year round supply of butterhead lettuces! Harvest as a looseleaf salad mix by harvesting individual leaves or wait until for the dense heads to form in early spring.Lettuce is a very ancient crop, originally domesticated by the ancient Egyptians for its seeds and sap which were used as a pain killer and sedative. The Romans went on to cultivate lettuce for its leaves and used it as a braising green.Sow: Sept-November undercoverPlant: 4-6 weeks after sowing, plant 20cm apartHarvest: Feb-AprilKitchen: Best used in salads.Notes: Best grown undercover. To make the most out of your space, you can sow/plant 10cm apart then harvest every other plant leaving the remaining half to head up in early spring. Do not let seeds get hot when germinating. 15C is ideal, anything above 18C encourages seed dormancy.
Also available in our 'Cool Greens' winter salad seed collection. Download our Winter Salads Growing Guide to learn more about growing winter greens.
~200 seeds/0.25gLetWcp-00029-KNG-OGGerm 70% July 25
Jani is a prolific bush (dwarf) tomato which is your answer to growing tomatoes in containers. The plants reach 80cm high and have good crop of red salad tomatoes with sweet, mild flavour. Happy growing outside, and will yield well in a sunny, south-facing corner.Sow: March, with heat (25C)Harvest: July-SeptemberKitchen: Pairs with savoury (anchovies, capers, cured pork), aromatic (basil, coriander, thyme), spicy (anise, clove, chilli, cinnamon), fats (avocado, cream cheese). ~10 seedsTomJni-00024-TMR-OG88% Nov 24
Thai Sweet Basil is a delight to grow for three reasons. Firstly, it is the perfect herb for Southeast Asian dishes, adding a complex bitter-sweet-spicy aroma to your cooking. Secondly its a glorious scented filler for flower arrangements - shiny green leaves, plum purple stems and a sweet anise scent. Thirdly, pollinators love it - leave it to flower and you can enjoy watching the bees buzzing around it all day.Its easy to grow but as with all basil, its best to grow it in a greenhouse or cloche for blemish-free leaves. If growing outside, wait until the soil and nights are warm before planting.Sow: mid March-July (at around 22C)Plant: 20-30cm apartHarvest: for leaves 8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Use fresh or cooked. Pairs with aromatics (lemongrass, coriander, mint), spices (ginger, cinnamon, chilli), fats (coconut milk, cashew), citrus (lemon, lime).Notes: Best grown undercover for unblemished foliage.~0.5g/200 seedsBasThS-00059-MOL-OGGerm 80% Dec 24
Stridolo (A.K.A. Sculpit) is the cultivated form of wild plant Bladder Campion. It's a beautiful Italian heirloom which we love to grow as a delicate addition to salad mixes. The glaucous green foliage is very elegant. Leaves are succulent with a mild flavour - a little aromatic with a mild, pleasant bitterness. One sowing will last you the year. We also love the dainty white flowers for cutting.Sow: April-MayPlant: 4 weeks after sowing once soil has warmedHarvest: 8-10 weeks after sowingKitchen: Use fresh or just wilted. Used in Italy as part of a bitter greens mix, in pasta and egg dishes.~0.25g/400 seedsSaLStr-00120-CNS-CGerm 93% Dec 24
Sunshine yellow, golf ball sized tomatoes which are always the earliest to ripen. A great tomato to kick off the season and for areas with a cooler climate. This British heirloom dates back to 1890s and produces prodigious quantities of delicious, juicy salad tomatoes. Like all yellow tomatoes they have a mild, fresh flavour - perfect for salads.
Sow: March, with heat (25C)
Harvest: July-September
Kitchen: Pairs with savoury (anchovies, capers, cured pork), aromatic (basil, coriander, thyme), spicy (anise, clove, chilli, cinnamon), fats (avocado, cream cheese).
Notes: Potato-leaved variety - broader leaves than standard tomatoes.
~15 seeds
TomYP-00067-KNG-OG
Germ 90% Nov 24
Our Desert Island onion. Cuisse de Poulet du Poitou is a banana shallot bursting with savoury-sweetness. Its mild enough to be served raw but really sings when cooked low and slow. The bulbs are about the size of an onion - you get proper shallot flavour without the extensive peeling. And they're beautiful - elegant, elongated bulbs with a rusty-rose skin.Sow in March - 3-5 seeds per modules a la Charles Dowding. Harvest fresh and you can use the stems too. Later harvests have a more pungent flavour. Dry the bulbs out after harvest and they'll keep until December.Sow: multi-sow 3-5 seeds per module, March undercoverPlant: 20cm spacing between modulesHarvest: July-AugustKitchen: Pairs with everything. Use raw or cooked in a myriad of dishes.~1g /250 seedsOnCdP-00021-TMR-OGGerm 85% Nov 24
Life is about the little things and having fresh herbs on hand is a joy. Grow a pot of chives and you'll have an abundant supply. They are generous producers which will happily self seed and bulk up year on year. Your bagel with cream cheese will never be without a sprinkling of chives.Sow: Direct sow into pots March-September (undercover or outside)Harvest: Lightly harvest 12 weeks after sowingKitchen: Pairs with proteins (eggs, fish, ham), fats (avocado, cream cheese), aromatics (chervil, basil, coriander, tarragon, parsley).Note: Chives are herbaceous perennials and die down over winter. They self-sow and clumps will bulk up. You can divide them in spring.~0.25g/ 200 seedsChvHrb-00058-MOL-OGGerm 98% Dec 24
As far as we're concerned, no productive garden is complete without a few nasturtiums romping around the place. Kaleidoscope is a vigorous mix with flowers in a jolly array of cream, peach, yellow, red and of course orange. Enjoy the peppery flavour of the flowers and leaves all summer long. Don't be afraid to cut the plants back if they stray into neighbouring beds.Nasturtiums are a joy to have in your garden and a hardworking companion plant. Aphids (particularly blackfly) love nasturtiums and will colonize them preferentially - saving your vegetable plants from attack.Sow: March - MayPlant: 4 weeks after sowing at 30cm apartHarvest: 8 weeks after sowing - will continue to produce all summer. Smaller leaves have a milder flavour.Kitchen: Eat fresh in salads or whizz up into a salsa verde or pesto. Pairs well with alliums (garlic, shallots), salty (parmesan, capers), acid (lemon, pickles) fats (pinenuts, parmesan, oily fish), sweet flavours (pear, apple), aromatics (parsley, coriander, basil).~30 seeds
Healthy, vibrant and flavoursome flat leaf parsley. Bred by Bingenheimer Saatgut, this variety has been selected for beautiful uniformity, cold hardiness and year-round leaf quality. The name translates to 'Easy cut' and this variety is as at home in a productive market garden as it is on an allotment. It's shorter than 'Italian Giant' giving a higher ratio of leaf to stem. Sow: March-April undercover, May outside. Early August sowing for overwintering.Plant: 6 weeks after sowingHarvest: 8-10 weeks after sowingKitchen: Parsley is a balancing herb which pairs with nearly anything.Notes: For best quality overwintered leaves, grow in a greenhouse or polytunnel or protect with fleece.0.5g / ~200 seeds
Germ 90% Dec 24
Celeriac 'Monarch' is a substantial winter vegetable with a subtle, refined taste. This variety produces large, smooth roots which are *relatively* easy to clean. Sow early, plant shallow and keep watered during the summer and you'll have nice big roots to harvest in the autumn. They store really well and make a great addition to the winter vegetable menu. We use them to make creamy soups and remoulades. We also love to grow them in the veg garden because they are fantastic at opening up heavy soils - their extensive root networks penetrate far down into the soil.Sow: March-April with heat (18C) or April in a greenhouse. Light aids germination - lightly cover seeds with fine compost or vermiculite. Seeds are small so it's easiest to broadcast sow then prick out.Plant: 8 weeks after sowingHarvest: August-OctoberKitchen: Mash, braise or grate into salads. Can also be used to replace celery in mirepoix. Pairs well with aromatics (chives, dill, rosemary, thyme, parsley), spices (chili, horseradish, mustard, caraway), fats (walnuts, creme fraiche, cream, butter), citrus (lemon).~0.1g/250 seedsClrcMn-00081-TMR-OGGerm 81% Nov 24
A classic American heirloom for all the celery lovers out there. Tall Utah produces a dense crop of crisp green stems under a canopy of healthy green leaves. The freshly picked celery have a crunch like no other and the leaves can be harvested as and when to use as a herb.Sow: March, with heat (18C) or April in a greenhouse. Light aids germination - lightly cover seeds with fine compost or vermiculite. Seeds are small so it's easiest to broadcast sow then prick out.Plant: 8 weeks after sowingHarvest: June-SeptemberKitchen: One third of the soffritto/mirepoix holy trinity - it is the base of many classic European dishes. Very versatile, particularly when cooked and pairs very well with aromatics (dill, rosemary, thyme, parsley), fats (blue cheese, walnuts, cream cheese).~0.1g/300 seedsClryTU-00050-MOL-OGGerm 86% Nov 24
Cute, compact basil with bright, fresh flavour. Greek basil is Italian basil's smaller cousin - it has small leaves and only grows to 25cm high. It is sweeter than traditional Genovese types which we think makes it well suited to using in salads and as a garnish. Its small stature also makes it perfect for growing in pots on a window sill. Sow: mid March-July (at around 22C)Plant: 20cm apartHarvest: 8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Eat fresh or just wilted. Think pizza, pasta, pesto (and soup).Notes: Bolted plants bring in a tonne of pollinators.~0.5g/300 seedsBasGrk-00083-TMR-OGGerm 74% Nov 24
Introducing your Christmas dinner Brussels sprout variety! Groninger produces classic green, dense sprouts from November to December. Unlike F1 varieties, Groninger crops over a longer period of time so you won't get overwhelmed by sprouts. Its tried and tested mid-season sprout variety which has been awarded the prestigious Award of Garden Merit by the RHS. This means they've trialed it against lots of other varieties and found it to be exceptional. Classic sprout flavour - earthy, with a hint of bitterness which mellows in cool weather. Try them roasted - its by far the best way to eat them. Oh, and don't miss out on the sprout tops - the rosette of leaves at the top of the plant which resembles a cabbage - it's our favourite part of the plant!Sow: March-April (undercover or outside with fleece or cloche)Plant: May, 60cm spacingHarvest: Nov-Dec Kitchen: Roast, bake, braise or shred fresh sprouts into salads. Pairs with acidic flavours (lemon, balsamic vinegar). fats (bacon, ham, blue cheese, parmesan), nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts, chestnuts), aromatics (parsley, thyme).Notes: Plant deep and firm plants in very well to avoid toppling.~0.5g/125 seedsBrSGr-00014-TMR-OGGerm 98% Oct 24
Mizuna is one of the most popular winter salad leaves out there. It produces succulent, green winter leaves with a mild, peppery flavour. It is more vigorous than the other winter salad leaves we offer and very frost tolerant. A brilliant bulker for winter and early spring salad mixes. Sow: mid March-May & Aug-Sept (undercover or outside)Plant: densely for baby leaves, 20cm for salad leavesHarvest: 4-8 weeks after sowingKitchen: Eat fresh, pickled or stir fried. Pairs with citrus (lemon, lime, ponzu), aromatics and spices (coriander, ginger, five spice, chilli), alliums (spring onion, garlic, garlic chives), fats (sesame, cashew).Notes: Early sowings benefit from fleece. Sowings bolt around the solstice. Long harvest period, particularly over winter - you'll have greens from October into spring.1g / ~450 seedsSaLMz-00092-MOL-OGGerm 92% Nov 24
Life is about the little things and having fresh herbs on hand is a joy. Grow a pot of chives and you'll have an abundant supply. They are generous producers which will happily self seed and bulk up year on year. Your bagel with cream cheese will never be without a sprinkling of chives.Sow: Direct sow into pots March-September (undercover or outside)Harvest: Lightly harvest 12 weeks after sowingKitchen: Pairs with proteins (eggs, fish, ham), fats (avocado, cream cheese), aromatics (chervil, basil, coriander, tarragon, parsley).Note: Chives are herbaceous perennials and die down over winter. They self-sow and clumps will bulk up. You can divide them in spring.~0.25g/ 200 seedsChvHrb-00058-MOL-OGGerm 98% Dec 24
