Growing Guides & Library

General Growing Guides

A Beginner's Growing Guide Preparing, sowing, and planting for beginners.

Recommended Planting Dates(PDF) for the mid-Atlantic and Southeast

Guidelines for Successful Seed Sowing
Why Heirloom Seeds? - Cricket Rakita
Open Pollination

Notes on Seed Storage

Fall & Winter Gardening Guides
Remember summer planting for fall harvest! Many fall and winter crops need to be started in June and July.

• Garlic & Perennial Onion Growing Guide - originally written by our founder, Jeff McCormack, updated and revised by Ira Wallace, Ken Bezilla, and Lisa Dermer - also available as a PDF
• Fall & Winter Quick Reference - includes dates, temperatures, and the best varieties
• Simple Winter Gardening - from Brett Grohsgal of Even' Star Organic Farm
• Fall & Winter Gardening Tips - from our own Ken Bezilla

Vegetable Growing Guides

Herb & Flower Growing Guides - Key to Herb & Flower Cultural Notes

Roselle (pdf)
Angelica
Fennel
Rosemary

Herbs - Plain and Fancy (pdf) - a guide to culinary herbs

Seed Saving Guides

Seed Saving for Home Use (pdf) - dry and wet seed processing techniques (crop-specific)
Como Guardar Semillas Para Uso Casero - Seed Saving for Home Use - Español (pdf)

Saving Tomato Seeds: An Illustrated Guide Detailed information that's also relevant to a range of seeds that mature wet.

How to host a seed swap

How to test germination

Isolation Distance Requirements for Peppers
Isolation Distance Requirements for Tomatoes

We highly recommend the Seed Saving Guides from the Save our Seed Project.