If you can’t remember if you’ve seen one or not, then I’m certain that you haven’t. Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds has hands-down the most fantastic collection of vegetable pictures I’ve ever seen anywhere—much less in a catalog.

These images are nothing short of gorgeous and they do their job; they make me want to order every vegetable variety between their over-sized pages. While armchair gardening, I’m literally pulling out pages to frame for my office.

You won’t find any hybrids in this catalog. Their seeds are open-pollinated and are free of any genetic altering. At Baker Creek, their goal isn’t simply to sell vegetable and flower seeds, but to promote and educate gardeners on the vast amount of heirlooms available to home gardeners.

Baker Creek has bragging rights to offering more melon varieties than any other seed catalog in the United States. This heirloom seed company is located in south central Missouri and offers over 1400 varieties of vegetable and flower seeds that originate from 66 countries. The Baker Creek Catalog is truly for the adventurous gardeners who’s like to give some heritage vegetables a try in their own gardens.

Lucky for me, now the West Coast has over 1,200 heirloom seed varieties to choose from in their recent addition of a seed bank store in Petaluma, California. These varieties include 190 tomatoes varieties, 100 melons, and 150 squash varieties. These vegetables have found their way here from 70 countries. Inside the beautiful building in downtown historic Petaluma, the Seed Bank is also stocked with goods such as organically produced items, garden books, garden-themed artwork, and locally-made garden tools.

If you really get hooked on Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, you can subscribe to their quarterly print magazine, The Heirloom Gardener. This magazine has the valuable growing information written by the people who know vegetables best; heirloom farmers and gardeners.

For me, one of the pleasures that come from becoming involved in heirloom plants is the interesting ways many varieties arrived here in America, as well as the wonderful stories of how they obtained their names. Still, the most popular reason to grow heirloom vegetables is due to their heritage flavor. Most modern hybrids simply can’t compete in the taste bud department.

Order a Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Catalog for the pictures; enjoy the stories and the heritage. Then become hooked on the incredible flavor of heirlooms and become a part of their history by growing them.

More catalog reviews…

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY.

Buy at Amazon

Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil.

Buy at Amazon

Spearhead Shade Gardening Shovel with Steel-Reinforced Fiberglass Handle

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Reduce Digging Effort - The Spear Head Spade is the first hybrid shovel/spade, guaranteed to make your toughest digging up to 80% easier than regular shovels and spades, even in the toughest soil conditions. Ideal for landscaping and gardening. Multi-Purpose Shovel - Spear Head Spade is a versatile tool that can be used for digging, planting, weeding, cutting, and edging. It is designed to handle tough soil and clay conditions, and can cut through roots and tough vegetation with ease. Innovative Design - Has a unique blade design that makes it more efficient and easier to use than traditional spades. The blade is shaped like a spearhead, with a pointed tip and a curved edge that allows it to penetrate the soil more easily. Ergonomic D-Handle - The large, cushioned D-grip offers comfort and better leverage for gloved and ungloved hands alike, reducing strain on the hands and wrists. Lightweight & Strong - Durable handle is made of special steel-reinforced, pultruded fiberglass to withstand heavy use. 60% stronger than EN-3388 shovel/spade standards, 33% thicker and 25% harder than normal shovels. Sharpened from tip to tail at a 35 degree angle for an effective and durable edge.

Buy at Amazon