All the Dirt on Gardening

Plant and seed catalogs are arriving daily and announcements about new plants show up on the Internet by the hour. Plant hybridizers, seed developers and garden product providers are ready for our orders and January is the perfect time to dream that our orders will transform our gardens. Most of the companies listed below offer garden supplies. You’ll find growing containers, soil amendments, plant tags, row covers, fertilizers and insect controls as well as seeds, plants, tubers, chickens and books. Disease and insect resistant plant varieties are widely available. Pelletted seeds are covered with a bit of clay that helps tiny seeds stay put where they are planted. Monsanto and Seminis provide much of the seeds available (http://bit.ly/1cf9zAV). If you want to avoid GMOs, look for terms such as safe seed pledge, open-pollinated and heirloom in the description. Many companies offer newsletters by email and have seasonal sales if you sign up on their website. Several vendor...