Alaska Vegetable Garden Pack

Gardening in Alaska can be a challenge. Summers are short, and so you need varieties that will be ready early. Moreover, the long daylight hours during summer means that leafy greens can be prone to bolt (go to flower) way faster than you expect. The trick is to grow and harvest as soon as possible.

In Alaska, all greens and most root crops can be grown easily. Therefore, we have selected our best and longest-standing (slowest to bolt) varieties of greens. That means bounties of kale, lettuce, spinach, as well as root crops beets, carrots and turnips. Sugar snap peas also grow well and can handle cooler weather, so plant those early.

That brings us to the topic of the more difficult summer crops. Zucchini, squash, and cole crops like broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower. The cole crops should be started indoors under growlights (or in a sunny windowsill) about 4 to 6 weeks before your last frost date. For Anchorage, that means you should start them indoors between February 28 and March 13. Then transplant the cole crops to the garden in mid to late April.

We also included the tomato Stupice in this pack, and it grows very well in extreme northern climates, but as with all tomatoes, it is easily killed by frost. Sow them indoors in early April and transplant into the garden after all danger of frost is gone. You'll get fruit in less than 2 months of growing outdoors.

Squash (zucchini, etc) can be started indoors around late April and then carefully transplanted to the garden after all danger of frost is past. That means mid-May. Keep an eye on the forecast.

Corn and beans can be planted directly in the ground at the same time, after all danger of frost is past, and after the soil's temperature is 65 degrees or warmer.

We believe that every selection in this garden pack will do very well for you, and we wish our Alaskan friends a successful garden with these varieties.

Place a single order for this item and you will get one packet of each of the items shown below at an overall discount. If you prefer, you can order them individually one by one, by clicking on each item in the list.

Basil, Italian Large Leaf (Sweet)
Germination: 5 to 7 days A native to Europe and cultivated for centuries as a fresh and dried culinary herb. Common in America by the late 1700s. The plants grow to about eighteen inches, and provide several harvests. The leaves are used fresh to make pesto, and can be dried and used as a seasoning. A favorite in Italian dishes. Prefers well-drained soil, even moisture, and full sun.

Blue Lake 274 Bush Green Bean
Pick the pods while young as they are more tender and succulent and less likely to be stringy. This variety is a canner's favorite as it tends to mature its heavy crop all at once.

Detroit Dark Red Beet
Very tasty fresh out of the garden, it also maintains its taste and texture well after being canned or pickled. Globe shaped, excellent color, sweet, smooth and tender.

Di Ciccio Broccoli
An old European variety Introduced in 1890. Compact, 2 to 3 feet high plants, that produce a central 3 to 4 inch head with many side shoots. Freezes well.

Catskill Brussels Sprouts
The 20 to 24 inch tall plants produce heavily. The sprouts are large (up to 1¾ inches), dark-green and firm. Used for fall harvests, it is good fresh or frozen. Developed in 1941.

Early Round Dutch Cabbage
Introduced in the late 1800s, Early Round Dutch is a favorite of southern gardens, but it does equally well in the northern gardens. Producing solid 4-5lb uniform heads of 6-7 inches, it has excellent heat tolerance, is slow bolting, has good crinkled cup-shaped leaves and excellent flavor. We're very excited to be able to offer this variety again. 70 days. Open-pollinated.

Henderson's Tendersweet Carrot
'Henderson's Tendersweet' carrot plants have a distinct, dark green foliage. When the roots reach full maturity, they are a deep orange color, average from eight to ten inches in length, and taper slightly from the shoulder to a blunt end.

Early Snowball Cauliflower
Uniform maturing, smooth, pure white heads weighing three to five pounds and six inches across. It is a medium sized plant with good leaf coverage. Released in 1941. It is reliable. Freezes well also.

Perpetual Swiss Chard
Leaves are smooth, dark-green in color with fine midribs. It is very vigorous and provides an almost "perpetual" harvest. If you garden in an area with a hot climate, it is a great choice for a continuous supply of tasty summertime greens.

Golden Bantam Sweet Corn
The plants grow to about six feet and produce seven inch ears loaded with eight rows of sweet, plump, golden kernels. Bred by a farmer named William Chambers of Greenfield, Mass. Introduced by W. Atlee Burpee in 1902. Prior to this introduction, people thought that yellow corn was fit only for animal feed.

Muncher Cucumber
Strong, vigorous vines that prolifically produce smooth, tender fruit that reach nine inches in length. Good slicer that does not get bitter and is burpless. Cucumber mosaic virus resistant.

Waltham Butternut Winter Squash
Light tan, seven to nine inches long with a thick neck and a small seed cavity. The flesh is a wonderful, bright orange. An "All-American Selection®" in 1970.

Early Prolific Straightneck Summer Squash
Best harvested (our opinion) when the fruit is five to six inches long and still tender. Mature size is 12 to 14 inches.

Black Beauty Zucchini Summer Squash
The bush-type plants of 'Black Beauty' zucchini are early and very productive. Although you can use this summer squash at just about any size, we start picking fruit when they are about six to eight inches long by two inches in diameter and dark green in color. We prefer them at this young and tender stage when they are excellent lightly steamed, sautéed, or stir-fried. They reach a black-green to almost black at maturity.

Arugula
Also known as rocket or roquette and is popular in Italian cuisine. Adds an interesting tangy flavor to an otherwise bland salad. All plant parts are edible and harvest is enjoyed over a long period as it is a cut and come again plant. It prefers cool weather so start sowing successive plantings directly in the garden as soon as the soil can be worked in the spring. Also try an early to mid-fall planting in a cold frame or greenhouse for harvest throughout the winter. Sow seed ¼ inch deep in a location that receives full sun to partial shade. Best soil temperatures for germination is 40 to 50ºF. Sow about one inch apart thinning plants to a spacing of about six inches. Harvest when the leaves are 2 to 3 inches long.

Dwarf Blue Curled Scotch Kale (Vates)
The leaves are finely curled, bluish green, low growing at twelve to fifteen inches tall with a spread of twenty four to thirty inches. It stands well and is hardy.

All The Year Round Butterhead Lettuce
Medium-sized heads stay firm and solid even in hot weather. Can be sown in most locations from about March through August for a nearly "year-round" harvest periods. It does well in both hot and cooler locations.

Sugar Ann Sugar Snap Pea
The plants range from 24 to 30 inches and do not require support, though they do benefit from it. The pods are crisp, flavorful, three inch snap peas. Great fresh, in stir fry or frozen.

Cherry Belle Radish
A quick growing, globe shaped radish with bright red skin and crisp, firm, white flesh. 'Cherry Belle' was an "All-American Selection®" winner in 1949.

French Breakfast Radish
These radishes are oblong with a blunt tip. The skin is scarlet with white tips and they have crisp, white flesh. They have a great, mildly pungent taste. Introduced prior to the 1880s.

Bloomsdale Longstanding Spinach
Leaves are dark green and crumpled. Stands well in hot weather. Named after their farm in Bristol, PA, D. Landreth & Co. released ‘Bloomsdale’ in the 19th century. 'Long Standing Bloomsdale' was developed and introduced in 1925 by Zwaan and Van der Molen, Voorburg, Netherlands.

Stupice Tomato
50 days, indeterminate — Potato-leaf, 4 foot tall plants loaded with 2½ inch by 2 inch diameter fruits borne in clusters. Very early, great flavor. Introduced to the U.S. from Czechoslovakia in about 1976. Pronounced "stu-pitza."

Purple Top White Globe Turnip
Round roots that are bright purple on the upper part and white below. The globes grow four to five inches in diameter but are best when harvested a little smaller.