Zone 7 - What to Plant in January

Zone 7 - What to Plant in January

January is go time for zone 7 gardeners. January is your first window to start your indoor sowings and order your seeds for the spring season. The next two months are the most important for starting your vegetables on time. Start your tomatoes, peppers and other vegetables to be ready for spring transplant!

The Roma is a popular heirloom elongated tomato preferred for cooking, canning and making a spectacular Italian paste. This variety has very thick flesh, low seed count and produces high yields of up to 200 fruits on each plant. The Roma VF also has great disease resistance to verticillium and fusarium wilt. These strong vigorous plants can be grown outdoors or in a greenhouse.

The King of the North Pepper is the most reliable bell pepper for northern gardeners. These sturdy plants produce heavy yields of blocky, thick walled, 3-4 lobed peppers that ripen from green to red. This pepper variety is excellent cooked in any recipe or raw for fresh eating. King of the North is sure to be the new KING in your garden!

Freckles Lettuce gets its name for being an unusual bright green romaine lettuce with crimson freckles! This uniquely colored lettuce is sun-loving and grows upright. This variety has a crisp texture that can be harvested early or late!

The Heirloom Collection is a mixture of some of our favorite and best tasting heirloom tomatoes. These old fashioned, great tasting heirloom tomatoes are sure to please your tastebuds! We have chosen the most popular, tried and true heirlooms around. These tomatoes have been passed down for generations because of their exceptional taste, growth habits, yield, disease resistance and more! The collection includes a packet of each of the following: Delicious - Once held the world record for largest tomato grown. A huge beefsteak that is large and fairly crack resistant. Black Cherry - One of the most delicious cherry tomatoes around! The only truly black cherry tomato. Chocolate Stripes - Mahogany color with dark brown stripes. A luscious bicolor tomato with a sweet earthy flavor. Cherokee Purple - A purple tomato that is a favorite heirloom amongst gardeners. Absolutely the best taste of any tomato around. Costoluto Genovese - An old Italian preserving tomato. Works great for sauces and paste. German Giant - A giant potato leaf heirloom tomato. A deep pink fruit that grows up to 30+ ounces.

The Lutz Green Leaf White Stem Beet is an attractive deep red variety with white stalks that is absolutely delicious when steamed or roasted. This beet is known for having huge glossy, deep green tops that are perfect for salads! This beet is a "winterkeeper" beet that has a long standing storage capability. The Lutz Green Leaf White Stem has 6 inches in diameter roots.

Ailsa Craig Exhibition is a large onion that has a unique mildly sweet flavor! This plant produces on the average a huge 5 lb. sweet white onion that has a delicious flavor in many dishes. Impress your neighbors and try growing this World Record sized onion.

This productive heirloom pepper is well suited to short-season gardens and has long been valued for canning and pickling. Originating from Hungary, it produces light yellow, medium-to-hot peppers with a classic flavor that works beautifully for stuffing, roasting, pizza toppings, and traditional Eastern European dishes. Plants set fruit steadily over an extended harvest window, delivering high yields with quick production. The 5-inch fruits begin a bright yellow and mature to red, adding visual appeal as well as versatility in the kitchen, and they are especially popular as pickled peppers. This heat-loving variety thrives in full sun, reaching maturity in about 70 days With a Scoville heat rating of 5,000 to 15,000, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers provide a nice kick without overwhelming heat, making them versatile for various culinary uses.

Get a head start with the early maturing Early Jalapeno Pepper. This pepper variety continuously produces a dark green, thick skin that forms to the shape of a cone. Enjoy the Early Jalapeno fresh or pickled on salads, dips or tacos!

The Ashe County Pimento pepper is a cherished heirloom variety with roots deeply embedded in the Appalachian region of North Carolina. Originating from Ashe County, this pepper has been cultivated since the early 20th century, known for its unique attributes and exceptional flavor. Characterized by its heart-shaped pods, the Ashe County Pimento ripens to a vibrant red hue, distinguishing it from other peppers. Its flavor is renowned for its sweet, fruity notes and low heat, making it a versatile ingredient for both fresh consumption and culinary uses like pimento cheese and stuffed peppers. The plant exhibits a compact growth habit, typically reaching about 18 to 24 inches in height, which makes it suitable for garden beds and containers. It produces an abundance of peppers that are ready for harvest in late summer to early fall. With its rich history, distinctive color, and delightful taste, the Ashe County Pimento pepper continues to be a prized addition to gardens and kitchens alike.

The Yellow Monster pepper is a striking heirloom variety with intriguing origins and notable characteristics. Developed in the United States, this pepper is prized for its large size and eye-catching appearance. As the name suggests, the Yellow Monster matures to a vibrant yellow, adding a bold splash of color to any garden or dish. The flavor profile is mild and sweet with a hint of fruitiness, making it a versatile choice for various culinary applications, from fresh salads to roasted dishes. The plant grows vigorously, reaching up to 3 feet in height, and is known for its high productivity. It typically produces large, thick-walled peppers that are ready for harvest in mid to late summer. With its impressive size, vivid color, and pleasant flavor, the Yellow Monster pepper is not only a visually appealing addition to gardens but also a flavorful ingredient that enhances a variety of recipes.

Red Express cabbage seeds produce a variety of cabbage known for its vibrant purple-red color and compact, round heads. This variety is prized for its early maturity, typically reaching harvestable size in about 60-70 days. The heads are tightly packed and dense, with crisp, tender leaves that offer a mild, sweet flavor, making it ideal for both fresh consumption in salads and slaws or for cooking. Red Express cabbage is also known for its resistance to common cabbage pests and diseases, making it a robust choice for home gardeners. Additionally, it provides a good source of vitamins A, C, and K, as well as antioxidants.

The Mushroom Red Pepper gets its name as it is a bell-shaped hot pepper that will ripen from a lime green to a bright red. This variety is great for pickling or drying and will add a nice hot kick to any dish. This pepper is great for a small garden as it does well in containers. These productive little peppers thrive in tropical regions, but will grow just about anywhere.

The Crisp Mint Lettuce is a big romaine variety with mint green-colored leaves that will be sure to stand out in any home garden! This bold lettuce is only mint in color, not taste. However, its sweet and crunchy leaves will be a favorite addition to any salad or sandwich. Crisp Mint's heads will reach 10 inches tall making it perfect for a container garden!

The Garden Leaf Blend is a colorful mix of our very popular lettuce varieties. This blend is a great mixture of lettuce varieties that mature at different times and have multiple colors to give your salad bowl a full pop of color! The Garden Leaf Blend includes Black Seeded Simpson, Oakleaf, Parris Island Cos, Tango, Red Romaine, Ruby and Lolla Rosso Darky

The Supersweet 100 Tomato has a flavor with an extra sweetness and an outstanding yield production that keeps coming back! This tomato tastes like candy and has an increased disease-fighting ability than the beloved classic, Sweet 100. This hybrid is a delicious treat that is also one of the most nutritious tomatoes available anywhere! The Supersweet 100 has a higher vitamin C content than any other tomato. The small 1 inch tomatoes have a bright red skin and flesh.

King Richard is a newer leek variety that grows well throughout the United States. This leek variety is a summer type, non-bulbing leek that grows to 12" in length. King Richard has green leaves with white inside. This leek is a very early maturer and is not sufficient for overwinter growing.

The Sun Gold is a very sweet, tangerine-orange cherry tomato. Once you try this sugary treat, you will want to grow it for years and years! This variety produces beautiful little tomatoes early, often and throughout the entire season. The Sun Gold is the best tasting cherry tomato around that is great for home gardens.

White Boston lettuce seeds produce an old heirloom butterhead variety known since the early 1900s for its soft, tender texture and reliable garden performance. The plants form loose, pale-green heads with broad, silky leaves that have a mild, buttery flavor and a pleasantly delicate crunch. This variety prefers cool weather, making it ideal for spring and fall planting, and thrives in rich, well-drained soil with consistent moisture. To grow it successfully, sow seeds shallowly, keep the soil evenly moist, provide partial shade in warmer climates to prevent bolting, and harvest heads when they are full and firm for the best flavor and texture.