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 Crosby Egyptian Beet, a classic heirloom variety, has a rich history dating back to the late 19th century. Originating in Egypt, it was introduced to the United States in the 1860s and quickly gained popularity among gardeners and farmers. This beet variety has stood the test of time due to its exceptional taste and versatility in the kitchen. Crosby Egyptian Beets are known for their sweet and tender flesh, making them a favorite for both raw and cooked applications. They have a distinct earthy flavor with a hint of sweetness, making them perfect for salads, pickling, roasting, and even juicing. These beets typically mature in about 55-60 days, making them a relatively quick-growing option for gardeners. In terms of appearance, Crosby Egyptian Beets are small to medium-sized, usually reaching about 2-3 inches in diameter. They have a round to slightly flattened shape and a vibrant deep red or purplish skin. Disease resistance is moderate, with some resistance to common pests and diseases like aphids and leaf miners. In terms of yields, you can expect a good harvest of beets from each plant, especially if you space them adequately (about 2-4 inches apart) in well-drained soil with full sun to partial shade. These beets thrive in cool weather conditions, making them suitable for spring and fall planting. With its rich history and delightful flavor, the Crosby Egyptian Beet continues to be a treasured addition to vegetable gardens.

The Graffiti cauliflower has a fun purple head with a great flavor! Graffiti produces a true deep purple head. This variety is a large cauliflower plant with dark green leaves and it produces best in the fall. It can also be planted in early spring. The Graffiti is very fun to watch grow and eat!

The Caspian Pink Tomato is a beautiful tomato variety that originally comes from Russia and was brought to America shortly after the cold war ended. This tomato has a sweet and rich flavor that is often compared to the Brandywine. The early maturing medium sized pink beefsteak tomato averages 10-12 ounces in size. The Caspian Pink plant has regular leaves.

The Ghost Mix is a blend of some of the world's hottest peppers! Use with caution! This mix is a wonderful blend of red, yellow, purple, white and chocolate Bhut Jolokia (Ghost) pepper seeds that can reach over 1,000,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU).

The Pink Oxheart Tomato is a beautiful pink oxheart shaped variety that has vigorous vines that produce plenty of attractive and tasty tomatoes. The tomatoes weigh in at about 16-32 ounces. This variety has a sweet and juicy flavor that will have you growing them for years and years. The Pink Oxheart is just perfect looking!

The Redskin Sweet Pepper is a dwarf sweet pepper that is great for containers and patio pots! This pepper variety grows to about 4" all summer long. The Redskin Sweet Pepper is the perfect pepper for people with little room.

The Purple Beauty Pepper is a productive pepper plant that produces attractive deep purple colored peppers! This pepper is an open-pollinated variety with a sweet tasting 3x3" block shaped peppers. Pick when the pepper is purple or wait for it to turn deep red when its mature, which happens later in the season. The Purple Beauty is a great pepper for container gardening and can add that extra kick to your salads or meals.

The Purple Bhut Jolokia is a purple Ghost Pepper! This purple wrinkled pepper is 125 times hotter than a standard Jalapeno pepper! The Bhut Jolokia Purple is a rare, natural variant of Red Bhut Jolokia. Ghost peppers can reach over 1,000,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU). Use with caution!

Bobcat is a high producing fresh-market variety that has long storage life. Excellent flavor and good resistance to disease. Due to its high yield potential, Bobcat is suitable for coleslaw production.

The Pink Girl Tomato produces beautiful, smooth, juicy and high quality pink tomatoes that can be enjoyed all summer long! This low acid tomato yield 3.5" round fruits weighing 6 to 8 ounces.

The San Marzano Tomato is an easy to grow, heirloom that is known as one of the best tomato 'sauce' varieties in the world! This tomato has a plum shape and is considered by many chefs to be the best sauce and cooking tomato types in the world. These heritage tomatoes are named after the region of San Marzano near Naples, Italy. This variety is low acidity, indeterminate and grows on vigorous vines that offers a good cover. Its plants produces clusters of tasty, intensely red fruit that holds well on the vine or in storage. The San Marzano resists cracking and is excellent for paste, puree, or canning due to high solids.

The Heinz 2274 Tomato is a customer favorite for being the perfect variety for making delicious, juicy, homemade ketchup! This 6 ounce tomato is smooth and slightly flattened with a juicy and tangy flesh. The Heinz 2274 is a great tomato for making purees, sauces and of course, ketchup!

The Orange Banana Tomato is one of our favorite paste tomato varieties for home and market growers to dry, can and make pastes. This tomato variety is an orange colored, banana-shaped paste tomatoes that have a wonderful fruity sweetness. The Orange Banana Tomato is delicious and fresh, making it great for specialty markets.

Amish Paste tomatoes are a treasured heirloom variety with a rich history rooted in Pennsylvania Dutch farming traditions. This variety is renowned for its excellent paste-making qualities and robust flavor. The tomatoes are typically deep red with a slightly elongated, oval shape, making them ideal for sauces, salsas, and canning. They are known for their meaty texture and low moisture content, which contributes to a thicker, richer tomato paste and sauce. Amish Paste tomatoes generally reach maturity in about 80 to 90 days and exhibit an indeterminate growth habit, meaning they continue to produce fruit throughout the growing season. The plants are vigorous and produce a substantial yield of large, firm tomatoes that require staking or caging to support their heavy fruit. With their storied history, outstanding flavor, and productive nature, Amish Paste tomatoes are a beloved choice for gardeners and home cooks alike.

The Premier Kale, or also known as Early Hanover, is a high yielding kale with delicious and nutritious green leaves. This kale is early maturing that produces high amounts of smooth, dark green leaves. Plant Premier in the fall so that it produces higher yields and resists bolting 4 weeks longer. This kale's taste is a favorite and is extremely high in antioxidants and beta carotene!

The Merlot Pepper produces huge yields of big peppers on tall healthy plants! This hybrid pepper is a tall plant that is highly resistant to tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and bacterial leaf spot (BST). This variety produces huge pepper yields on lush foliage that offers good protection for the newly formed bells. The Merlot begins off green, turns white, and finally begins to turn merlot purple when mature.

Musk has been found to have the highest quality flavor and aroma compared to any other strawberries. This wild strawberry is native to Europe. They are nick named bubble berries in Europe because their flavor is a mix of tastes that remind people of fruit bubble gum.

The Red Oxheart Tomato, also known as the Hungarian Heart, is an excellent flavored unique, "ox heart" shaped tomato variety. This tomato variety has vigorous vines that produce plenty of beautiful, red, tomatoes that weigh anywhere from 8 ounces at their smallest all the way to 2 pounds! These tomatoes have such a sweet and juicy flavor that will make you want to grow them for years!