Zone 8 - What to Plant in January

Zone 8 - What to Plant in January

January is the time to start your garden in zone 8. To be ready for the last frost you should start all transplants inside in January so you're ready to go. 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 Corno Di Toro Giallo Pepper is a great cooking variety, as it is an old-time Italian sweet frying pepper! Corno di Toro peppers, also known as "Bull's Horn" peppers, are a prized variety cherished for their impressive size, distinct shape, and exceptional flavor. These peppers are characterized by their elongated, tapered form, resembling a bull’s horn, and their vibrant yellow color when ripe. Known for their sweet, mild taste with just a hint of spice, Corno di Toro peppers are versatile and can be enjoyed both raw and cooked. Their thick, meaty flesh holds up well in grilling, roasting, and stuffing, making them ideal for a range of culinary applications. Beyond their culinary uses, these peppers are also valued for their high yields and productivity in the garden, thriving in warm, sunny conditions with well-drained soil. Corno di Toro peppers not only enhance the flavor of dishes but also add a striking visual element with their unique shape and vibrant hues.

The Red Sails Lettuce is a full rosette type that produces radiant bronze-red, ruffled and deeply lobed leaves that have a mild bitter-free flavor that pairs very well in salads. This slow-bolting lettuce is ready to cut early and holds its quality very well. Red Sails has six times the vitamin A and three times the vitamin C as other supermarket lettuces. This variety thrives in cool weather, but can also grow well in the spring, summer or fall.

A standout yellow tomato with exceptional flavor and improved performance. This updated version of the classic Lemon Boy offers enhanced disease resistance along with a bright, sweet-tangy taste that outshines many traditional yellow varieties. The flattened, round beefsteak fruits average 7–8 ounces and are uniform in size and shape with smooth, mostly blemish-free skin and good firmness. Plants are high yielding and widely adaptable thanks to a strong disease-resistance package that helps keep vines healthy and fruit clean. Harvest at a bright lemon-yellow stage or allow fruits to deepen to a rich golden color with a slight blush at the blossom end for fuller sweetness. Pick slightly early if you prefer a sharper, more acidic bite. Indeterminate plants produce over a long season.

Green Ice is a crispy loose-leaf lettuce that does well in hot weather! This variety produces an abundance of crunchy loose leaves. Green Ice's leaves are curled with deep green color. This lettuce is ready in just 45 days, it is among the earliest, yet will last well into summer thanks to its superior heat tolerance. Green Ice is one loose-leaf that just won't bolt!

The Cherry Belle Radish is the earliest maturing, garden standard radish. This variety is a 1949 All-American Winner and there is no wonder why. This radish retains its fine eating quality all season. The Cherry Belle is a round, smooth, scarlet beauty. This radish is 3/4" inches across with a crisp, white flesh that is ideal for garnishes or use in salads.

Snowball Y Improved cauliflower is a popular open pollinated variety! This cauliflower is known for its vigorous, rapid growth and long harvest. Its head is snow-white and measures 7-8" inches across. Give this cauliflower fertile soil, full sun and steady moisture and you'll be rewarded with large, delicious heads that are high in vitamin C.

The Little Caesar Lettuce is a very attractive tall romaine type with crisp, bright green outer leaves and golden-blanched inner leaves. This lettuce has a sweet, crunchy flavor that is delicious on any sandwich or salad. This variety is easy to grow and is perfect for smaller gardens. Little Caesar is best picked right before eating.

Yes, these mouth watering fruits are real! White Alpines are white, ornately speckled with red seeds. The unique pineapple flavor and aroma more than make up for the small, bite-size fruits. Easily could be a kid's favorite mini-berry to pick and snack. Once you try one of these mouth watering fruits you will have them in your garden for years to come!

Lakeside smooth leaf spinach with dark green leaves. It has a round to oval leaf shape with an upright plant habit that makes it easy to harvest. It is a very versatile variety it can be used for baby leaf, bunch or clip.

With their wide, slightly flattened shape, the Mater Sandwich Tomato is great for slicing and layering, making it the perfect sandwich variety! This tomato is a large, slightly flat deep red tomato that lies across a piece of bread perfectly, tempting you with bits of bright red showing on all four sides! It stays together well too, so you get its juicy-meaty flavor in every bite. The Mater Sandwich is the king of sandwiches!

The Green Towers Lettuce is an easy to grow, tasty green leaf lettuce. This lettuce variety offers a mild flavor with an attractive semi-savoyed texture. The Green Towers is a favorite for its adaptability and dense habit! This lettuce will grow great in any climate!

Caribbean Red Habanero is one of the hottest peppers available! This habanero is a wrinkled, red hot pepper that needs to be handled with caution! This variety can be picked green at around 70 days, but for a sweeter flavor, allow them to turn red!

Early maturing cabbage with tight heads! Stonehead is a fast grower with 6" heads that average between 4-6 lbs. when mature. Good texture and flavor. This hybrid resist yellow and black rot very well. A great market variety that matures early, won't split and holds well after harvest. Grows well throughout the United States. An All American Selection winner in 1969.

Black from Tula tomatoes are a notable heirloom variety with a fascinating history and distinctive qualities. Originating from the Russian city of Tula, this variety has been cherished for its rich, robust flavor and striking appearance. Black from Tula tomatoes are characterized by their dark, reddish-brown skin with purple undertones, giving them a unique and attractive look. The fruits are medium to large, typically weighing between 6 to 12 ounces, and are known for their complex, sweet, and slightly smoky flavor, which adds depth to salads, sandwiches, and sauces. They generally take about 75 to 80 days to mature, and the plants exhibit an indeterminate growth habit, producing a steady yield of fruit throughout the growing season. The vines are vigorous and require staking or caging to support the weight of the abundant, flavorful tomatoes. With their rich taste and visually appealing color, Black from Tula tomatoes are a favorite among gardeners and culinary enthusiasts alike.

The Golden Jubilee Tomato has a meaty, thick, golden-orange skin with a mild flavor and is an All American Selection winning tomato! This medium sized beefsteak has low acidity and high Vitamin C content, making it a great choice for fresh eating and perfect for home gardens! This tomato variety's fruits are produced in a heavy yield from upright and uniform indeterminate vines, which makes this variety easy to manage. The Golden Jubilee was first introduced in 1943 by the Maule Seed Company of Philadelphia and has a flavor that is not too strong and pairs well with other ingredients.

The Galaxy of Stars Eggplant is a breathtaking purple and white variety with a delicious flavor that is out of this world! This plump eggplant variety's unique striations will remind you of a galaxy full of stars. This plant produces fruits that are 3-4 inches long and are topped with a green calyx.

The Little Finger eggplants are slender, petite eggplants that are excellent for grilling and cooking. This eggplant has a dark purple skin is thin and tender with a silky flesh. This variety produces few seeds and a mildly sweet flavor. Harvest when the eggplant is young and glossy. Little Finger is a great variety for container growing and requires very little cooking time since it is so tender.

Fragaria vesca var. semperflorens ‘Improved Rügen’ is a refined strain of the classic Alpine strawberry, originally developed in Europe and prized for its reliability and extended production season. Unlike typical woodland strawberries that fruit once, ‘Improved Rügen’ is everbearing, producing a steady crop of small, conical red berries from late spring through fall. The fruit is exceptionally fragrant and sweet, with an intense wild-strawberry flavor that is richer and more complex than commercial varieties. Plants stay compact and runner-less, forming neat clumps covered in white blooms and abundant berries, making them ideal for borders, containers, and gourmet gardens where taste and ornamental appeal matter. Other names include Alpine Strawberry, Fraise du Bois, Baron Solemacher Strain