Seed Subscription: Vegetable, Cool Climate, Spring 2025

Subscriptions are an excellent way to explore new seed varieties without having to spend time choosing the seeds yourself, and are perfect for busy gardeners, delivering seeds and all the information you need to plant them directly to your letterbox. 

Each season we’ll choose a selection of seed varieties tailored to your climate, and send you the seeds plus a colour information sheet with photos, tips and sowing information - all you need to do is plant!

You are currently viewing a single season of seeds which can be purchased individually. To subscribe to a years worth of seeds click here.

Seeds included in this subscription:

• 

  Cucumber- Poinsett

  Summer salad vegetable. Fruits are deep green with small white coloured spines and grow to 20cm by 6cm in size. Sweet and refreshing to eat; good for slicing. This variety has better disease resistance than most.

  Sow direct or raise seedlings, 10mm. Germination 4-10 days @ 18-35°C.Annual. Rows 80cm, Spacing 40cm. 60-70 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Lettuce- Parris Island Cos

  Popular salad vegetable. Large medium green leaves; slightly savoyed with smooth edges. This variety is often grown for baby leaves. Fast growing.

  Sow direct or raise seedlings, 3mm. Germination 7-14 days @ 8-23°C.Annual. Rows 50cm, Spacing 30cm. 60-80 days (baby leaves in 30 days).

  Best months in Cool Climates: JAN FEB MAR APR MAY SEP OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Capsicum- Yolo Wonder

  Medium plant growing to 60cm. Has dense foliage that protects fruit from sunburn. Sweet and crisp green bell type fruits that mature to red. Good disease resistance. Capsicum is also known as "Sweet pepper".

  Sow direct or raise seedlings, 5mm. Germination 7-21 days @ 22-35°C.Perennial (grown as an annual in cool climates). Rows 100cm, Height 60cm, Spacing 50cm. 90-100 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: SEP OCT NOV (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Winter Squash- Vegetable Spaghetti

  A vigorous vine yielding yellow 30cm fruits. Boil or bake whole, then use the mild, slightly crisp flesh like spaghetti. Also suitable for salads, sauces, stews, and casseroles. Known as "Spaghetti squash".

  Sow direct, 15mm. Germination 5-10 days @ 21-35°C.Annual. Rows 120cm, Spacing 100cm. 80-115 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• ---

• 

  Carrot- Scarlet Nantes

  An almost coreless variety with a sweet flavour and crisp texture that colours early, making it suitable for baby carrots. Bright red-orange cylindrical roots grow up to 15cm long. An early maturing variety that's adaptable to heavier soil types.

  Sow direct, 4mm. Germination 10-20 days @ 10-30°C.Biennial (usually grown as an annual). Rows 25cm, Spacing 5cm. 70 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: JAN FEB MAR AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Eggplant- Rosita

  A 1940s Puerto Rican heirloom eggplant variety. Teardrop-shaped, lavender pink fruit with white shoulders. Grows to 120cm, prolific in hot climates. Sweet, mild white flesh with late-developing seeds. Tender skin.

  Sow direct or raise seedlings, 5mm. Germination 7-21 days @ 24-32°C.Perennial (grown as an annual in cool climates). Rows 80cm, Height 120cm, Spacing 70cm. 75-80 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Zucchini- Genovese

  Plants produce oblong light green fruit that tends to bulb out slightly at the end. Flesh is firm but tender and sweet. Skin is thin so no need to peel. Flowers can be dipped in batter and fried, or stuffed with cream cheese. Best picked when young.

  Sow direct, 20mm. Germination 7-14 days @ 21-35°C.Annual. Rows 100cm, Spacing 75cm. 50 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: SEP OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Tomato- Dancing With Smurfs

  Red cherry tomato with a deep indigo-blue blush especially on the top. Produces prolific clusters of juicy tomatoes that have a well-balanced sweet-tart flavour. Disease resistant variety bred by Tom Wagner in 2012. Indeterminate growth.

  Sow direct or raise seedlings, 5mm. Germination 5-10 days @ 21-27°C.Annual. Rows 60-70cm, Spacing 50cm. 65-75 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: SEP OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Bush Bean- Strike

  Dwarf (bush) bean. Round green pods to 14cm. Stringless. Excellent sweet flavour. Very high yielding.

  Sow direct, 20mm. Germination 7-10 days @ 20-26°C.Annual. Rows 50cm, Spacing 10cm. 55-65 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: JAN OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

• 

  Corn, Sweet- Golden Bantam

  Plants grow to 150cm and produce golden cobs up to 17cm with golden yellow kernels. Very good flavour. Early cropping.

  Sow direct, 20mm. Germination 5-14 days @ 16-35°C.Annual. Rows 75cm, Height 150cm, Spacing 30cm. 75-85 days.

  Best months in Cool Climates: JAN OCT NOV DEC (Click for full sowing chart, grow guide and more)

Tips for gardening in spring:

Spring Gardening

Tips for gardening in spring:

Spring cleaning: Use this checklist to carry out a garden inspection. 

• Plant damage - look for plants damaged by winter rains, cold temperatures, frost, snow, or wind. 
• Tidy up plants and provide stakes or support where necessary. Make a note of which plants will need protection from winter weather for next year. Also look for rodent or deer damage on woody plants, and evidence of new rabbit burrows or new shoots being eaten by rabbits. Protect plants with wire cages where appropriate.
• Hardscaping and outdoor living areas - check paving and decking for algae and mould and give it a good clean. Sweep patios and paths, and clean outdoor furniture. Gravel paths might need resurfacing. Check decks, benches, sheds, fences and wooden trellises for rotting timber. Walls that have become bowed may need fixing or reinforcing, and stepping stones or paving that has shifted may cause a trip hazard.
• Check gutters and drains - clearing out leaves and twigs reduces potential fire hazards and ensures any rainwater can run off easily. 
• Irrigation system - check for leaks and parts that need to be repaired and unclog sprinkler heads that have become clogged with debris.
• Clean up garden beds - rake up old plant debris and matted fallen leaves if you didn’t do this in autumn. Doing so keeps pests and diseases at bay that thrive under such conditions. 
• Clean out bird baths and remove debris from water features and ponds.

Soil preparation: Boost soil structure and fertility by sprinkling with a slow-release organic fertiliser and topdressing with well-rotted compost or well-aged manure. Take extra care if using chicken manure, and use it sparingly, as it can be high in ammonia which can burn your plants. 

It is helpful to test your soil every 3-5 years to check if it is becoming deficient (or too rich) in any particular nutrient. The pH of the soil can sometimes limit the uptake of certain nutrients, so checking the pH is a good place to start. If necessary, amend the soil accordingly.  

Refresh the soil in pots and containers. Over time, nutrients are used up and soil may become compacted or hold less water. Repot suitable plants (divide if appropriate) into fresh potting mix, or simply remove the top few centimetres of soil and replace with fresh mix.

Get planting: If you haven’t already planned your garden, sort through your seeds and decide what you want to plant and where. If it’s still a bit cold in your area, you can start seeds indoors on a heat mat or in a mini greenhouse. If sowing directly in the garden, try the scatter method of sowing for a more informal approach this year.

If any of the flowers or vegetables you are planning on planting require support like stakes or trellises, set them up when you sow your seeds. This avoids disturbing the roots of newly emerging seedlings and young plants later on. 

In some areas there may still be a risk of frost, so keep an eye on the weather report and be ready to protect your plants from a sudden cold snap. A layer of mulch or frost cloth, or even a cloche over early seedlings can help.

Pests and diseases to look out for in spring:

Slugs and snails: Snail and slug eggs that have overwintered begin to hatch as the weather warms up. Baby snails and slugs start feeding immediately and cause as much damage to flowers and vegetable seedlings as the adults. Control and reduce their number by picking them off and removing weeds and places that provide refuge for them. If you choose to use bait, do so with caution as most baits can be toxic to pets and other wildlife.

Sap-sucking insects: Infestations of aphids and whitefly can detrimentally affect your plants. Female aphids can give birth to live young without the need to mate, and colonies multiply very rapidly when conditions are favourable. Adult whiteflies are usually only seen when they are disturbed and fly up in a cloud. Try physically removing these pests by squirting with a garden hose, or use a homemade pyrethrum spray or eco oil.

Product code: SS_VEG_COOL_SPR_2025