Seeds to start indoors

The China aster , also known as the queen aster, is an upright, bushy, fast-growing annual prized for its abundant blooms and high ornamental value. Native to China, it thrives in both cultivated fields and wastelands, which explains its hardiness and adaptability.

This mixed variety offers a harmonious palette of colors, ranging from white to pink, including shades of apricot. The flowers recall the classic shape of daisies, with a yellow center surrounded by radiating florets, while also displaying a richness of texture characteristic of modern horticultural selections.

In the garden, the China aster stands out for its late flowering, which extends from mid-August until October. It thus becomes a key plant for maintaining the visual interest of the vegetable garden and flowerbeds when many summer flowers are fading. Its flowering continues until the first frosts, offering valuable continuity at the end of the season.

The Oka netted melon is a heritage variety deeply rooted in Quebec's agricultural history. In 1893, four Trappist monks settled in the parish of Oka, where they began the patient work of selecting and adapting crops to the local climate. It was from a cross between the famous Montreal netted melon ( Cucumis melo 'Montreal') and the old American cultivar Banana ( Cucumis melo 'Banana') that Trappist Father Athanase obtained the 'Oka' melon.

From this crossbreeding emerged an early-maturing variety, well-suited to relatively short growing seasons, which can be successfully cultivated in most regions of Quebec. The fruits are recognizable by their heavily reticulated, or netted, skin and their thick, beautiful orange flesh. When ripe, the melon releases a characteristic sweet aroma and offers a rich, balanced flavor, highly prized when eaten fresh.

In the garden, the Oka netted melon needs warmth, sun, and rich, well-drained soil. The plants are vigorous and trailing, requiring space to reach their full potential. Its earliness is a significant advantage in northern climates, allowing for a satisfactory harvest even when summers are shorter or unpredictable.

In the local community, this melon is seen as a plant of transmission and patience. It embodies the ingenuity of gardeners and seed producers who have crossbred, observed, and selected varieties capable of sustainably feeding local communities, while offering remarkable taste.

Native to the mountainous regions of Europe and Asia, mountain lovage, often called common lovage or mountain celeriac, is a large umbellifer that naturally finds its place in a living garden. Its glossy green, deeply cut, and fragrant foliage is reminiscent of celery, while its upright stems bear, in summer, large umbels of small greenish-yellow flowers.

Planted in welcoming, cool, and well-drained soil, this robust perennial faithfully returns year after year, offering both a welcoming presence and a generous harvest of aromatic leaves. Its tall stature structures the edges of a vegetable garden or a quiet corner of the garden, where it participates in the cycle of seasons with admirable consistency. In a deeply rooted approach to respectful cultivation, lovage is a reliable plant, discreet yet essential in the garden.

Red Oak Leaf Lettuce, native to Europe and highly prized in organic vegetable gardens, is admired for its finely cut leaves in deep purple hues. A symbol of freshness and elegance, it displays a light silhouette in the garden that sways in the summer breeze.

In the vegetable garden, it is generous and quick-growing, offering an early harvest of tender leaves, perfect for adding a burst of color and sweetness to the plate. Its discreet yet assertive nature makes it a faithful ally for gardeners attentive to the diversity and beauty of their crops.

Originating in Italy , the Costata Romanesco zucchini is an heirloom variety with an elegantly ribbed shape that evokes rustic markets and the bountiful gardens of the Mediterranean basin. Highly prized for its tender flesh with a mild and fragrant flavor , it holds a place of honor in Italian cuisine, whether roasted, stuffed, sautéed, or eaten raw in salads .

In the garden, it stands out for its compact, bushy habit , vigorous foliage , and ease of cultivation , even in more temperate climates. Its light green skin, marbled with dark streaks, gives it not only a distinctive appearance but also makes it suitable for cooking . It produces abundantly throughout the summer , and its young fruits can be harvested early for delicate and easily digestible dishes.

Rustic, productive, and rooted in a living tradition, Costata Romanesco is a valuable ally for organic vegetable gardens . It inspires simple, fresh, and colorful cooking, while nourishing the garden and the family with elegance and generosity .

Originating in the South of France, the Round Courgette of Nice has naturally found its place in kitchen gardens, where its round, light green fruit has long been a staple in stuffed vegetable recipes. An old variety of courgette, it forms bushy plants that thrive in warm, fertile soil, helping to create a bountiful garden.

In the vegetable garden, this zucchini quickly produces a succession of round fruits, generally harvested young when their tender skin and delicate flesh are at their best. In a harmonious garden, it thrives alongside other summer vegetables and, with its foliage, helps to cover the soil and retain moisture. It is a reliable plant, productive throughout the growing season when harvested regularly.

The Orange Wonder snapdragon belongs to the species Antirrhinum majus , the garden snapdragon, a classic companion to natural flowerbeds. Native to the Mediterranean region, this species has been adopted in many gardens for its dense flower spikes and long flowering period. The Orange Wonder selection is distinguished by its warm orange hues, a welcome addition to any garden or ornamental space.

In the garden, snapdragons form upright clumps topped with dense flower spikes that gradually open over the weeks. Their structuring presence consistently accompanies the cycle of the seasons: first green foliage, then a long flowering period. In a harmonious garden, they find their place both in beds and borders, and can provide a source of nectar for visiting insects where the soil is welcoming and minimally disturbed.

Italian rocket Sylvetta is a small leafy vegetable, known for its high cold resistance and remarkable stability in cultivation. Unlike common rocket, it has very little tendency to bolt, making it a particularly interesting variety to grow in Quebec.

Its finely cut leaves develop a pronounced nutty flavor, more intense and deliciously peppery than that of annual rocket. This aromatic richness is fully expressed when the leaves are harvested young, between 10 and 15 cm tall.

In the garden, Sylvetta stands out for its rapid growth and great versatility. It allows for successive sowings every two weeks, ensuring a continuous harvest over a long period. Very hardy, it adapts well to outdoor cultivation in spring and autumn, as well as to container gardening. It can even be grown indoors during the winter, providing fresh greenery out of season.

Under the evocative name Food Not Lawns – Remix , this poppy mix finds its natural place in a bountiful, productive garden. The delicate, silky poppy flowers sway in the breeze, marking the rhythm of the seasons with their colorful blooms. Their presence brings a touch of lightness to both vegetable gardens and flowerbeds, in a living garden approach that embraces diversity.

In welcoming, well-drained soil, poppies quietly make their way to the top, creating vibrant little scenes day by day. Once established, they require little but offer much: consistent flowering, a graceful silhouette, and a unique way of evoking the simplicity of traditional direct sowing in the garden. They integrate naturally into any harmonious space, whether it be a vegetable patch, a border, or a more natural corner, and contribute to the creation of a rich and diverse ecosystem.

Native to the mountains of Europe , the alpine strawberry 'Yellow Wonder' is a small botanical marvel that delights with its creamy-yellow fruit , boasting very sweet and fragrant flesh . This alpine variety, which does not produce runners , is prized for its compact, bushy habit , making it perfect for borders, planters , or as a perennial ground cover in eco-friendly gardens.

In the garden, 'Yellow Wonder' proves to be a discreet and generous companion , offering abundant and continuous harvests throughout the season, right up until the first frosts . Its natural hardiness and ability to thrive in light, well-drained, and undemanding soils make it an ideal plant for vibrant and resilient vegetable gardens .

Its nectar-rich white flowers attract numerous pollinating insects , enhancing local biodiversity. When ripe, the fruits fall to the ground on their own, signaling their peak flavor — but they must be eaten or processed quickly , as their fragility is also part of their refinement.

'Yellow Wonder' embodies a form of wild and rare indulgence , inviting contemplation, careful gathering, and wonder at simple gardens.

Originating from Italian market gardening traditions, the Aunt Mary's Paste tomato has carved out a prime spot in vegetable gardens seeking rich and fragrant sauces. Its elongated fruits, typical of "paste" type tomatoes, evoke the age-old rituals of slow cooking and preserving, lined up in the pantry.

In the garden, this variety proves to be a reliable companion during sunny summers. The indeterminate plants produce an abundance of elongated fruits suitable for processing. In a vibrant and bountiful garden, it contributes to the daily pleasure of summer harvests and the beautiful consistency of the seasonal cycle.

The Giant Bulgarian leek is an impressive heirloom variety, renowned for its exceptional hardiness and ability to withstand early frosts. Cultivated for generations, it stands out for its spectacular growth and slender stature, making a striking addition to the vegetable garden.

Its long, well-formed stem can reach up to 60 cm, offering a generous and consistent harvest. The texture is firm, the flavor pronounced yet balanced, becoming noticeably sweeter as temperatures drop. Like many hardy varieties, it improves with cold weather, becoming more tender and flavorful throughout autumn and early winter.

In the garden, the Bulgarian Giant leek is perfectly suited to cool climates. It thrives with a long, gradual growing season and rich, deep, well-worked soil. Its hardiness makes it an excellent choice for self-sufficient vegetable gardens, where it provides abundant and reliable production throughout the cold season.

In the local area, this leek is seen as a plant of consistency and resilience. It embodies those foundational crops that structure the vegetable garden, provide lasting nourishment, and remind us of the importance of vegetables that can support gardeners well beyond the summer.

The result of a rigorous and deeply human scientific approach, this exceptional red onion was born in the research fields of the University of Wisconsin. For several years, Dr. Michael Havey, a renowned horticultural geneticist, and his team pursued a simple yet ambitious idea: to develop an onion variety with a round, dense bulb and a single center, perfect for producing uniform slices. This project, carefully conducted within the USDA Onion Lab breeding program, embodies an approach rooted in knowledge, patience, and attention to detail.

When the program ended, this remarkable lineage was entrusted to the Gardens of the Ecumene so that it could continue to thrive in the hands of gardeners. Since then, this variety has been cultivated with passion, passed on to a community that has given it a name, a place, and a future in living vegetable gardens.

In the garden, it stands out for its vigorous, upright growth habit, good tolerance to climatic variations, and impressive production capacity. The bulbs that form are firm, glossy, and a deep red, and their finely detailed internal structure makes them easy to cut. In well-prepared soil, it offers excellent consistency and adapts readily to garden plots, whether for individual or community use. It thus embodies the balance between horticultural innovation and the age-old practice of sowing seeds, between high quality and ease of cultivation.

Old Acadian Savory is a heritage variety deeply rooted in the cultural and human history of Atlantic Canada. Towards the end of the 19th century, its seeds were passed on to Jean Prudent Robichaud , a resident of Robichaud Township in New Brunswick, by an Indigenous woman from Burnt Church . Since then, the plant has been passed down through generations within this extended family, eventually reaching Norbert Robichaud in Bathurst, who contributed to its modern-day dissemination.

In 2012, a joint investigation by Ms. Gauvin and Mr. Robichaud documented the origin and unique characteristics of this savory, which is noticeably sturdier and more flavorful than the common variety. Following this research, seeds were entrusted to the Atlantic Seed Bank and the Canadian Seed Library , ensuring the preservation of this treasure of plant heritage.

In the garden, this savory stands out for its vigor, compact habit, and rich aroma. Hardy to zone 4, it flowers profusely throughout the summer, attracting a wide variety of pollinating insects. Its abundant flowering and fragrant foliage make it as beautiful as it is useful.

In the local community, Old Acadian Savory is seen as a plant of transmission and recognition. It embodies the circulation of knowledge between Indigenous cultures and gardening families, as well as the importance of the living conservation of heritage seeds.

Native to the tropical regions of West Africa, Hibiscus Roselle has spread throughout the world as an ornamental and culinary plant. Known for its vibrant red calyces used in infusions, it invites gardeners on a journey of tangy and colorful flavors.

In the garden, it stands out for its upright habit and generous summer blooms of large flowers, sometimes pink or creamy yellow. Its cultivation offers a refreshing touch of the exotic and plays an essential role for lovers of natural beverages.

It is a variety with a warm and robust character that integrates naturally into a perennial garden with a focus on food and medicinal uses, offering both beauty and practical uses.

Native to East Asia, purple shiso ( Perilla frutescens var. crispa ) has long graced the gardens and kitchens of Japan, China, and Korea. In a vibrant garden, its deeply serrated, dark purple foliage, sometimes tinged with green, immediately catches the eye. It establishes itself as a light and airy aromatic annual, discreetly accompanying the cycle of the seasons.

In the vegetable garden, purple shiso thrives in borders or among leafy greens. It appreciates welcoming soil rich in organic matter and the gentle warmth of summer. Its fragrance, somewhere between basil, mint, and anise, makes it a valuable companion for a diverse and productive garden. In an environmentally conscious approach, it is often allowed to flower for pollinators before harvesting a few seeds, in an age-old practice of seed stewardship.

The Rossa di Milano onion is an open-pollinated variety known for its balance of flavor, productivity, and storage potential. It produces medium-sized, well-formed bulbs characterized by a thin neck and a dark red, glossy, and very tight skin that effectively protects the bulb at maturity.

Its flesh is mild and pleasant, making it a versatile onion that is equally enjoyed raw or cooked. The plants are uniform and productive, offering an abundant harvest when growing conditions are well maintained. The bulbs reach an average diameter of approximately 10 cm.

In the garden, Rossa di Milano behaves like a long-day onion, tolerating cooler climates well. It requires a full season to reach its full potential, but rewards patience with excellent storage qualities. Steady growth, without water stress, promotes the formation of tight, long-lasting bulbs.

In the local culture, this onion is seen as a plant of consistency and mastery. It illustrates the importance of taking the long time in the vegetable garden, where rigorous techniques and attention to detail allow for reliable and flavorful harvests, designed as much for the table as for storage.

Native to Europe, the Winter Red romaine lettuce is prized for its reddish leaves and slightly robust flavor, adding a touch of color and character to winter salads. Traditionally valued for its cold hardiness, this variety is a welcome addition to organic vegetable gardens, extending harvests beyond the first frosts.

In the garden, it stands out for its hardiness and its ability to retain its crispness despite the frosts. Its upright habit and toothed leaves, tinged with deep purple hues, make it a valuable companion that withstands low temperatures well while providing visual and gustatory diversity.

Drawn from a diverse selection of several types of head lettuce, this colorful composition celebrates the natural diversity of textures and hues. From tender green to deep red, each plant becomes a visual accent in the garden space, enriching neighboring crops with its calming presence.

In the garden, the Colorful Mix is ​​a reliable choice. Its compact habit and well-formed heads make it an ideal variety for sunny spots, dense flowerbeds, or container gardening. Thanks to its varying maturity dates, it offers a staggered harvest, combining daily enjoyment with a respectful rhythm. If you love ultra-crisp lettuces, this mix will become your go-to. With their compact, protected hearts, head lettuces keep longer than leafy varieties, allowing you to enjoy their freshness for several days while reducing waste. Resilient and generous, this lettuce thrives in welcoming, slightly moist soil, revealing its full potential in a garden that is rooted and in harmony with a living garden.

Glaskins Perpetual rhubarb is one of those plants that establishes a lasting presence in the vegetable garden. Belonging to the large group of rhubarbs cultivated for their fleshy, tangy stalks, it sends its roots deep into cool, rich soil, from which it faithfully regrows each spring. Its large, upright leaves form a clump, creating a tranquil corner, like a small island of shade in the heart of the vegetable patch.

In a garden in harmony with the cycle of the seasons, rhubarb offers one of the first harvests of spring and early summer. It supports a deeply rooted approach: we observe its emergence from the soil, understand its needs for water and compost, and act accordingly to keep it vigorous for many years. Beyond its culinary value, this perennial structures the vegetable garden landscape, covers the soil around it, and integrates naturally into a diverse and vibrant food-producing space.