Plant Guide 2023
We love plants!
All our plants are started from seed here on the farm and raised in our greenhouse. All plants available at market are ready to plant, but can also live in their little pots until you are ready to plant them - just make sure to keep them watered. Plants are available for sale from the end of April through the end of May. Once we are out of a variety, we are out for the season. Current availability of plants for sale will be maintained in our online store.
A few tips for a successful home garden:
All vegetable plants thrive in full sun and the more space given to grow, the bigger the plant will get and the more it will yield. If growing in containers, stick to one plant per container and make sure you have a big enough container to support the plant.
Water regularly, plants benefit from being watered once per day.
Provide support for plants like tomatoes that love to climb. A stake and some twine can help support the plant or using fencing or a tomato cage.
Once the plant begins to fruit, make sure to harvest regularly to help the plant continue to produce more delicious garden goodness.
And, if you are have questions, ask! We are always happy to answer home gardening questions at the market or over email/direct message to the best of our ability.
Hot Peppers
Shishito: 100 to 1,000 Scoville Units. A Japanese heirloom that looks slightly wrinkled. One in 10 peppers has the potential to be mildly spicy. A favorite for grilling.
Cajun Belle: 500 to 4,000 Scoville Units. Tiny bell shaped peppers that are spicy and sweet. Ripens from green to red. 2010 AAS winner.
Dragon’s Toe: Reported to be milder than a jalapeño in heat on the seed site, but unable to find an exact Scoville rating. A wrinkly pepper that has a little sweet heat. Pepper ripens from green to red. We will not have Dragon’s Toe plants to sell this year, but plan to have many of the peppers at the market this summer!
Jalafuego: 4,000 to 6,000 Scoville Units. Our favorite type of jalapeño - they grow a little bit bigger and a little bit spicier and produce vigorously.
Devil Serrano: 6,000 to 30,000 Scoville Units. Spicier than a jalapeño and a little bit smaller. Peppers mature from dark green to red.
Chinese 5 Color: 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville Units. Little hot peppers that turn a rainbow of colors. You can see purple, cream, yellow, orange, and red peppers throughout the season. Peppers ultimately ripen to red.
Cayenne Thick: 35,000-40,000 Scoville Units. A long thick fleshed cayenne that ripens from dark green to bright red.
Datil: 100,000 to 300,000 Scoville Units. A super hot pepper with a fruity flavor. Peppers are approximately 3.5 inches long and ripen from green to orange.
Red Mushroom Scotch Bonnet: 100,000 to 200,000 Scoville Units. An early maturing Scotch Bonnet pepper. Scotch Bonnets are similar in heat to habaneros and are very hot and tasty. Ripens from green to red.
Orange Habanero: 150,000 to 350,000 Scoville Units. Very hot little peppers. Ripens from green to orange.
Chocolate Habanero: 300,000 to 577,000 Scoville Units. Even hotter than an orange habanero. Ripens from green to a chocolate brown.
Ghost - Bhut Jolokia: 1,000,000+ Scoville Units. Super super hot pepper that ripens from green to red. Considered one of the hottest in the world and originates from India. Requires a long growing season (the hotter the pepper, the longer it takes to ripen.)
Sweet Peppers
Yellow Monster: huge long yellow bell peppers that can grow to be 8 inches long and 4 wide. Ripens from green to yellow.
Purple Beauty: a purple bell pepper! These thick walled pepper ripen to a deep purple.
Ajvarski: a wedge shaped sweet pepper. Thick walled and tasty. These peppers ripen from green to red.
Violet Sparkle: a wedge shaped sweet pepper that is sweet and thick walled. Peppers mature from a pale yellow to purple.
Ashe County Pimento: sweet, thick walled pimento pepper. Can be eaten raw or can be cooked, roasted, or canned. Ripens from green to red.
Candy Cane: sweet striped snack sized peppers. Ripens from green with white stripes to red.
Candy Cane Chocolate Cherry: very similar to the candy cane pepper, except these peppers ripen from green with white stripes to red and chocolate colored.
Eggplant
Hansel: long purple eggplant that range in size from 2 to 10 inches with no bitterness and few seeds. From the same breeder as the fairy tale eggplant. 2008 AAS Winner.
Fairy Tale: small, purple and white stripped eggplants that grow in clusters. When harvested at about 4 inches long, they are sweet, bitter-free, and nearly seedless. 2005 AAS Winner.
Mitoyo: a large eggplant, tear dropped shaped, and nearly black in color. Tender and sweet, can even be eaten raw, and is often used for pickling.
Ping Tung: a long eggplant that grows up to 18 inches long and 2 inches in diameter. Named after it’s place of origin: Ping Tung, Taiwan.
Kamo: a gourmet Japanese eggplant. Regarded for having a creamy, dense flesh and sweet flavor.
Tomatoes
Paste Tomatoes
San Marzano II: high quality San Marzano strain produces 4 to 6 ounce heirloom paste tomatoes. Indeterminate.
Pomodoro Squisito: a San Marzano type paste tomato. Perfect for canning. This variety has resistance to blossom end rot. Indeterminate.
Andiamo: a San Marzano type tomato that produces 5” elongated paste tomatoes. Firm and meaty, perfect for all your tomato canning needs. Indeterminate.
Slicing & Beefsteak Tomatoes
Amana Orange: large beefsteak tomato, orange in color. Indeterminate.
Great White: a white beefsteak tomato. Plants usually produce 1 pound tomatoes that have a smooth, fruity flavor. Great for eating fresh. Indeterminate.
Blue Beauty: a cross between a beauty king and a blue tomato. 4 to 8 oz beefsteak tomato, red with blue-black shoulders. Indeterminate.
Carbon: an heirloom tomato that resists cracking. A good sized slicing tomato. Winner of best tasting tomato at the 2005 Heirloom Garden Show. Indeterminate.
Zapotec Oaxacan Ribbed: a large ribbed tomato that is red with a yellow blush. Can weigh up to 1 pound. These tomatoes are ideal for stuffing. Indeterminate.
Mountain Fresh Plus: a big red slicing tomato. Tomatoes weigh in at 8 to 16 ounces. Determinate.
Salad & Oxheart Tomatoes
Bread & Salt: an heirloom tomato. This oxheart type is large, dense, and meaty. Indeterminate.
Queen of the Night: a salad type black tomato. The tomato grows to around 3 ounces and has streaks of ebony, crimson, and orange. Indeterminate with a compact habit.
Tigerella: heirloom. A red tomato with orange stripes. This is a small tomato, weighing in at 3 to 4 ounces. Indeterminate.
Cherry Tomatoes
Tiger Pink: an artisan cherry tomato with an elongated shape. Pink with yellow stripes and has a sweet tropical flavor. Indeterminate.
Sunrise Bumble Bee: artisan cherry tomato that is orange, yellow, and red striped. Indeterminate.
Pink Bumble Bee: artisan cherry tomato that is pink with yellow stripes. Indeterminate.
Purple Bumble Bee: artisan cherry tomato that is dark red, purple with green stripes. Indeterminate.
Cucumbers
Cucumber plants will be available starting in May.
Marketmore 76: a slicing cucumber that is dark green and tends to produce 9 inch cucumbers.
Gherking: dark green 3 to 5 inch gherkins that is high yielding. Perfect for pickling.
Tokiwa “Tokyo Green”: a small cucumber with tender skin and few seeds. Can be used both for pickling (when picked very small) and slicing. Japanese variety, considered to be never bitter.
Beit Alpha: a sweet cucumber with tender skin and burpless. This cucumber has a smooth appearance and can be pickled, but we prefer to eat them fresh.
Adam Gherkin: a pickling cucumber that is high yielding, producing small crisp cucumbers.
Okra
Okra plants will be available starting in May.
Burgundy: red pods that can grow up to 10 inches long, but are tenderest at 7 inches or less. 1988 AAS Winner.
Jing Orange: slim, reddish-orange pods that can be harvested at 6 to 7 inches in length on 5 to 6 foot tall plants.
Jambalaya: early maturing green okra that grows on a compact plant. Can be grown in containers.
Herbs
Lemon Savory: perennial. A lemon scented version of winter savory.
Summer Savory: perennial. A bushy herb with delicate leaves and tender flavor.
Rosemary: tender perennial. Needle like leaves used in many dishes in the kitchen.
Parsley: flat leaf with stronger flavor than curly parsley.
Mexican Mint Marigold: also goes by Mexican Tarragon or Sweet Mace. Edible flowers and leaves with an anise flavor and hint of citrus.
Marjoram: herb provides a sweet flavoring and balance in cooking.
Oregano: perennial. Greek variety is the classic flavor used in Italian dishes.
Lemon Grass: annual in Kentucky, perennial in warmer climates (zones 9-11.) Tall fragrant grass can be used in culinary dishes, but also great in glower beds and landscapes.
Lemon Balm: perennial. Lemon flavored plant is part of the mint family. The leaves are often used for tea.
Hyssop Anise: perennial. grows purple flowers and is often used in teas.
Genovese Basil: heirloom Italian basil. This is the standard of basil when you think of basil.
African Nunum Basil: giant leaves and has a oregano flavor mixed with the basil flavor.
Thai Sweet Basil: sweet, spicy basil with a licorice taste. Used in Thai cuisine.
Persian Basil: lemony and spice-like aroma with green and purple leaves.
Chinese Sweet Basil: lemony, orange-flavored basil that is tender and aromatic.
Thai Holy Basil: bold and intense with notes of clove and black pepper.
Cinnamon/Mexican Basil: light cinnamon and anise flavors.
Lemon Basil: highly fragrant, zesty basil with a lemon flavor.
Dark Purple Opal Basil: a completely purple plant. Flavorful, rich, and sweet.
Blue Spice Basil: grows spikes of light purple flowers and has a spicy vanilla fragrance.
Thyme: culinary herb with small leaves. Considered a tender perennial, if planted in a container and kept indoors during the winter it is more likely to come back in the spring.
Chives: perennial with a mild onion flavor. Will be available starting in May.
Dukat Dill: our preferred variety of dill, tends to grow larger and hardier than fernleaf dill.
Cilantro: this herb bolts quickly in the heat, but enjoy it in the early summer!
Sorrel: perennial. Lemony leaves that can be used in salads and soups.
Dock - Bloody: perennial. a variety of sorrel that has red veined leaves and a lemony flavor.