Catalogues:Passion or Obsession?

Snow flurries today and 11 degrees---seed catalogues arrive in the mail!!! I received my Burpee and Miller Nurseries today. I am salivating. The first thing I always do is look at all the pictured temptations on each page. Then I start back on page 1 and read the descriptions for each tasty morsel. Phrases like "tender", "bears very early and heavily", "continuous harvest", and "high-yields" catch my eye and I wonder- how does one get to be a writer for a seed catalog and who gets to eat all that produce in the glossy pictures?

I then remembered the Mother Earth News magazine I had received last month and turned to the article regarding the top 15 seed companies in the U.S.  Out of the 15 companies listed, little ole frozen, shortest growing season, not much sunlight,  Maine got 2?!? I was excited and visited both websites. I want to always be on the lookout for local businesses when purchasing any products but I am also cheap and know my limitations in doing so.

The first was johnnyseeds.com. And I really mean the 1st. Rated number 1 in Mother Earth News. They are based in Winslow, ME and their site was quite inviting. I looked around a bit and jotted down some notes before I signed up for their emails and free catalogue. I LOVE catalogues! So now it is like Christmas all over again for me. Wait, wait, wait---until that shiny, attractive, great smelling catalogue  magically appears in my mailbox. It will cheer me on and give me all the confidence in the world. "YOU can grow this, too!" is what they are saying. Yes I Can!

The second site I visited was Fedco Seeds- www.fedcoseeds.com (number 10 on the list). They weren't for me but I put it out there if you are so inclined to visit. You can't get a "real" catalogue from them (just online) but that isn't the cause of my dislike, just so you know.

So my next step is to get out all of my graph papers from the last 5 years and some blank pieces as well. I keep my seed packets from year to year as a reference and try to keep notes regarding the yield I achieved as well as any concerns. I make a very long wish list and then I make a practical one. I always try to add something different/new/interesting each year. This year will be "Miller-Certified Super Male Asparagus" from Miller Nurseries. Whoever wrote the summary in that catalogue gets all the credit for my purchase. How can I NOT order it?

Some might see me as a bit out of control in my excitement for the glossy paper, close up pictures, and lip smacking descriptions, but I would beg to differ. I know (from the energy here in New England) how important  tomorrow's football game is. I'm glad people hold that kind of passion- sorry to disappoint, but a passion for football when I can be dreaming of the spring's cold earth loosening as I run my fingers through the last of the unturned soil? Oh no. I must begin to plan. There isn't much time!