Well, I know it doesn’t seem like it, but eventually Spring will arrive. February is already upon us and soon it will be planting season for Oconee County gardeners. I know this to be true because nearly every day there is a new gardening catalog in my mailbox. I toss most of these into the recycling bin, but there are a few that I really like. Now is the time to be placing orders for gardening supplies from gardening catalogs.

There are many gardening suppliers out there. Many are based locally; Athens Seed Company, Thomas Orchards and Nursery, Outdoor Specialty and Cofer’s Garden Showplace are all locally owned. I shop at all of these fine garden centers and recommend you do the same.

But nothing beats perusing a garden catalog for hours in the dead of winter and selecting everything you need for your spring garden. So, in the winter I tend to shop from garden catalogs and visit the garden centers in the spring.

One of my favorite gardening supply vendors is Gardener’s Supply Company. Their catalog is organized intuitively, and the variety of their products is outstanding. I usually recommend this supplier to folks who are ‘real gardeners.’

What are ‘real gardeners’? I use this horticultural term of my own invention to describe gardeners who start their plants from seed. Remember, February is the month for starting most of your vegetable plants.

For those gardeners who do not have the time or patience to start their own vegetable or flower starts from seed, I recommend they buy ornamental plants from Spring Hill Nursery and vegetable starts from Gurney’s Seed and Nursery Company. Both of these companies offer good customer service and quality products.

All of the aforementioned garden catalogs are online. To me, a computer screen can’t replace the feel of great catalog in your paws. Gardening catalogs offer cooped-up, cabin-fevered gardeners the ability to live vicariously in the garden on the gloomiest winter days. The glossy color pictures and neat ideas get the old brain thinking about the harvest to come. 

So quit steaming up the windows staring out at your garden plot, and stick your nose in a gardening catalog.