Perennial leek vs Regular leek

Back in 2013 I wrote a blog post comparing perennial leeks with regular leeks.  I have since done a better comparison and thought I would write another blog post comparing leeks.

I was given seven small regular leeks by a very lovely neighbour when we moved to this house.  I didn't ask what the variety was.  I planted them in a raised garden bed and decided to plant seven perennial leeks in the next row as a comparison.  Both rows contained seven similar sized leeks. 

Both sets of leeks were planted 30/10/2016.  I then left them for a year and did nothing other than water them every so often.  I was careful not to dig up and eat any leeks from either of these rows during this time.

I dug up both sets of leeks on 27/10/2017 and took pictures of both sets.  I figured 12 months of growth (and relative neglect) should give me a decent comparison.

Leek comparison: Regular leeks on left, Perennial leeks on the right

Regular leeks 
The regular leeks didn't do very well for me.  I started with 7 plants each about the size of a pencil, after 12 months I ended up with two edible sized leeks, one small leek, and one small leek bulb growing off the base of one of the large leeks that could be replanted (you can't see the bulb in the photo).

Regular leeks

Perennial Leeks
The perennial leeks did a lot better for me.  Again I started with seven leeks each about the size of a pencil.  Each of the seven leeks grew to a large size.  At this size I usually wouldn't eat these leeks as they are too large.  Larger leeks tend to be tough so we often eat a lot of smaller leeks which are more tender.  As well as being large each of the seven grew 30 to 50 baby leeks of various sizes.

You will notice that each of these leeks has a rounded base.  When we cut these leeks up to eat for dinner we noticed that each of them had many, many leek bulbs in the base.  These leeks would have died down over summer and when the weather cools each of the bulbs would have sprouted into a new plant.

Perennial Leeks

Take a closer look at how perennial leeks work.  Each plant grows until it is reasonably large.  They are usually smaller than store bought leeks but that could be the way I grow them.  Then they start to send up baby leeks from their base.  If the weather gets too hot or dry they die down to odd little bulbs.  When the weather cools these bulbs all sprout and you end up with more than you planted.  Another name for perennial leeks is multiplier leeks, it is easy to see why this name is used as they multiply like crazy.

Perennial leek - note the baby leeks growing from the base

Perennial Leek vs Regular Leek Comparison Results
The first and most obvious thing I noticed from this comparison is that I obviously don't know how to grow leeks!  I wouldn't have planted seven leeks and ended up with three leeks if I knew what I was doing. Considering how many years I have been growing leeks this came as a surprise to me.

The second thing I noticed is (considering that I don't know how to grow leeks) the perennial leeks gave a great yield.  Look at the photo, there are plenty of edible sized leeks in there, and there are plenty of tiny leeks to replace them.

I have been growing perennial leeks for many years and always get large consistent crops.  I never give them much attention and there are always some leeks large enough to eat, and there are always plenty of small leeks to replace any I eat.

I want vegetables that feed my family and don't need much attention from me, so perennial leeks are great.  I want vegetables that reproduce themselves with no effort from me, and perennial leeks are great for this.  I want vegetables that will always be there for me even if I forget about them and don't look after them, and perennial leeks are great for this.  For all of these reasons I am not sure if I will grow regular leeks again.  Perennial leeks are just so easy and productive.  With perennial leeks you plant once and harvest forever, what is not not love!

Perennial leeks for sale in Australia

I sell organically grown perennial leek plants and other perennial vegetables, herbs, heirloom vegetable seeds and a few other things on my for sale page.  I also sell Babington leeks, which are another type of perennial leek, but it grows numerous bulbils on their flower stalk.  Babington leeks take longer to produce a crop than these perennial leeks but once they start producing food they are also very productive.

Babington's Leek - another rare perennial allium in Australia

Babington's Leek (Allium ampeloprasum var. babingtonii) is an extremely rare perennial leek that is unlike any other leek I have ever seen or heard of.  When this leek flowers it generally does not produce seed, instead it grows tiny leek bulbs on the flower head, kind of like the leek version of tree onions.  This topsetting habit makes it unique among leeks and makes it interesting to grow and draws attention to itself from everyone who sees it.

Babington's leek is rare in the world, so rare that it is almost extinct.  It is one of the rarest edible leeks that are in Australia.  Very few people grow them and almost no one has heard of them.  

There is little information on the internet about Babington's leek and much of what I did read seems to contradict each other.  Most of what I have read was either written in the old days, or (like most gardening books) was written by someone who has never grown or even seen a Babington's leek.  I find that kind of frustrating and would prefer to get information that has been obtained by personal experience or just go and work it out myself.  The person who I got these leeks from had not grown them for long so did not know much about them either.

Babington's leek flowering - note the bulbils starting to enlarge

It grows wild in Ireland, England and a few other little countries over there and is only semi-domestcated.  Like so many other alliums the origins of this plant have been lost in history.  Perhaps it was deliberately bred by some dedicated people, perhaps it happened on a roadside from spilled seed with just the right combination of genetics, perhaps it happened in the wild away from people completely and was discovered by chance.  Many people theorise that the Babington's leek is a relic from some ancient monastery, unfortunately we will never know for sure.  What we do know is that it has been around for a long time and there is not much of it anymore.

Babington's leek, much like any other allium, benefits from moisture and nutrients early in the season, the more the better.  That being said it can perform remarkably well in rocky or sandy soil and with minimal soil moisture, this productivity under harsh conditions is one of the benefits of being a semi-domesticated perennial vegetable.  From what I am told it does not cope with poorly drained soils, my garden does not suffer from this so I do not know about this from observation. 

Just like any other perennial leek, the Babington's leek tends to be dormant over summer and will die down to odd little bulbs.  I assume that in more mild climates and with more soil moisture that the Babington's leek could be convinced to grow through summer, but I am yet to try this myself.  I know that the perennial leeks I grow can be kept growing all year if provided with adequate soil moisture.

Babington's leek, another exceptional perennial vegetable

People in countries where Babington's leek are more common often eat the bulbils, they say that the bulbils taste like garlic.  They also eat the young flower scape in a similar way to garlic scapes and say that they taste similar.  I have never tried either of them and doubt I will get a chance any time soon as I am trying to increase the numbers of this rare plant.


What does Babington's leek taste like
I love the taste of leek, it is a very underrated vegetable in my opinion.  Babington's leek tastes much like every other leek.  I have eaten a few varieties of leek over the past few years and to be honest can not tell the difference between them.  I have read that Babington's leek may be more fibrous but from my limited experience this is not the case.  Over summer it will die down to bulbs, I am told that these bulbs taste much like garlic.  I have not tried them yet as I am trying to increase my stock but it does stand to reason as Giant Russian Garlic is another variety of perennial leek.

Babington's leek is extremely rare, in Australia it is almost unheard of.  For this reason, if you grow them, please do not kill the plants when you harvest the leeks.  Like every other variety of leek, you can harvest by cutting them off and leaving the roots in the soil to regrow.  Another method is to pull up the plant, cut off the roots with a few mm of shank attacked and put this in a jar with a tiny amount of water to sprout.  They only need a tiny amount of water, just touching the roots is enough, too much water will cause the whole thing to rot.  After this has sprouted it can be replanted into the garden to grow.  In this way you can have your leek and eat it too.

Babington's leek starting to flower, the bulbils will grow and the flowers will fall off as it grows

 How to reproduce Babington's leek

Your stock of Babington's leek can be increased in a few ways.  By not killing the plants when you harvest them stops you from losing plants but does not stop you from eating them.  This does not increase the number of plants you have and usually prevents the plant from flowering that year, but it does stop you from having any less which is a good first step with something as rare as these.

The plant will die down to a bulb each summer, many times this bulb will divide in a similar way to garlic (but into less cloves) and can be dug up, split apart and replanted.  This is a slow and steady way to increase your stock.  Quite often this will result in a few extra large plants, most of which will flower the following season.

The larger plants will send up a flower stalk each year.  This flower stalk will produce some flowers as well as some bulbils.  Please do not remove the flower stalk, it is kind of the whole point behind growing Babington's leek.  While removing the flower head may result in larger underground bulb or a larger leek plant you could simply grow regular perennial leeks if this is what you are after.  When it is ready the bulbils may fall off the plant and start to grow all by themselves, but a better way is to remove them and plant them somewhere safe.  Every bulbil should sprout and grow for you, if left to their own devices anything could happen and the bulbils may be lost. 

It may take 2 or 3 years for these bulbils to send up flower stalks of their own, or if you treat them well they may flower in their first year, but once you have a flowering sized Babington's leek plant it will provide you with many bulbils each year.  I am lead to believe that each year the number of bulbils increases significantly.  It would not be difficult to have a small patch of Babington's leek where one plant is left to produce bulbils each year and the rest are harvested and eaten.

It may be possible to obtain some seed from Babington's leek, in order to do this you would probably have to remove most/all of the bulbils so that the plant can put energy into the seeds rather than the bulbils.  I have not yet done this as I wanted the bulbils, but when I do I will grow the seeds and if anything remarkable comes of them I will try to distribute them.  I assume that seed grown plants will display a lot of variation, some will invariably be less exciting than the parent stock, but there is a chance that something remarkable may come out as well.  We need people to breed these things and enrich our country with them.


Where to buy Babington's leek in Australia

I sell Babington's leek bulbils and small plants on my for sale page as soon as they are ready.  Before you buy them please read about how to grow Babington's leek.  I have a range of other perennial vegetables, some herbs, some heirloom vegetable seeds, and a few other things listed on that page too.  Unfortunately I can not rush the Babington's leek, when they are ready they are ready and when I sell out then I have to wait until the following summer for more to grow.  Bulbils should be ready in Summer but they will not start to grow until Autumn/Winter.

Comparing Perennial Leeks with Regular Leeks

Perennial Leeks

Perennial leeks are rare and difficult to find in Australia for some reason, yet they are simple to grow and one of the best and most productive vegetables to grow for home gardeners.  I would hate to be without them again, if we ever lost them in a bushfire or something I would be devastated.  I have had a lot of questions about the perennial leeks from different people, so thought it best that I write another post and answer some of them.

Perennial leeks - note the baby leeks growing from their bases

 What are they, how to grow perennial leeks?

I have some growing notes here.  I will tell you a few things now that were not covered in my growing notes page.

Perennial leeks are an amazing plant, they are hardy, productive and delicious.  People often ask when to plant perennial leeks, we plant and divide perennial leeks all year.  When we harvest a leek for dinner I then plant the small baby leeks that are growing from the large one's base.  It is only over the hotter summers when the plants are dormant that we do not harvest leeks, even then I occasionally dig up the bulbs and plant them out in other places.  Even when we lived near Canberra we could divide and plant them all year, the frost and the heat does not seem to be too much of an issue with them.

Summers here are extremely hot and dry and the leeks tend to die down to bulbs, in cooler climates or even cooler years they grow all year.  They flower here but generally nothing comes of it.  One year after floods we had them set viable seed which I think was a cross between the leeks and elephant garlic, that year the flower heads also grew small leek bulbs in the same way that tree onions grow small onions on the flower stalk.  These things have only happened that once and I have not been able to convince them to flower since.

Some people ask me how they compare with other types of leek.  When I wrote my first perennial leek post I had never grown or eaten any other varieties of leek to be able to compare, since then I have grown and eaten some regular leeks so can compare them.  I considered buying some leek seeds to grow, but I have grown onion seed and find them fiddly so did not want to do that if I did not have to.  The leeks in the supermarket were so much larger, both longer and fatter than the perennial leeks, so we bought some for dinner a few times just to see if they were any better.  After cutting off the roots with a few mm of shank I put them in a jar with a little water and they sprouted.  We used to do that with the perennial leeks to build up numbers the first year that we had them so figured it should work with any leek.  It worked fine and the regular leeks grew well.  I then grew the two types of leek, perennial and store bought, in adjacent beds to see how they compared. 

Perennial leeks - I need to take a few more pictures for this post

Comparing Perennial Leeks with Regular Leeks

Below is roughly how they fared compared with each other.  Please try to keep in mind I only grew them over one year, I had an unknown commercial supermarket strain (or several unknown strains), and had small numbers of store bought leeks so this comparison is far from scientific:

The store bought leeks taste pretty much the same as the perennial leeks, no noticeable difference there.  Some people who I have sold perennial leeks to have claimed that the perennial leeks are sweeter or tastier, but I am not convinced that I could tell any difference.  Both types of leek cooked the same, neither one was tough or bitter or anything like that.

While the store bought leeks were larger, the perennial leeks grew faster and sent up a lot of babies and we ended up with a greater harvest of perennial leeks compared to store bought leeks on the same area of land.  So from a yield per area of garden the perennial leeks came out on top by a long way.  When harvesting perennial leeks there are always baby leeks that you can use as replacements, which maximises the use of space.

The perennial leeks reproduce slowly throughout the year, then around November they explode in numbers.  From one well grown plant I ended up with 128 leeks in 12 months.  During this time I would have been able to eat leeks as well as increase their number had I wished.  The store bought leeks did not flower in the 12 months, but I assume had I left them in for another 6 months or so they would have flowered and produced hundreds if not thousands of seeds.  I guess there is a trade off here, the store bought leeks would have reproduced more than the perennial leeks if they had more time, but we would not have eaten leek during that long time.  The time it would take to go from a seed to an edible leek is also a lot longer than to go from a baby perennial leek to an edible sized leek.

When saving leek seed it is advisable to grow out at a minimum of 80 plants to prevent problems with inbreeding depression, you would then rouge out any plants with undesirable characteristics (minimum numbers based on info from http://www.seedalliance.org/uploads/publications/Seed_Saving_Guide.pdf).  That is a lot of space to tie up each year just to produce leek seed for the following season.  Leek seed is only viable for a year or two, so you would end up having to tie up that much space all the time just to produce leek seed, you would then have to allocate another bed to produce leeks to eat.  Of course you could just buy leek seed each year, but then you may as well just buy leek from the supermarket to eat and use your vegetable plot for growing something else.  When growing perennial leeks you can grow a single plant if you wanted to and build up numbers from that, there will be no inbreeding, and rouging out is not needed as every baby it produces will be genetically identical to the parent (this is not exactly true as sometimes mutations pop up, but that is an in-depth topic that is best not covered here).  There is also no problem with perennial leek about having to isolate plants to prevent them crossing with the neighbour's leeks which can be an issue if you live in town.  So from a sustainability point of view the perennial leeks end up as the better option.

Regular leeks can be grown as perennials, harvested close to the ground and allowed to regrow.  Perennial leeks are superior here as they can be grown and harvested the same way but continually reproduce and allow you to build up numbers if you wish.

Regular leeks are a bit larger, but the ones I grew were nowhere near as large as they originally were in the store, perennial leeks are a bit smaller.  I assume that if I grew the perennial leeks better they would be a bit larger, but I also think that regular leeks will always be a bit larger than perennial leeks.  If you do not divide them, the perennial leeks end up as a clump of hundreds of plants that are as thin as chives.  This can be a down side of perennial leeks, it can also be easily avoided by dividing some of them occasionally.

One of the store bought leeks grew with a red stem and looked nice, the perennial leeks were just green.  Occasionally a variegated perennial leek turns up, but other than that they are just green.  I like the look of the variegated perennial leeks myself but they only seem to turn up occasionally.  At the end of the day these are a food plant, looks are secondary.

To the best of my knowledge there is only one or two varieties of perennial leek in Australia whereas there are a whole lot more varieties of seed grown leek.  Some types of seed grown leeks are suited to warm climates and others are suited to cool climates.  Some grow long and thin whereas others grow short and fat, apparently each of these types is better suited to different climates.  I have sent perennial leeks to a few parts of the country and so far am yet to find a climate in which they are not productive.  This lack of choice with varieties is not an issue as I am happy with these perennial leeks, if they were not fantastic then this lack of choice would matter a whole lot more.

From what I have been told perennial leek will cross pollinate with any variety of regular leek and they say that the offspring are less desirable than either parent, so if you grow both it is best to remove the flower stalk from the perennial leek to prevent problems.  I have never let regular leeks flower so can not say too much about the subject.  Perhaps if you were to let a regular leek flower next to a flowering perennial leek you could grow the resultant seed and perhaps get a new type of perennial leek!

Perennial leek bulbs - they only die down to bulbs some years if it is too hot or dry

My conclusion

Over all the perennial leeks were a lot easier to grow, they were producers of food throughout the year, they were producers of huge amounts of food for a small area, and I know that if I forget about them for a year (or ten) that they will still be there waiting for me.

After growing the two types of leeks and comparing them I don't think I can be bothered growing regular leeks again and will stick with the perennial leeks.  I understand that there are many varieties of regular leeks and someone should preserve them and prevent them from going extinct, but that someone should not be me at this point in time.  I am happy with perennial leeks and at this stage want to spend my energy saving seed of other things.

I do have perennial leeks for sale as well as some seeds, herbs and other perennial vegetables on my For Sale page.  I am not keen on posting outside of Australia unless you have already contacted your country's quarantine and are confident that they will be allowed through.  That being said I am happy to try my best to answer any questions about perennial leeks from people even if they are overseas.

I have since written a better comparison with pictures I did of growing seven regular leeks and seven perennial leeks for 12 months side by side.  If you are interested it can be found here.

Perennial Vegetables For Sale in Australia

Even though this blog post was written a decade ago I update it often.  It is the year 2024, and I am still selling seeds and plants.  If you are viewing this on your mobile phone you may need to scroll down below the comments and click on 'view web version'. 

To order send me an email, my email address will need the spaces removed, @ instead of the 'at' and . in place of the word 'dot': damien_beaumont at yahoo dot com dot au

This is my For Sale page, with heirloom vegetable seeds, berry plants, and perennial vegetable plants for sale in Australia, this page is updated regularly.  For notes on how to grow perennial vegetables please visit here.  Many of the plants or seeds below also have a hyperlink to a blog page on growing them.  If you would like growing notes on anything that is not listed on the growing notes page please let me know and I can email them through to you.  I can't tell you the 'right' way to grow them, or even the 'best' way to grow them, I can only tell you what works well for me.  

For a list of vegetable days to harvest from planting seed please click here.  
 

 

To order: please send me an email saying what plants/seeds you would like and I will reply with prices/payment methods.

My email address will need to remove the the spaces, put @ instead of the word 'at' and . in place of the word 'dot': damien_beaumont at yahoo dot com dot au



Organic Perennial Vegetables for sale – plant once, harvest forever!
 
POSTAGE: for plants/bulbs I post at cost $10.90 for regular post.  I post plants bare rooted on the Monday after payment has cleared.
 

Babington's Leek (Allium ampeloprasum var. babingtonii)  This is an extremely rare and fun perennial vegetable to grow.  Similar to a tree onion it grows many bulbils on the flower stalk instead of producing seed.  It is used in the same way and has the same taste as a regular leek.  This will prove to be a talking point in any garden and a great heirloom to pass on to your kids.  Extremely hardy and productive but for some reason it is so rare that it is almost extinct.  Please read my Babington's leek growing notes prior to ordering   

Perennial Leek (Allium ampeloprasum) rare and hard to find but one of the best plants for home growers.  These grow and taste like regular leek but instead of growing viable seed they reproduce by sending up numerous babies from their base.  Much faster and easier than growing from seed.  If hot and dry over summer they can die down to bulbs.  These are hardy once established and incredibly productive  $4 per small plant SOLD OUT FOR NOW

Everlasting Onion (Allium cepa perutile) grows like a spring onion but does not often produce viable seed, reproduces quickly by splitting in half.  Will also grow a small bulb similar to a French shallot in some climates.  This is possibly the hardiest, most productive, and easiest to grow of perennial vegetables.  One of the best permaculture vegetables.  Very easy to grow, you will never have to buy spring onions or shallots ever again!  $5 each 

 

Tree onion, aka topsetting onions, aka Egyptian walking onion (Allium × proliferum, formerly Allium cepa var proliferum).  It is a stable hybrid dating back to the 1850s that is worth having around.  Bizarre looking plant grows a golf ball sized onion that divides underground then grows tiny onions instead of seed on the flower stalk.  Sometimes a flower stalk will have a tiny onion with its own flower stalk with tiny onions on that and you end up with three or four levels on the one plant.  These flower stalks bend under the weight of all the onions allowing the plant to “walk”.  These were very common once and are now rare and hard to find  $3 per small plant or bulbil

  

Amiah potato, the great taste of a diploid potato without the low yields that are common among diploids. The size of potatoes is reasonable, they don’t need peeling, and easily produces two crops per year.  It is healthier and better looking than white potatoes due to its rich yellow flesh and interesting skin colour. They produce two crops per year here, and always survives over winter in the soil with no care from me.  As well as all this they produce huge numbers of beautiful purple flowers.  Plant them now as they don't store well out of the soil   $6 for three small seed potatoes  SOLD OUT FOR NOW

Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) a massively productive low maintenance perennial vegetable that is high in inulin.  Can be eaten raw or cooked and is used in any way that you would use a potato.  Very productive, one small tuber fragment can produce well over 1kg!  When grown in good soil and watered occasionally each plant can produce well over 3kg of tubers.  Great food for people, pigs, poultry, sheep, cattle, guinea pigs etc.  Masses of yellow sunflower like flowers in autumn attract honey bees and are good to use as cut flowers.   ONLY available in Winter/Spring,  $3 each  tuber 

Duckweed (Lemna sp most likely Lemna minor) is a free floating plant and one of the smallest flowering plants in the world.  I have grown this continuously and moved it with me for the past 20 or so years and have never actually seen the flowers.  It grows very fast and can be used to clean water, as animal food, in aquariums, and can be eaten raw by people if you are certain there are no water snails.  It has a mild taste, good levels of many important nutrients and is surprisingly high in protein  $3 for a scoop
 

 Azolla (I'm not certain of the species, likely Azolla pinnata) also known as mosquito fern, fairy moss, and a few other cute names.  Azolla is a free floating water fern.  It sequesters nitrogen from the atmosphere and can be used as living mulch, biofertiliser, animal feed, human food, water cleanser, mosquito control etc.  This has high percentage of protein and is readily eaten by poultry and fish.  It grows fast and doubles every day under ideal conditions   $3 for a scoop

Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) is commonly grown as an ornamental houseplant, but the leaves and roots are both edible.  Tolerates low light, poor soil, and dry conditions.  Grows white flowers and cute little baby plants on long stolons that can dangle from the mother plant and look very attractive.  Perfect for hanging baskets and a great office plant.  Spider plant survives a lot of neglect and should be protected from heavy frost.  Choose from variegated (white in middle of the leaves, green outside), reverse variegated (green in middle, white outside), or completely green.  Small plants  $3 each

Pink dandelion (Taraxacum pseudoroseum) is a different species than regular lawn dandelions.  All parts are edible by people, poultry, and livestock.  Leaves are more nutritious than most vegetables, roots can be made into a caffein free coffee substitute, and the flowers are pink with a yellow center.  The pink gets darker each day the flower is open.  These perennial plants are more fragile than common dandelions so tend not to escape into your yard.  $5 per bare rooted plant SOLD OUT FOR NOW

Asparagus 'Precoce D'Argenteuil' (also called 'Early Argenteuil'), the history of this fast growing gourmet heirloom variety is rather obscure and vague, some sources state it was developed in the 1700’s, others claim it was developed as late as 1885.  Produces fat flavoursome spears that are green tipped with pink to purple.  This is likely to be the best tasting green variety you will ever eat, I have heard it described as ‘delicacy incarnate’.  One year old plants $5

Asparagus 'Purple Passion' was originally bred in California and is the progeny of Violeta d’ Albinga. They are said to have a bit of a fruity flavour, lower fiber and are often claimed to be 20% higher in sugars. To me they seem sweeter than green varieties, and they do produce delightful fat spears that are tender and delicate, but can have a lower yield.  One year old crowns $5

Duck Potato (Saggitaria sp) also known as arrowhead, wapato, swan potato and a host of other names.  It is an attractive edible aquatic perennial vegetable similar to Chinese water chestnuts but better suited to cooler climates.  Large green arrow shaped leaves.  Highly productive and simple to grow.  This particular one does not flower which means that is poses no weed threat   $3 per small plant or tuber depending on timing

Skirret (Sium sisarum) very rare, endangered, and ancient perennial root vegetable which is very simple to grow.  Sweet roots taste like a delicious sweet potato or parsnip but far better.  Used in any dish that calls for potato, carrot or parsnip.  The celery tasting leaves can be added to salads and the seeds are edible but it is the sweet roots that are the main crop here.  This is the most delicious roasted vegetable ever.  Flowers attract many beneficial insects to your garden   $5 per small plant or offset

Affiliate program - follow the link, buy some of these

Fruit shaping moulds - grow square lemons, heart shaped apples, scary face pumpkins, square watermelons and more.  It is so much simpler than you think, plus you do it at home with your organic produce.  To order plastic fruit shaping molds use this link and note this is an external site, and I do earn a commission from each sale. 

Organic Heirloom Vegetable Seeds - most are not perennial but it is certainly worth growing these.

Postage of seeds only within Australia: $3.50  for any number of packets.  If also buying plants use the plant postage rate as I will send everything in the one package.  I can also post some seeds overseas but I post at cost so need to confirm postage costs with the post office. 
 

Immali Corn (Zea mays) a beautiful and delicious coloured sweet corn.  I have created this amazing variety myself, the colours are not changed during cooking (we ate the cob in the photo).  Produces 2 to 6 cobs of coloured sweet corn per plant.  This is high in anthocyanin, antioxidants and vitamins.  Why grow yellow corn when this is prettier, tastier, and healthier for you!  Corn will cross pollinate with other varieties of corn so you may have some yellow seeds if someone is growing yellow corn near by   $4.00 per packet of about 20 seeds

Giant Heirloom Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum) a mix of seeds containing both "Julia Child" and "Giant Siberian Pink" (known in Russian as: Sibirskiy Velikan Rozovyi).  They are both delicious and large tomatoes.  'Julia Child' grows regular leaf and 'Giant Siberian Pink' grows potato leaf so you can tell from a young age which seedlings are which.  These are open pollinated varieties that are both indeterminate.  $4.00 per packet of about 20 seeds

Angora 82 tomato small plant which grows to about 1 foot tall, may or may not be dwarf, very productive with about 20 flowers per truss.  Small, red, round tomatoes which taste really nice and sweet.  This plant gave a large yield very early, has regular leaf and appeared to be determinate but kept putting out occasional new branches with flowers until the frosts.  $4 per packet of about 20 seeds

Igloo tomato, stocky plants, around 1 foot tall.  Highly productive, producing about 12 kg of remarkably consistent red round fruit that weighs just under 50g each.  Each truss usually contains about 16 flowers.  Very early cropping, great for producing a lot of food under short seasons and small spaces.   $4 per packet of about 20 seeds

Little Oak Like tomato small determinate tomato that produces red ping pong ball size tomatoes.  Like many other old Russian varieties it has a very rich tomato taste.  Looks much like 'Igloo' but slightly less stocky, a bit tastier, and less productive.  Very early cropper great for areas with a short growing season.   $4 for a packet of about 20 seeds

Micro Tom tomato the smallest variety of tomato in the world!  I have never had one grow over 10cm tall.  Being so small they can easily be grown in a cup of soil, easy for kids to grow, easy for elderly people who no longer have a garden, easy to grow in apartments if you have a sunny window, and great for school experiments due to its short life cycle   $4 for 15 seeds


 

Yellow Pear Tomato (Lycopersicon lycopersicum) a sweet, yellow, pear shaped cherry tomato.  This is an old and loved heirloom variety dating back to the 1700’s.  It was the first yellow tomato I ever grew.  It can grow to be a large plant if given support and is very productive if treated well.  Beautiful, delicious, sweet and easy to grow, kids love the look and taste of the fruit.  Heirloom tomato can and will cross with other varieties of heirloom tomato so be a little careful if saving seed  $4.00 per packet of about 20 seeds

Skirret (Sium sisarum) very rare, endangered and ancient perennial root crop which is simple to grow.  Sweet roots taste like a delicious sweet potato or parsnip.  Used in any dish that calls for potato, carrot or parsnip.  Leaves can be added to salads but it is the sweet roots that are the main crop here.  Flowers attract many beneficial insects to your garden.  Unlike many other perennial vegetables, seed grown plants will produce a crop, divide numerously, flower, and set seed the first year   $4 per packet of tiny seeds

Superior Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) mixed seeds of around a dozen varieties including 'slow bolt', 'long standing', and 'Bengal Giant'.  This is an excellent producer of both leaves and seeds.  There has been deliberate crossing of varieties so you will have great genetic diversity and be able to breed a superior variety that performs well in your garden.  Cull plants that flower early and only save seed from later flowering plants to quickly and easily develop your own variety that is is slow to flower and produces abundant leaves   $4 per packet of seeds

Cape Gooseberries (Physalis peruviana) is also known as Incaberry, goldenberry, pichuberry, and a few other common names. Highly productive plants producing over one kilogram of small ~2g fruits that are covered with a protective paper husk. The fruits fall from the plant when ripe. For me they take a little over 80 days from planting the seed until eating perfectly ripe berries  $4 per packet of tiny seeds

Hillbilly tomato has firm flesh that is reasonably dry and somehow smells very fruity.   Produces a medium yield of glossy fruit over the season, it has regular leaf and is indeterminate.  Good size for slicing on a sandwich, the colour, glossiness, and fruity smell are all enjoyed by my kids.  $4 per packet of 20 seeds

Cherokee Purple grows large tomatoes, some round, some a little odd shaped.  People often say this tomato has a smoky taste or taste of good red wine.  A little salt adds more depth and complexity to their taste - Unbelievable!  This plant produces a medium to large yield of large fruit, it has regular leaf and is indeterminate.  $4 per packet of 20 seeds



Japanese Black Trifle (spelled various ways,  originally called "Yaponskiy Trufel Chernyi" or in Russian "Японский трюфель черный").  This old Russian variety has a deep, rich, sweet, tomato taste that is difficult to describe but easy to remember.  One of my all time favourite tomatoes.  Japanese Black Trifele tomato has potato leaf and is indeterminate.  $4 per packet of 20 seeds


Helsing Junction Blues are great high anthocyanin cherry tomatoes.  These taste sweet and are very productive.  The unripe fruit is bright purple, only goes blue/black where the sun hits and stays red when shaded by a leaf so you can make patterns using stencils similar to apples.  Ripe fruit is red with black where it used to be purple.  Plants have regular leaf and are indeterminate.  $4 per packet of 20 seeds

 

Tommy Toe tomatoes (I didn't take a photo) grow into a large plant with high yields of small tomatoes.  An excellent tomato for back yard growing due to their rich tomato taste, abundant yield, and pretty red round cherry tomatoes.  One of the more common varieties I grow as they are well worth growing.  Plants have regular leaf and are indeterminate.  $4 per packet of 20 seeds

Sarah's Galapagos tomatoes grow a large plant, high yields of small red cherry tomatoes.  They have a surprisingly deep rich taste for such tiny fruit.  It is said to be originally found on Galapagos Islands where they were eaten and dispersed by giant tortoises.  Plants have regular leaf and are indeterminate.  $4 per packet of 20 seeds

Giant Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is an absolutely massive strain of flat leaf parsley that is very simple to grow.  Leaves can be used as vegetable or herb, petioles can be used in place of celery, roots are delicious roasted.  Contains wide genetics and will produce a diverse population containing some large plants and some stunningly massive plants.  If allowed to flower it will attract many beneficial insects and pollinators, and will gladly self seed.   $4 per packet of seeds

Giant Edible Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) produces incredibly large plants from improved parent stock.  Dandelion leaves are more nutritious than most vegetables, the thick long roots can be roasted or turned into delicious coffee substitute, even the pretty flowers are edible.  Poultry and livestock love to eat dandelions.  Deep tap roots mine minerals from deep in the soil, leaves can be used as compost activators.  They are great companion plants for most fruits and vegetables.  The flowers are pretty and are great for bees, and kids love to blow the seed heads.  Open pollinated plants may display some genetic diversity   $4 per packet of seeds 

Wasabi salad herb (Diplotaxis erucoides) is a leaf vegetable/herb that is far simpler to grow than true wasabi, tastes similar to wasabi, gives a similar nose tingling feeling as wasabi, and lacks the extreme heat of true wasabi.  Great in salads and on sandwiches.  It happily self seeds in my garden, sometimes pops up in my lawn, and is low/no maintenance.  It is can form a self sustaining patch that flowers all year and is excellent bee forage.   $4 per packet of tiny seeds

Purple Mustard - back in 2012 I bought some seeds for purple mustard.  My son loved purple mustard, and has saved seed and grown it every year since.  Leaves can be used as vegetable, or garnish, and seeds can be used to make condiment.  They produce large purple leaves with some green, profuse yellow flowers attract honey bees and other beneficial insects.  All profits from this go to my son for pocket money  $4 per packet  

Senposai (Brassica napus) - this is a stable cross between an Asian cabbage (Komatsuna) and a European cabbage that combines the best of both worlds.  These plants are vigorous growers, take up a lot of room, and produce a lot of food.  Like all brassicas the flowers are adored by bees and other pollinators.  Can be eaten raw or cooked, and used in any way you would use a cabbage.    $4 per packet 

Glass Gem Corn (Zea mays) - this is good popcorn, beautifully coloured and incredibly ornamental.  These cobs grow all the colours of the rainbow and are incredibly beautiful.  If popped as pop corn they still pop white (just like regular yellow popcorn).  The cobs average around 15 cm long, and I average 4.5 cobs per plant but could have had more if I gave them more space.  Do NOT grow near other types of corn, popcorn, sweet corn, as it will cross pollinate and ruin your cobs.   $4 for packet of about 20 mixed seeds

Pink Glass Gem Corn (Zea mays)  - I planted some glass gem corn in blocks of the same colour.  My daughters like the pink popcorn.  These are seeds from cobs that were mostly pink, they were growing in my pink block.  There was some cross pollination with other colours of glass gem corn, and some hidden genetics that are not expressed in these seeds, but the cobs produced should be mostly pink with only a few seeds here and there of other colours.  The cobs produced should look similar to the photo on the left.  All types of corn will cross pollinate a lot, do NOT grow other types of corn nearby or they will cross pollinate a lot.   $4 for a packet of about 20 pink or white seeds

Litchi tomato (Solanum sisymbriifolium) also known as Morelle de Balbis, Fire and Ice plant, or my kids call them "Prickle Tomatoes".  Litchi tomatoes are somewhat related to tomatoes, tomatillos, and ground cherries.  Like many of the fruiting vegetables we grow, they are a perennial that is treated as an annual.  Intriguing plants with delicious berries.  Difficult to describe the taste as they vary depending on how ripe they are when picked.  They can taste like cherry, kiwi fruit, or sometimes really bland.  I am told you need more than one plant for pollination and fruit set so I grow several seeds in one hole to save space   $4 per packet of about 20 seeds

Black Nebula Carrot (Daucus carota sativus) these heirloom carrots are the darkest of the dark.  They are so dark purple I would almost call them black. They really are incredible to see.  They are dark purple/black all the way to the core and will have a small amount of white flecked through.  I am told that these have undertones of berry taste, but I can't taste berries at all.  I found them to taste like a mix of carrot and beetroot, which I really like.  Even if you are not a fan of carrots these taste great.  These carrots retain their intense purple colour when cooked.   The juice can be used as a dye, and if you add some acidity it will turn bright pink.  Carrots will cross with other varieties of carrot and Queen Anne's Lace so take care if seed saving    $4 per packet of seeds

Huacatay (Tagetes minuta), is also called Peruvian Black Mint, is an annual herb.  It is not related to mint, but does taste and smell similar to mint, and can be used in similar recipes.  Used in sauce or herbal teas and an essential ingredient in many Peruvian dishes.  This herb is very simple to grow and very productive.  It grows tall over the warmer months, often about 5 or 6 feet tall (I had some reach over 9 feet tall) or shorter in poor soils.  Simple to save seed and grow the following year   $4 per packet of seeds

Pink dandelion (Taraxacum pseudoroseum) is a different species than regular lawn dandelions.  All parts are edible by people, poultry, and livestock.  Leaves are more nutritious than most vegetables, roots can be made into a caffein free coffee substitute, and the flowers are pink with a yellow center.  The flower opens white/light pink with a yellow center, pink gets darker each day the flower is open.  These perennial plants are more fragile than common dandelions so as much as I wish they would they tend not to escape into your lawn   $4 per packet of seeds

Organic Culinary Herb Plants

Unless started all herbs will have been grown from cuttings so that I can assure the quality of the plants, some herbs grow true to type from seed whereas others tend to be a little variable.  Most herbs (other than root cuttings, which are just a segment of root) are sold bare rooted, or with minimal soil on the roots to lower weight and reduce the postage cost.  Most will be wrapped in damp newspaper and put into a plastic zip lock bag.  Some may be dormant over winter and will not put on a lot of growth until Spring.  

I do not have large quantities of any herbs, if you want a larger quantity please ask me and I will let you know if I can help out.

Winter Savory (Satureja montana) is a highly aromatic perennial herb with peppery flavor with notes of marjoram, mint, and thyme.  Winter savory looks similar to thyme but has larger leaves.  It does well in roasts and stews, used to make salami, and is an essential ingredient to make Bouquet garni.  This was a popular herb in Europe and used in similar ways as pepper back when pepper was an expensive spice.  It flowers well and is very attractive to bees and other pollinators.  I don't know why this is not grown more frequently in Australia as it is an excellent perennial edible herb.   $5 per small seed grown plant 

Native Water Mint aka native rivermint, native peppermint (Mentha australis) this perennial Australian native herb is very rare in the bush and is rarely found in shops or gardens.  Flowers are great for native bees and other native pollinators.  It likes being well watered but can cope with reasonably dry soil.  It is used in much the same way as regular peppermint but is far less invasive and the small flowers are great for native pollinators.  It makes an excellent herbal tea served hot or iced   $5 per small plant 

Variegated Water Celery aka water parsley, Java waterdropwort, Japanese parsley, Chinese celery etc (Oenanthe javanica - flamingo)  is a perennial vegetable that is under utilised and strangely uncommon.  Extremely prolific and simple to grow.  Can be grown in the vegetable garden or as an emergent water plant.  Smells and tastes a lot like celery, add at the end of cooking or much of the taste will disappear   $5 per small plant

Vietnamese Coriander aka Vietnamese mint, laksa herb, hot mint, Cambodian mint, praew leaf (Persicaria odorata) is an amazing perennial edible herb.  Simple to grow, extremely productive, delicious, and versatile, I can't believe how uncommonly this is grown in Australia.  The internet says Vietnamese coriander has a “lovely coriander taste with a clear citrus note; refreshing with a hot, biting, peppery after taste”.  I grow as an emergent water plant but also happily grows in vegetable garden.  It goes well with chicken and combines well with lime, chillies, garlic, ginger and lemon grass, what is not to love about this plant!   $5 per small plant  

Vietnamese Fish Mint (Houttuynia cordata) also known as dokudami, 'poison blocking plant',  lizard tail, heartleaf, fishwort, bishop's weed, and a bunch of other names.  Commonly used in Vietnamese cooking, herbal tea, as well as a host of different traditional medicines.  It tastes like fish sauce.  I am selling small plants of the vigorous green form.  This plant can become invasive if planted in the garden so please restrict it to growing in a pot.  Dormant over winter   $5 per small plant or well rooted cutting
 

Jekka's thyme (Thymus sp) is an extremely vigorous growing edible thyme with relatively long green leaves.  This has a strong thyme smell and taste.  It is the most vigorous thyme I have ever grown.  It flowers like crazy in spring and provides great bee forage.  Taking cuttings every few years will refresh it and provide you with more plants.   $5 per small plant

Common Spear Mint (Mentha spicata) this fragrant, strong smelling plant is one of the easiest and most rewarding herbs to grow.  Great plant to get children introduced to gardening and connected to the land.  Used to make mint sauce, garnish and in a host of different ways while cooking.  When I was a child it was grown in every garden, starting to become difficult to find for some reason.  Grown organically from cuttings as seeds can be variable and often give undesirable traits.  Grow in a pot to prevent it from taking over your garden   $5 per small plant 

Lavender mint (Mentha piperita 'Lavendula') this edible mint smells like lavender!  I use it in herbal tea and my kids love it, it also goes well in cold summer drinks, and I am told it goes well with chicken and other white meats where it imparts a floral aroma.  Lilac flowers attract bees and butterflies.  Large almost fluffy leaves not only smell great they also look and feel nice.  Lavender mint is my second favourite variety of mint, and it is the most vigorous in growth so please grow it in a pot to prevent it taking over your garden  $5 per small plant

Willow herb (Epilobium parviflorum).  Other common names include 'small flowered willow herb', 'hoary willowherb' and 'small flowered hairy willow herb'.  This is a perennial edible herb, the leaves can be added to a salad and eaten raw or cooked, or dried and used in herbal teas.  This herb has been used as medicine to treat prostate and kidney issues and to reduce tumor growth, there are a few studies indicating it could be effective in treating these ailments.  This plant loves water.   $5 per small plant 

Organic berry plants

Atilla Alpine Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is a red fruited wild strawberry that is day length neutral.  It is an extremely rare alpine strawberry that produces runners and can form an edible ground cover.  The strawberries are much smaller than supermarket strawberries, but they taste meltingly delicious and they smell truly amazing.  If you have never eaten a wild strawberry you don't know what you are missing.  Alpine strawberries are also known as gourmet strawberries or fraise des bois   $5 per plant

 

Pineberry strawberry produces small white berries with red seeds.  They get a pinkish blush when ripe and taste a bit like pineapple.  These only produce female plants, so need another strawberry to pollinate them and they never grow true from seed.  It crops twice per year in my garden.  Throws a lot of runners  $5 per plant

Virginian strawberry (Fragaria virginiana) are a species of wild strawberries from North America.  They taste similar to garden strawberries you can buy from the markets but with far more intense and sweet flavour.  These have been selectively bred for larger sized berries as wild plants produce tiny berries.  Berries have deeply set seeds.  Grows lots of runners, flowers twice per year in my garden.  Very hardy plants   $5 per plant 

Carnivorous Plants
I know this page is mostly for perennial vegetables and other organically grown edibles, but please don't get confused and start to eat your carnivorous plants!    

Venus Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) are the most famous and one of the most intriguing of carnivorous plants.  They grow best in areas with frosts but can be grown in frost free climates.  Never shut the traps with your finger, don't feed them, and don't fertilise them.  Growing notes can be found here.  $8 each small bare rooted plant SOLD OUT UNTIL LATE SPRING

Cape Sundew (Drosera capensis) is one of the easiest of all carnivorous plants to grow.  They were the first carnivorous plants I ever grew successfully as a child and from them I learned how to grow other carnivorous plants.  These catch numerous flies, moths, mosquitoes, and other insects.  Don't feed them unless you know what you are doing or you may kill the plant.  Grow them in damp peat moss (never soil) in a tray of water, never fertilise, and protect from heavy frosts.  They tend to lose their 'dew' and sulk after being posted, but it doesn't take them long to pick up again.  You choose between 'typical' and 'alba' varieties.   $6 per small plant

Cape Sundew (Drosera capensis) SEEDS.  These carnivorous plants are surprisingly simple to grow from seed but very few places ever list seed for sale.  Simply place damp peatmoss in a small pot, keep a tray of water under at all times, and sprinkle the fine dust like seeds on top.  Most will germinate in a few weeks.  I have 'typical' has red tentacles and pink flowers, 'alba' has green or light pink tentacles and white flowers.  Seeds are tiny as per the picture on the left. The seed packet is a mix of 'typical' and 'alba' seeds   $4 per packet containing hundreds of tiny freshly collected seeds

Ancient cultures

Milk kefir grains: this is a living, reusable, traditional heirloom starter culture which dates back thousands of years.  Save money by making healthy probiotic milk kefir at home.  It ends up very similar to a drinking yogurt, but far simpler to make and much more beneficial for your health.  My grains have an extremely diverse profile probiotics that is vastly superior to supermarket kefir or starter sachets.  They have been growing in A2 milk and multiply well in warmer weather.  Milk kefir is extremely simple to make using grains.  I can send you instructions and provide advice via email if required.   $5 per spoon full 

Ornamental - non-edible plants or seeds

String of Pearls plant (Senecio rowleyanus).  Very simple to grow and very beautiful.  They grow tiny white flowers in winter that smell like cinnamon.  Grow them somewhere that they can trail over the side of their pot.  When you receive the cutting please remove the lower few pearls (leaves), plant the stem in soil and water it well.  If you buy a plant it will need to be planted in a pot of soil.  These look delicate but are surprisingly hardy and grow reasonably fast.  These are ornamental only, please never eat any part of them   $5 per small bare rooted plant, $2 per cutting

Muscari seeds (Muscari armeniacum) also known as grape hyacinth, are a spring flowering bulb that produces sweetly fragrant blue flowers, sometimes blue and white, or even just white.  Simple to grow, naturalises well, loved by honey bees, and dies down over summer so is water wise. Simple to grow from seed but won't flower the first year.  Seeds are far cheaper than bulbs so you get far more plants for your money.  Each seed grown plant will be genetically unique but most look similar to their siblings   $4 for packet of 35 fresh seeds

Candle Making

I have seen these candles for sale for up to $13, with $9 each being about average, so buying a mould and making some of your own works out well.  If you enjoy it you can get more wax and make more candles, or experiment with fragrances and essential oils etc.

Candle making mould - skep

These produce really cute little beehive candles with bees on them.  I use around 40g to 50g of wax.  One silicone skep mould can be used to make hundreds of  candles, and I can provide simple instructions  $10 for the mould

Note: candle not included, you are buying a pink silicone mould to make your own candles

 

Candle making kit - owl
This mould is easy to use and produces little owl candles with an incredible amount of detail.  Candle making is a great project to do with kids on a rainy day.  The price is for one owl silicone mould can be used to make hundreds of candles,  and I can provide simple instructions $10 for the mould 
Note: candle not included, you are buying a pink silicone mould to make your own candles

 

 

1 Corinthians 3:6-7  I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.  So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.