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SowMadras, Oregon
Weathered hands cupping a mound of dark heirloom seeds in morning greenhouse light, shallow depth of field
Currently in Trials
340+
Varieties
40
Years
Zone 7a
Tested
Est. 1983 · Madras, Oregon

Rooted in Forty Years of Saving What Matters

Open-pollinated seeds grown, trialed, and packed in Madras, Oregon. Every variety has survived a real season here — not just a catalog description.

Non-GMOOpen-PollinatedNo HybridsClimate-Trialed
Download Free Planting CalendarBrowse the Catalog

Seed Savers Exchange member · USDA certified organic practices · No PVP, no patents

Our History

Forty seasons of trusting the soil

Every variety in our catalog has earned its place through real Oregon winters, dry summers, and the honest judgment of a trial garden that doesn't spare feelings.

Rows of young seedlings in a trial garden in central Oregon, early morning light
Featured Variety
Brandywine Tomato
LineageAmish heirloom, pre-1885 · Solanaceae
Germination87% at 70°F · 7–10 days
Oregon Zone 7a · Madras trials
Growing Note
"I planted these the first year under row cover — they surprised me. In Madras heat and cold nights, the flavor concentrates in a way I've never tasted from a store-bought. We've been selecting the earliest-maturing fruits every season since."
— Sow Trial Garden, 1983
Close-up of seed packets laid out on a wooden table next to a field journal
Featured Variety
Dragon Tongue Pepper
LineageHungarian origin, 1870s · Capsicum annuum
Germination82% at 75°F · 10–14 days
Oregon Zone 7a · Madras trials
Growing Note
"The 1991 frost came October 3rd. Everything in the main field was lost. But the Dragon Tongue in the cold frame was fine. Since then, every pepper we trial goes through at least one unprotected night below 38°F before it earns a spot in the catalog."
— Sow Trial Garden, 1991
Wildflowers blooming in a meadow trial plot, purple and yellow, Oregon summer
Featured Variety
Palouse Prairie Wildflower Mix
LineageRegional Pacific Northwest native blend · 14 species
Germination74% aggregate · cold stratify 3 weeks
Oregon Zone 7a · Madras trials
Growing Note
"A librarian in Walla Walla wrote asking if we had anything drought-tolerant that could survive on a school's unirrigated corner lot. We didn't — so we spent three seasons building this mix from local remnant populations. It's been in the catalog ever since."
— Sow Trial Garden, 2004
Irrigation furrows in a dry Oregon garden plot with heat shimmer visible
Featured Variety
Mortgage Lifter Tomato
LineageRadiator Charlie, 1940s · West Virginia origin
Germination91% at 70°F · 6–9 days
Oregon Zone 7a · Madras trials
Growing Note
"We almost dropped this variety in 2015 — yields were inconsistent. Then we realized we'd been watering too much. When we cut irrigation by 40% and let the plants stress slightly in August, the fruits came back enormous and sweet. That's the trial process. You don't know until you push."
— Sow Trial Garden, 2016
Planting Calendar Preview

What to sow, and when — for your zone

The full calendar covers 12 months with variety-specific notes. Here's a preview of spring sowing for your hardiness zone.

USDA Hardiness Zone

Madras, OR is Zone 7a · Central Oregon

Early March
Onions
Start Indoors
Mar 1–10
Under lights, 65–70°F
Leeks
Start Indoors
Mar 1–10
Sow thickly, thin later
Mid March
Tomatoes
Start Indoors
Mar 10–20
8 wks before last frost
Peppers
Start Indoors
Mar 10–15
10 wks before last frost, 80°F soil
Spinach
Direct Sow
Mar 15+
Germinates at 40°F
Late March
Peas
Direct Sow
Mar 20–Apr 5
Last frost ~Apr 1 in Madras
Lettuce
Direct Sow
Mar 25+
Row cover extends season
The full calendar covers all 12 months
Including fall planting, cover crops, and seed-saving windows · tailored to your zone
Get the Full Calendar
Free Resource

Your free regional planting calendar

12 months of zone-specific sowing windows, transplant dates, and seed-saving reminders — built from 40 years of trial garden records in central Oregon. Not a generic chart. Real dates from real seasons.

→Monthly sowing windows for 60+ crops
→Frost date guidance for Zones 6b–8a
→Cover crop rotation schedule
→Seed-saving windows by variety type
→Row cover and cold frame timing notes
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The Seed Catalog

Browse by planting season

Every variety grown and trialed here. Growing notes written from the field, not a brochure.

Large pink-red Mortgage Lifter heirloom tomatoes on the vine
HeirloomZone 7a Proven
Heirloom Tomato

Mortgage Lifter Tomato

$3.95
per packet
80–85 daysRadiator Charlie

Our longest-running trial variety. Planted here since 1989. In Madras heat with slight water stress in August, the fruits run 1–2 lbs and taste like summer concentrated.

Radiator Charlie · West Virginia, 1940s
Purple and yellow wildflowers blooming in a meadow, Pacific Northwest
NativeDrought Hardy
Native Wildflower

Palouse Prairie Wildflower Mix

$4.50
per packet
Annual–Perennial mixRegional blend

14 species selected for drought hardiness and pollinator value. Built from seed collected within 200 miles of Madras. No irrigation required after establishment.

Regional blend · Pacific Northwest remnant populations
Dark green savoy spinach leaves with crinkled texture in a garden bed
Cold HardyEarly Season
Open-Pollinated Spinach

Bloomsdale Spinach

$2.95
per packet
48 daysPre-1826 American heirloom

Germinates at 40°F. In cold frames here, we get a first harvest by late March. The savoy leaf texture holds up in cooking better than flat-leaf types. A true cold-season workhorse.

Pre-1826 American heirloom

Showing 3 of 340+ varieties in the spring sowing catalog

Browse the Full Catalog