Allium cepa Maroon skin. (110 days) Open pollinated. Italian heirloom. Torpedo-shaped glossy red thin-skinned onion. Sweet, mild. Fair to good storage.
Origanum heracleoticum Open pollinated. Perennial to Zone 4, but survives some winters in Zone 3. The true culinary herb for Greek and Italian cooking. Low-growing with fragrant dull green and purple leaves and white flowers.
Centaurea americana (90 days) Open pollinated. Annual. Resembles a thistle, but no prickles. Grassy honey-like fragrance. Native to south-central U.S. and northeastern Mexico.
Moluccella laevis (110 days) Open pollinated. Everlasting annual. Spikes of bright green bell-shaped “flowers” turn creamy white when dried for winter arrangements.
Bupleurum griffithii (90 days) Open pollinated. Everlasting annual. Features round leaves and unusual yellowish flowers air dry perfectly, retaining their color. Great filler for bouquets.
Campanula carpatica Open pollinated. Perennial. Also known as Bellflower or Carpathian Harebell. Masses of dark periwinkle bellflowers above a tidy mound of foliage. Pelleted for ease of sowing.
Cerinthe major var. purpurescens Open pollinated. Annual. Features coin-shaped grey-green foliage and profuse blue shrimp-like bracts with purple flowers. Beloved by bumblebees. 12-30" tall.
Eucalyptus cinerea Open pollinated. Perennial to Zone 8. Charming silvery blue-green 2" leaves make a fabulous bouquet filler that dries nicely and freshens the room with fragrant oils. 2–3' tall.
Clarkia amoena (90 days) Open pollinated. 3" “satin flowers” blooms in red, pink, salmon, lavender and white, and with a bright red patch in the heart of the four petals. Best for cutting.
Hibiscus moscheutos Open pollinated. Perennial, Zones 5-9. 6-8" saucer-shaped flowers in a mix of pinks, red and white, with contrasting red eyes where a contrast is to be had.
Persicaria tinctoria Open pollinated. Japanese indigo preferred by dyers in Maine. A tender annual, indigo thrives in fertile soil and likes heat and humidity.
Talinum paniculatum (95 days) Open pollinated. Petite pink flowers on thin stems mature into airy glistening bronze-to-burgundy sprays of teensy seedpods. Annual.
Coix lacryma-jobi (100 days) Open pollinated. Sets pendulous sprays of globular pearly purple-grey seeds, which may be strung as beads for necklaces. Spiky 2–3' stalks good for planters or as filler in dried fall arrangements.
Orlaya grandiflora (65-70 days) Open pollinated. 2-3' with ferny foliage and sturdy stems, dainty delicacy resembling lace-cap hydrangea, with the central florets of a flat-topped cluster surrounded by a ring of larger flowers.
Rubia tinctorum Open pollinated. Ancient and excellent source of red dye. Harvest roots after three years and grind to yield a wash- and light-fast red dye par excellence. 4' plants.
Ageratina altissima Open pollinated. Flat-topped fuzzy clusters of small pure white disk flowers bloom August through October, attracting multiple species of bees, moths and butterflies.
Saponaria officinalis Open pollinated. Not a dye plant; saponin-rich roots and leaves used to gently wash wool. Sweetly clove-scented pink perennial attracts pollinators. 3' plant.
