The Thompson & Morgan catalogue came a few weeks ago and has been on my dining room table ever since. I page through it at breakfast and again at lunch. By now I know several pages by heart, but the catalogue still remains on table ready for one more look-through.
What is it about garden catalogues? I don’t reread novels and, I must admit, some gardening books have just barely been opened… but every catalogue is read and reread several dozen times. What is it about catalogues?
I have a theory. I am of that age that remembers the really great catalogues: Eaton’s, and Simpsons (before Sears entered the picture) and the seed catalogues of Rennie’s and Steele Briggs. Before television and the internet, catalogues were the stuff of dreams. The pictures and generous descriptions warmed many a winter afternoon. And to this day, I can't resist the lure of a catalogue.
To the top of the list go garden catalogues. All of them aren’t in yet; just Thompson & Morgan. I’m waiting for Stokes and Dominion Seed House and Veseys and Gardenimport and… If I choose my seeds too soon I may just miss a wonderful variety offered by someone else. I'll wait a bit longer.
For now, I shall review the pages of the Thompson & Morgan catalogue a few more times. I may have missed a seed variety I can't live without.