Gumbo Garden Seed Bundle
Gumbo Garden Seed Bundle
Grow ingredients for a gumbo garden with nine separate seed packets. Plant the leafy crops during their cool-season window and the peppers, okra, beans and basil when conditions are warm.
Includes: 9 separate seed packets. Packet quantities follow the individual labels.
What’s in the kit
- Red Creole Onion
- Tender Bell F1 Sweet Pepper
- Light Green Celery
- Red Burgundy Okra
- Dwarf Siberian Kale
- Contender Bush Beans
- Basil (seasonal heat-tolerant selection identified on packet)
- NuMex Joe E. Parker Pepper
- Champion Collards
When to plant
Use your local planting season for each crop. Cool-season greens, roots and brassicas generally belong in spring or fall in colder regions and the cooler months in South Florida. Warm-season crops go outside after frost and suitable soil warmth. The name of a kit is not a universal planting date.
Planting plan by crop
Depth, germination, final spacing and harvest clocks differ. Open each crop group below before sowing. These are planning ranges, not guaranteed dates.
Red Creole Onion
- Start: Start seedlings 8–10 weeks before the intended planting-out date, or direct sow where suitable
- Seed depth: ¼–½ inch
- Germination: Usually 4–20 days around 70–75°F
- Final spacing: Thin bulbing onions to about 4–6 inches; rows about 14 inches apart
- Harvest planning: Typical crop window: 100–130 days from seeding, with strong variety and regional differences
Harvest bulbs when tops naturally soften and fall. Cure in a dry, airy place before storage.
Tender Bell F1 Sweet Pepper · NuMex Joe E. Parker Pepper
- Start: Start indoors about 8 weeks before transplanting; slow hot peppers may need longer
- Seed depth: ¼ inch
- Germination: Usually 7–14 days in warm conditions; aim for about 80–85°F and allow longer for slow hot types
- Final spacing: Space plants about 18–24 inches apart; use one plant per suitably large, drained container
- Harvest planning: Typical crop window: 65–90 days from transplanting for first usable fruit; fully colored fruit takes longer
Pick full-sized green fruit or allow the variety’s ripe color to develop. Use care when handling hot peppers.
Light Green Celery
- Start: Start indoors about 10–12 weeks before transplanting
- Seed depth: Surface sow and press in; cover only very lightly
- Germination: Usually 14–21 days around 70–75°F
- Final spacing: Space plants 6–12 inches apart; rows about 18 inches apart
- Harvest planning: Begin leaf cutting after plants are well established; stalk harvest needs a long, steady cool growing period
Take a few outer leaves or stalks once growth is strong. Do not strip young plants.
Red Burgundy Okra
- Start: Direct sow in warm soil, or start in individual cells about 4–5 weeks before planting out
- Seed depth: ½–1 inch when direct sown
- Germination: Allow about 7–14 days in warm conditions; cold soil delays sprouting
- Final spacing: Thin to about 12–18 inches; rows about 36 inches apart
- Harvest planning: Typical crop window: 60–70 days from direct sowing
Check pods often and clip them while tender. Oversized pods can toughen rapidly.
Dwarf Siberian Kale
- Start: Direct sow, or start indoors 4–6 weeks before transplanting
- Seed depth: ¼–½ inch
- Germination: Usually 4–7 days around 65–70°F
- Final spacing: Thin to 12–18 inches for full-size plants; allow rows 18–24 inches apart
- Harvest planning: Typical crop window: 50–70 days from direct sowing; young leaves can be picked earlier
Pick tender outer leaves, leaving the center intact. For baby leaves, harvest by size rather than waiting for a full-size plant.
Contender Bush Beans
- Start: Direct sow
- Seed depth: 1–1½ inches
- Germination: Usually 8–10 days around 70–80°F
- Final spacing: Sow and thin to about 2–4 inches; rows about 18 inches apart
- Harvest planning: Typical crop window: 45–60 days from direct sowing
Pick snap-bean pods while tender and before seeds swell strongly. Keep picking to encourage further pods.
Basil (seasonal heat-tolerant selection identified on packet)
- Start: Start indoors about 6 weeks before transplanting, or direct sow in warm soil
- Seed depth: ¼ inch
- Germination: Usually 5–10 days around 65–70°F
- Final spacing: Thin to 8–12 inches
- Harvest planning: Begin light leaf picking once plants are established and branching; larger cuts come later
Pick leafy tips above a pair of leaves. Leave enough growth for the plant to branch again.
Champion Collards
- Start: Direct sow, or start indoors 4–6 weeks before transplanting
- Seed depth: ¼–½ inch
- Germination: Usually 10–15 days in warm, moist starting mix; aim for about 75–85°F
- Final spacing: Thin to 12–24 inches apart; rows about 24 inches apart
- Harvest planning: Typical crop window: 70–90 days from sowing, or 50–70 days from transplanting
Pick outer leaves once they reach a useful size. Leave the central growing point and enough foliage for continued growth.
How to plant
- Sort the packets into cool-season and warm-season planting groups. Write the sowing and transplant dates on your labels.
- Direct sow root crops and peas where they will grow. Start the slower transplants and tiny-seeded herbs separately.
- Keep seedbeds moist, then thin to each crop’s final spacing. Pick young leaves selectively while slower crops develop.
Aunt E’s tip: You do not need to sow every packet on the same day. A small first planting leaves seed for another round.
Growing notes and sources
Count timing from the sowing or transplanting point stated for each crop. Temperature, moisture, variety and season change the result.
UF/IFAS planting guide · Iowa State germination guide · Johnny’s herb guide
Food Security Starts With a Seed.