Italian Vegetable Seeds

Plants grow similarly to sweet peppers and fruit abundantly throughout the summer, preferably under glass or in a sunny spot outdoors. Aubergine Melanzana Prosperosa produces flattened round, paler purple fruits with firm, bitter-free flesh.

Plants grow similarly to sweet peppers and fruit abundantly throughout the summer, preferably under glass or in a sunny spot outdoors. Aubergine Melanzana Viserba ;produces cylindrical, glossy purple skinned fruits with bitter free flesh.

The most popular Basil, essential for authentic Italian cuisine with strong scent and flavour. Basil Basilico Genovese is easy growing herb for the windowsill or outdoors.

A ‘Kenyan type’ of compact bush habit to 50cm, producing an abundance of slender, round, dark green pods up to 11cm in length. Pick regularly for heaviest crops. Stands hot weather well. Resistant to bean mosaic and anthracnose.

Attractive pale yellow ‘waxpod’, producing 20cm pods about 2cm broad. Very early to harvest first pods and a prolific cropper over a long season if picked regularly whilst young and tender.

Vigorous plants producing a tremendous crop of very long, thin green pods up to 45cm in length, hence their name. Also known as ‘asparagus bean’. Flavour is at its best when picked young and tender.

Typical ‘Borlotto’. The 13-14cm, quite broad pods are attractive red splashed cream, bulging with 6-7 cream with red streaked seeds. Pods can be harvested immature but it is usually grown for the full sized seeds for harvesting in the autumn.

Compact plants producing pale cream-yellow pods containing 6 or 7 large white ‘cannelloni beans’, essential for a range of specific dishes. Plants quite late maturing, usually grown for the fully mature seeds harvested in the autumn.

Attractive bright yellow, slender, stringless pencil podded ‘waxpods’ on vigorous bushy plants. Early maturing and crops heavily over a long season if picked regularly.

Ideal for early sowings as they mature quickly, Beetroot Bietola da Orto Paonazza d'Egitto producies unusual flatter roots with deep red flesh and a sweet flavour.

Carrot Carota Fucino is a cylindrical, blunt ended, smooth, rich orange skinned and cored 'bunching carrot'. Sow seeds regularly throughout the season for tasty carrots for salads and cooking.

The pure white, deep curds of Cauliflower Cavolfiore Palla di Neve will stand in good condition if foliage is bent over the curds during sunny weather.

Round headed, greenish leaves turning a reddish and white variegated as colder weather beckons and the heart formation becomes more noticeable. Chicory Cicoria variegata de Chioggia has good winter hardiness. Boil leaves to remove bitterness, fresh chicory leaves add zest to a mixed salad.

Forms an attractive rosette of green leaves and a small heart if grown to maturity, but often sown as a 'cut and come again' salad leaf.

Tennis ball sized, round red, white veined, crisp heads adding colour to salads or cooked vegetables. Boil leaves to remove bitterness, fresh leaves add zest to a mixed salad.

A creamy green, blotched red leaf chicory forming a most decorative loose heart. Colour is more pronounced as cooler winter weather approaches. Late maturing with excellent winter hardiness. Boil leaves to remove bitterness, fresh leaves add zest to a mixed salad.

A versatile, round fruited variety which can be cropped from golf ball size for eating raw whole, slightly larger for slicing or stir frying, to tennis ball size for stuffing.

Classic Italian zucchini, indispensable for a host of dishes. Crops early and heavily throughout the summer if the fruits are picked regularly. Early morning picked flowers can be battered and fried or in ‘frittata’, an Italian style omelette.

Darkish green, smooth, cylindrical fruits with pale green stripes. Very productive fruiting variety throughout the summer if picked regularly.

Prolific crop throughout the summer of medium length, dark green fruits with short, white spines. Best grown outdoors.

Long, slender, mid green fruits with short spines. A more reliable crop if grown under glass but will grow outdoors in a sunny situation.

Early ripening and prolific cropping gherkin producing short, firm fleshed, spiny skinned fruits. Ideal whole or sliced for pickling.

A mixture of different tastes, colours and leaf shapes, from light to dark green outer leaves and white to gold centres, plus deep green salad endive with upright irregular shaped leaves. Ideal for summer and autumn cultivation.

Mixture contains Endive Romanesca da Taglio, Fijne Krul Geel (Sempre Bianca), Pancalieri a Costa Bianca, Riccia a Cuore d'Oro.

Increasingly popular 'baby salad leaf' to add colour, texture and taste to mixed salads. The mature plant can also be used as a winter hardy vegetable when fresh produce is in short supply.

Forms a round mound of pale green, frilled edged leaves. Lattuga Lollo Bionda does not produce a firm heart. Cut the entire plant or just pick leaves as required. Makes an attractive complement to Lollo Rossa. Lettuce is very suitable for inter-cropping between taller, long-standing vegetables, such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, etc. Lettuces require rich, moisture retentive soil free of weeds .

A loose leaf 'picking lettuce', Lattuga Rossa a Foglia Riccia da Tavolo produces abundant bronzed leaves to add to salads, and sandwiches, or used as a garnish. Lettuce is very suitable for inter-cropping between taller, long-standing vegetables, such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, etc. Lettuces require rich, moisture retentive soil free of weeds .

A loose leaf 'picking lettuce', Lattuga Verde A Foglia Riccia produces an abundant pale green leaves to add to salads and sandwiches, or used as a garnish. Lettuce is very suitable for inter-cropping between taller, long-standing vegetables, such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, etc. Lettuces require rich, moisture retentive soil free of weeds .

Lattuga Bionda Lenta a Montare is a delicious, crisp, dark green, classic 'Romaine' type with solid hearts which stand in good condition during hot weather. Traditionally used in Caesar salads. Lettuce is very suitable for inter-cropping between taller, long-standing vegetables, such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, etc. Lettuces require rich, moisture retentive soil free of weeds .

Lattuga Red Salad Bowl forms a voluminous head of reddish-bronzed leaves. Non-hearting, just pick young leaves as required or cut the full head, wash and keep in the refrigerator. Lettuce is very suitable for inter-cropping between taller, long-standing vegetables, such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, etc. Lettuces require rich, moisture retentive soil free of weeds .

A 'butterhead' variety with soft round, medium sized hearts for sowing and harvesting throughout the spring and summer. The outer leaves and heart of Lettuce Quattro Stagioni show an attractive bronzed-red colour. Lettuce is very suitable for inter-cropping between taller, long-standing vegetables, such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, etc. Lettuces require rich, moisture retentive soil free of weeds .