What better way to scratch your gardening itch this winter than to page through garden catalogs or surf websites with the promise of mouth-watering produce for the coming growing season! Here’s a look at just a few of the new vegetable seed offerings for 2012. Try a few alongside your old standby favorites so that you can compare performance in your garden.
Following the description of each vegetable is the number of days to maturity and a letter code for an online supplier. See reference codes below.
Basil ‘Caesar’
Basil ‘Caesar’ has large 2.5-3-inch aromatic leaves, a classic for pesto. The 12-18-inch tall plants are slower to bolt (go to seed) than other strains. 75 days. (H)
Bean ‘Amethyst’
Bean ‘Amethyst’ is a thinner, straighter, purple pod type; pods average 5-5.5 inches long and turn green when cooked. 56 days. (Jo)
Cucumber ‘Manny’
Cucumber ‘Manny’ is a specialty petite-type,known as Beit Alpha, and sets seedless fruit without pollination, with sweet, smooth, tender skin, Cumbers are 5-7 inches long. The plants are best adapted to trellising or caging, and have some resistance to powdery mildew. 50 days (H)
Melon ‘Dream Dew’
Melon ‘Dream Dew’ is a large, early maturing honey dew-type, with good resistance to Fusarium wilt and intermediate resistance to powdery mildew. 82 days. (H)
Okra ‘Green Fingers’
Okra ‘Green Fingers’ begins to set fruit when it’s just 15 inches high. It features prolific production of spineless, upright, 3-4-inch pods on compact plants. 55 days. (P)
Parsley ‘Lisette’
Parsley ‘Lisette’ is a finely curled improved selection of ‘Moss Curled,’ with good heat tolerance, quick growth, and fresh, bright color. The compact, bunched habit (8-10 inches tall) is excellent for containers and garden edging. 60-70 days from seed. (P)
Pepper ‘Cayennetta’
Pepper ‘Cayennetta’ is a mildly spicy 3-4 inch chili pepper. It supplies abundant yields on upright, compact plants that require no staking; good for container and patio gardening. 2012 AAS winner. 69 days. (P)
Pepper ‘Cherry Stuffer’
Pepper ‘Cherry Stuffer’ is a sweet version of the popular ‘Cherry Bomb.’ It features abundant production of 2-2.5 inch fruits on compact plants; it is good for containers. 73 days. (B, C)
Pepper ‘Cute Stuff’
Pepper ‘Cute Stuff’ is an adorable mini bell pepper that is ideal for container gardening. The green bells measure 3 inches by 2.5 inches and ripen to sweet red at maturity. 62 days. (H)
Pumpkin ‘Mr. Wrinkles’
Pumpkin ‘Mr. Wrinkles’ is a large (20-30 pounds) jack-o’-lantern-type pumpkin, with dark orange color, chunky stalk “handles,” and deep ribs. 105 days. (H, S, V)
Spinach ‘Python’
Spinach ‘Python’ is a fast grower, perfect for fall harvest of its smooth, dark green, arrowhead-shaped leaves; it is resistant to downy mildew. 35 days. (Jo)
Squash ‘Golden Egg’
Squash ‘Golden Egg’ is aptly named for its 5-inch golden fruits, with succulent creamy-fleshed summer squash. 41 days. (B)
Squash ‘Jester’
Squash ‘Jester’ winter squash, an oval-shaped, delicate-type, is productive, pretty, and tasty. Jester produces 5-7 ivory- and green-striped fruits per short-vined plant. 95 days. (Jo)
Tomato ‘Big Daddy’
Tomato ‘Big Daddy’ is bred from the popular ‘Big Boy,’ but with improved disease-resistance and hot-weather fruit set. 77 days. (B)
Tomato ‘Sweet Zen’
Tomato ‘Sweet Zen’ boasts sweet, bright red, grape tomatoes with a compact, determinate plant habit ideal for container and patio gardening. 63 days. (S)
Watermelon ‘Faerie’
Watermelon ‘Faerie’ is a unique, early producing melon, with sweet, pinkish-red flesh surrounded by a creamy, yellow rind. The small, personal-sized (7-8 inch) fruits pack high sugar content and crisp texture on compact plants, which are ideal for containers and patios. AAS 2012 winner. 72 days from seed; 60 days from transplants. (P)
(B) Burpee Seeds
(C) The Cook’s Garden
(H) Harris Seeds
(Jo) Johnny’s Selected Seeds
(Ju) Jung Quality Seeds
(P) Park Seed
(S) Stokes Seeds
(V) Veseys