What's New in Veggies for 2013?

Every year seed catalog companies identify several new, gotta-have varieties for you to buy. “New” does not necessarily mean they are  new to the marketplace. They could be, but generally “new” means they are “new” to that particular catalog vendor. That is, this is the first time that company has offered them for sale. Folks like to buy new things, ergo “new plants!” 

There are dozens and dozens of seed catalog companies. Here are just a few of the new-gotta-have veggies that you may be interested in growing this year. 

Johnny’s Selected Seeds (Winslow, ME). Their full color catalog is a great reference for planting instructions, growing information, for comparing varieties with respect to days to maturity, disease resistance, light requirements, plant spacing, and plant height-width information for their selections. 

Salanova Lettuce. Johhny’s, an employee owned company, claims
to have the “newest innovation in salad mix” with its Salanova collections. You
grow them like a head lettuce, but harvest them as leaves. They claim you will
achieve a greater yield because you need fewer seeds to plant the same area.
The yield is 40% greater due to the weight of the individual leaves. Fewer plants with higher yields. 

Stokes Seeds (Buffalo, NY). Stokes has an informative full color catalog that can be a great reference for you. Like Johnny’s, and many other catalog companies, they are a full service company offering a wide range of vegetables, flowers, and garden supplies. 

Faerie Watermelon. Their hybrid seeded watermelon matures in
70 days and has a unique globe shape. The skin is creamy yellow with
pinkish-red flesh. The fruit average 4-6 pounds and has a high brix (sugar
content) of 11-12. It was the AAS Winner in 2012. (Aha! So, this variety is new
to Stokes but not the marketplace!) 

W. Atlee Burpee & Co. (Warminister, PA). I am almost excited about these three new to the marketplace offerings by Burpee. At least the descriptions sound good. 

Super Sauce Hybrid Tomato. There are over 7500 varieties of tomatoes to choose from. Here is the “biggest sauce tomato” weighing in at about 2 pounds, 5.5 inches tall and 5 inches wide. This indeterminate variety should produce “gallons of luscious, seedless sauce from a single plant harvest.” This is a hybrid, so you cannot save the seeds for planting in future years. I raise my own special-sauce heirloom tomatoes, but I will be growing this bad boy this year to check out the quantity and quality. 

On Deck High Corn. “The first sweet corn bred for containers!” so says the description. The plants are only 4-5 feet tall and produce 2-3 “delicious” 7-8 inch long ears per stalk. That is a pretty good yield in a small space on your patio or deck. Burpee says to plant 9 seeds per 24 inch container. Corn was about $4 per dozen last year. Plant two containers and you should harvest around three to four dozen ears for your family in about 60 days. Go nuts! Set up four containers. That’s about 6-9 dozen. (And raccoons also like corn. Great!) 

Sun King Broccoli (heat tolerant). This could be a good choice for our warming summers. Broccoli is a cool weather crop, but Sun King Hybrid has “unrivaled heat tolerance!” The heads are blue-green, 6-8 inches in diameter, with “abundant side shoots.” You should be able to harvest this variety from spring until fall, which sounds pretty good. 

Territorial Seed Company (Cottage Grove, OR). This is another full service, comprehensive seed catalog company with a wide range of plants and supplies.

Ghost Pepper- Bhut Jolokia (the hottest pepper, Guinness Book of World Records). You want hot? Territorial has rip-your-lips-off-hot with this baby. This variety has been around forever, though not so much in the USA. It is, however, “new” to Territorial. It is rated 300 times hotter than jalapeño. The fruit are wrinkled, about 2-3 inches long, and ripen from orange to red. It is best to start these seeds indoors because they are slow to germinate. Like the plant, but maybe not the heat? The plants make a good “decorative” addition to your garden or container, but make sure the kiddies do not take a bite out of these beauties. By the way, drinking milk is about the best way to calm the fire in your mouth. 

MacGregor’s Favorite Beet. Territorial is selling organic seeds of this “exceptionally rare seed from Scotland.” The beets are elongated, but this variety is grown primarily for its leaves. The elongated, narrow leaves are glossy, “nearly iridescent purple and superbly tender and delicious.” You can eat the leaves and the beet itself (as you can with most beet varieties), but now you can create a different look to your salad with this variety. 

Orange Burst Cauliflower. This variety has eye appeal and a
high beta-carotene content due to its coloration. The orange color is retained
even when cooked. Eat it raw or cooked.  

Purple Sun Carrots (high in anthocyanin). This deep purple carrot is purple from skin to core, unlike other purple carrot varieties. Anthocyanin has strong evidence of health benefits. This variety could be a flavorful, healthy, and colorful addition to your menu. Kiddies will find this fun to eat. 

Dyna Kohlrabi. Kolibri Kohlrabi has been rated the best tasting purple variety over the years. Dyna may be an interesting alternative. Twice the size of most Kohlrabi varieties, Dyna is an 8-10 inch wide variety that stays tender even at this large size. It has a sweet, “crispy and crunchy” flavor with a 60 day maturity. The plants are tall and wide, 18-24 inches, so give it space. Eat it raw or cooked. 

These are just a few new veggies from a small sampling of seed catalog companies. Go online to check out their other new-gotta-have offerings. 

Questions? Comments? Please contact me at this blog on Edina.Patch.com or larryc@cci4360.com.