Gardening with New Vegetable Varieties

The addition of new varieties may not only add interest in the garden but increase productivity and quality as well. Leading the parade of new varieties in the vegetable selections is a golden zucchini squash called Gold Rush. The vigorous, bushy plants produce throughout the entire summer and up to frost. The most recent tomato introduction is called Show-Me. This variety produces dark red tomatoes with firm flesh. The shoulders of the fruit are smooth and they ripen evenly without green shoulders or cracks. Average fruit size is about eight ounces.

Plants contain resistance to fusarium wilt and tolerance to early blight. Those who like a slightly sweeter taste in cabbage might want to try the hybrid cabbage variety Tastie. This excellent home garden variety has good yellows resistance and firm, high-quality heads. Watermelons are not well suited to all home gardens, but those with adequate space and proper soils may want to try the new Dixielee variety. The intense, deep red color is outstanding, and is accompanied by a high sugar content for extra sweet flavor.

Plants have good disease resistance. Dixielee produces round, striped melons. Although not new, the cantaloupe variety Ambrosia has been much praised by home gardeners. The thick flesh is sweet with a distinctive taste that makes it outstanding among cantaloupes. Those who like cantaloupes should consider trying this one. Many home gardeners do not grow mustard greens, but for those who do, a new hybrid variety, Tendergreen II is now available. The vigorous plants produce thick, deep green glossy leaves.

As leaves age, there is less tendency to yellow, and the variety is slow to bolt. Sugar Snap peas were an All-America introduction last year, but they have been so well received that they are worth mentioning again. The pods, as well as the peas, are sweet and tender and may be eaten when very young, or when fairly mature. The vigorous plants grow four to five feet tall and need support. Plant seeds outdoors very early for best crops. Bush cucumbers are not new but in the few years they have been available their popularity has spread because they are so well suited to limited garden space.

Bush Champion is a new addition to this group of cucumbers. It produces an abundant supply of straight, slender cucumbers. Sweet corn varieties that hold their sweet flavor long after picking are gaining popularity, and new varieties with this character are becoming more numerous. Among some of the more recent additions are Sweet-time, Party-time, Sugar Sweet and Kandy Korn. It sometimes takes several years before new varieties are generally available. The extra quality, productivity, or perhaps just having something unique in the neighborhood may make extra hunting worthwhile.

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