Gardeners peruse seed catalogs

A new year is upon us, and I doubt if 2011 will be much different from any other, at least in one aspect. It seems each year about this time, seed catalogs arrive in the mail and I eagerly ponder which varieties of vegetables to plant. I love seed catalogs. They offer colorful photos and oftentimes terrific cultural information. With that said, I still end up purchasing most of my vegetable seeds from local garden centers.




I always look for the red, white, and blue shield which certifies a variety as an "All-America Selections" winner. My recommendations:

Mariachi pepper (2006): This fleshy chili pepper ripens from creamy white to rose and finally to red. Mariachi peppers are moderately pungent, with Scoville ratings in the 500 to 600 range (about one fourth the heat of jalapeno peppers). Use in salsas, sauces, or roast whole.


Sweet Beauty watermelon (2004): With sweet flavor and crisp texture, there is no wonder Sweet Beauty is praised by judges for its superior eating qualities. Melons weigh only 5 to 7 pounds and have dark green skin and medium green stripes.


Diva cucumber (2002): Cukes have a sweet, non-bitter with a crisp texture. Normally seedless, but a few seeds may be present if pollinated by other cuke plants. Expect high yields of mature cucumbers in about 58 days from sowing seed in warm soil. It is resistant to scab and tolerant to powdery and downy mildews. Diva is a good slicing cucumber.


Each of these varieties should be available at better garden centers and through online catalogs.