Is it too early to think about next year’s garden? Never, I say.
All-America Selections has picked its 2009 flower and vegetable award winners.
The independent organization picks the best new flowers and vegetable varieties after testing them at trial grounds across the country. There is no specific number of winners; only the varieties that display a combination of stellar qualities such as disease or pest tolerance, novel colors or flavors, yield, length of flowering or harvest, and overall performance are chosen.
Three vegetables and one bedding plant got the organization’s stamp of approval.
Eggplant ‘Gretel’: An early white mini eggplant that produces clusters of fruit. Gretel is great for containers and the pure white fruit are sweet with tender skin.
Melon ‘Lambkin’: This melon packs flavor and matures in about 65 to 75 days, according to AAS. The maturity date is similar to tomatoes I grow but I’ve never grown melon and I’ve heard plenty of horror stories about powdery mildew. OK, melon growers, do you think this one will be good for us?
Squash ‘Honey Bear’: This acorn squash was bred to be baked and served in the half shell, according to the AAS. This squash offers a sweet flavor when cooked and the compact plant has a high yield and a high resistance to powdery mildew.
Viola ‘Rain Blue’: This variety creates a spreading pool of cool blue colors, says AAS. The plants are cold and heat tolerant, resulting in flowers through the season. The one-and-a-half-inch blooms turn from purple to blue as they mature. The plants spread 10 to 14 inches. The trailing habit is perfect for containers.
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