ALL-AMERICA SELECTIONS
A network of anonymous gardening professionals from various regions of the United States and Canada evaluate new, not-yet-sold cultivars in about 80 test gardens each growing season, judging them against comparable selections that are already on the market. The new cultivars are scored for certain criteria and the top scorers are named All-America Selections. For lists of past winners as well as regional standouts, go to http://www.all-americaselections.org.
1 ‘Icicle’ F1 eggplant
Expect a harvest of eight or nine long, slim, pure-white fruits from this hearty eggplant. Compared to other white varieties, ‘Icicle’ has larger fruits (to seven inches) with fewer seeds and its skin resists yellowing. The plant grows to about four feet tall. Judges noted that its upright stance and its height kept the fruits from dragging on the soil, while reduced spines made tending and harvesting the plant easy.
Like all eggplants, ‘Icicle’ is a warm-season crop that requires full sun. It is suitable for a container, raised bed or garden plot. Sow seeds indoors three weeks before the expected last frost. Transplant after the threat of frost has passed. Expect to harvest the first fruits about 60 days after transplanting.
2 ‘Bauer’ lettuce
Compact and quick-growing ‘Bauer’ is an oakleaf lettuce that offers a lot of versatility. Its notably dark green, crisp, lobed leaves taste sweet. Individual leaves can be snipped early for use as a baby green or left to form a full eight-inch-round head. ‘Bauer’ boasts good resistance to pests and diseases, and its stance reduces the risk of bottom rot. (The heads form slightly elevated from the soil.)
Full or part sun suffi ces to grow oakleaf lettuce, a cool-season crop that can be seeded outdoors as soon as the soil is workable in spring. ‘Bauer’ grows equally well in the ground or containers, including window boxes. Sow fresh seed every two or three weeks from early spring into earliest summer for a continual harvest. For a fall crop, start seed indoors in midsummer, aiming to transplant the seedlings about three weeks later.
3 ‘Buffy’ F1 hot pepper
Judges were impressed by the relatively large size of this hot pepper’s fruit. They noted that the nearly two-inch length and the thick wall make it easy to remove the seeds. In the garden, these green-ripening-to-red fruits occur high on the two-foot-tall plant, lending some visual appeal.
‘Buffy’ pepper requires full sun and warm weather to thrive. Sow seeds indoors four weeks before the expected last frost and transplant the seedlings once nights remain over 50 degrees (F). Provide support with a sturdy stake or tomato cage to counter the weight of the heavy crop. This pepper can be grown in a pot, but one judge noted it would need to be a large planter because ‘Buffy’ is quite vigorous.
4 ‘Century Star’ F1 watermelon
The rind of this new watermelon brings
