When vegetable gardeners speak, the gardening industry listens. The 2012 season offers products that make gardening easier, dozens of organic and heirloom options, and a surprising number of new and unusual varieties to plant.

Gardening Gets Easier

With so many new gardeners trying their hand at backyard growing, companies are meeting the demand with products that simplify vegetable gardening. Look for “easy-grow” Ferry-Morse seed strips and disks; Simply Salad multi-species, multi-pellets from Ball Horticultural; and pre-packaged seed kits from Humble Seed.

Self-watering trough planters will take the guesswork out of plant care. The water reservoirs on the Lechuza molded plastic planters hold about three gallons of water and send up a signal when it’s time to add more.

Organic Gardening Grows

Vegetable gardeners have more organic options than ever before. Companies are capitalizing on the grow local and organic movements by featuring the green and white “USDA Organic” logo on their seed packets. More organic products will also be on the shelves for organic gardeners. Established brands, like St. Gabriel Organics, will face competition from industry giants with new organic product lines like Miracle-Gro’s Organic Choice plant foods, Daniels Plant Food from Ball Horticultural and Ortho’s Elementals garden solutions.

Heirloom Gardening Takes Off

At one time it was unusual to see seeds and plants described as “heirloom” or “open-pollinated” in catalogs, but now “heirloom” is used as a marketing catchword. Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, once the go-to source for heirloom seeds, has competition from just about every other seed company in the business. Look for “wonderful heirloom” “family heirloom” “popular heirloom” and even “organic heirloom” descriptors. Another common marketing term: “non-GMO.” It’s interesting to see that catalogs have made it a point to clearly label “hybrid” varieties.

Bold Colors, Tastes and Claims

Gardeners bored with growing the same vegetables and herbs in their gardens each year will be pleasantly surprised to plant blue or ‘Tye-Dye’ tomatoes, yellow ‘Faerie’ watermelons, ‘Orange Blaze’ peppers, and ‘Wasabi’ arugula. Burpee has a new vegetable collection called “Boost” that includes varieties that are said to have higher levels of antioxidants and higher nutrition than other home garden vegetables.

What vegetable gardening trends are you anticipating for 2012?

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

Burpee Organic Coconut Coir Concentrated Seed Starting Mix, 16 Quart

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ORGANIC COCONUT COIR: Made from recycled coconut husks, coir is a light, sustainable growing medium that holds the perfect amount of moisture for starting seeds. 100% biodegradable soil alternative. Environmentally friendly and a renewable alternative to peat moss. OMRI listed and certified organic. IDEAL GROWING MIX: Improve seed germination and root growth with this premium coconut fiber mix, which improves nutrients absorption! Great for flower, vegetable, herb, and more plant types. OMRI listed. Naturally disease and pathogen resistant, it will help you grow healthy live plants. EASY TO STORE & EXPAND: Each compact coconut coir brick expands into 8 quarts of seed starting mix, providing 16 quarts total. Just add water to expand! Dehydrated bricks save space until planting. Once expanded, coconut coir provides a quality growing medium for all types of plants—indoor plants, house plants, outdoor plants, and more! NATURALLY CONSERVES WATER: Renewable coco coir has excellent moisture retention and better air circulation than peat. This eco-friendly, premium seeds starting mix combines well with other potting soil and compost for container plants & raised beds. 100% GUARANTEED: Burpee is committed to the success of all gardeners. We treat each order with care to ensure healthy seeds, plants, soil mixes, and gardening supplies are sent in excellent condition. If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, we aim to make it right!

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A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo

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MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY.

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Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel

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Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil.

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