I have never been a fan of groundhogs. During the summer they get fat eating my vegetable garden, and then during the middle of winter the granddaddy of them all, Punxatawney Phil, wakes up long enough to promise six more weeks of winter. What is a stir-crazy gardener to do at times like this?

Mid-February is a little early to start almost all seedlings indoors, and if you receive garden catalogues you may have already pored over them so many times the pages are ready to fall out. Having reached that point myself, I decided it was time for a change of pace. First, I decided to make a list of vegetables that I like but haven’t grown. Then, I decided to start looking outside my favorite seed catalogues for new varieties of old favorites. 

The five new vegetables that I’m trying this year range from easy-to-grow to somewhat challenging. I am going to try growing leeks, which will store long into next winter and can be used in a variety of hearty dishes. A winter trip to Sicily has inspired me to grow fennel for use in salads and pasta dishes. Heirloom fingerling potatoes were added my roster after having some at a friend’s house and becoming instantly addicted. Jerusalem artichokes will join my perennial garden as the only edible ornamental in my landscape (so far), and I round out my five with Thai Basil, which is easy to grow and provides a unique flavor for Asian or Italian cooking.

When looking for information on how to grow any new vegetables, an excellent resource to refer to is Cornell’s Vegetable Varieties for Gardener’s website: http://vegvariety.cce.cornell.edu/. There you will find feedback from other New York gardeners who are growing. For example, when I looked up ‘Zefa Fino’ Fennel, I found a review that noted that it was easy to grow, insect resistant, and considered attractive.  If you want more detailed information on how to grow a certain vegetable, Cornell’s Vegetable Gardening Guides, found at http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/homegardening/scene0391.html, provide detailed information on growing 58 different vegetables in New York.

Adding new vegetables, or new ornamentals, to your garden pallet will keep you learning how to be a better gardener and will add a new layer to the anticipation of spring. One of the best ways to discover new plants is to talk to your gardening friends. See what catalogues they use, and what vegetables or ornamentals they can’t live without. The possibilities are endless, and if you can’t get down to Florida for a week of early spring, looking through the pages of shiny new catalogues is a pretty cheap alternative.

Happy garden planning!