I JUST NEED ONE MORE-----

look through the seed catalogs.  The orders have been placed but I keep thinking I may have missed something that would be a revelation to central Oregon gardeners.

If I hadn't taken a third cruise through Burpee's catalog I would have missed ordering the On Deck hybrid corn.  Why am I glad I looked one more time?

On Deck hybrid corn is a Burpee exclusive corn bred for containers.  Granted it will only produce one or two ears of corn per plant, which can be the same yield as other varieties of bicolor corn that are grown in the field.  The great asset is that it is meant for containers giving apartment dwellers and patio gardeners a chance for homegrown corn  The recommendations for containers is 9 seeds per 24 inch container.  Maturity is 61-63 days, add on our 14 days and the variety comes within our 90 day time frame.

My "search engine" has been chugging along all afternoon trying to locate sources for the All America Selections but not connecting with any results.  I suspect although the varieties are introduced as 2021 winners, the seeds aren't easily available until the following year.

To satisfy your curiosity, the winners this year are:

Celosia Kelos Candela Pink, according to the fact sheet, available in plant form only 

Echalion Creme Brulee, an echalion is larger than a shallot  and this variety is the only shallot to win a AAS rating.  (Most shallots are over 100 days maturity)

Leucanthemum Sweet Daisy Birdy, a perennial in the Shasta daisy family.  Hardy to zone 3.  Sounds great, if we can find a source.

Pepper Pot-a-peno F1 is a compact jalapeno pepper perfect for hanging baskets.

Squash Goldilocks F1 is an acorn squash with high yields and a nutty flavor. 

Zinnia Profusion, Red Yellow Bicolor starts out with a vibrant red center, then as it ages, morphs into soft shades of apricot, salmon and dusty rose.

If anyone can find the sources for these selections please share.

Then on the other hand, is the National Garden Bureau.

The National Garden Bureau members and Board of Directors select plant classes that consumers can grow successfully.  Their selections aren't as specific as the All America Selections.  They brand their categories as "Year of the".  There are five categories each year.  Categories include an annual, a vegetable/edible, a perennial, a bulb and a flowering shrub.  The following are the choices for 2021.

Annual:  Year of the Sunflower

Vegetable/edible:  Year of the Garden Bean 

Perennial:  Year of the Monarda

Bulb:  Year of the Hyacinth

Flowering shrub:  Year of the Hardy Hibiscus

These categories are easier to match to varieties that we can grow and we can be part of the national campaign of trying something we haven't tried before.

The hardy hibiscus is a non-tropical hibiscus rated for a zone 4 (with protection).  Depending how dedicated you are to your plants, I would suggest a less intense care routine by using the Water Wise Gardening publication for suggestions of flowering shrubs.  Personally, I have lusted after the fragrant abelia in the OSU Redmond Demo Garden.

I have worn my brain out making choices and submitting orders.  It's time to put the seed catalogs aside and close with

 A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR WITH WISHES AND HOPES OF SEEING EACH OTHER SOON!

Learn more about the OSU Demonstration Gardens in Central Oregon: tune into KPOV 88.9 FM on Tuesday, January 19th between 9 and 9:30am for Gardening: Get Good at It.