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- Select the Right Seed
- Growers must consider many factors
when selecting seed variety
- By Karen Gentry
Associate Editor
- Olympus (formerly #31702), a new pepper variety from Enza Zaden, is believed by some to be the best fall pepper for South Florida and into Georgia, yet it just won’t work in Michigan.
Jeff Siegers, sales and product development for Siegers Seed Company, based in Holland, Mich., said the performance of that pepper is an example of how a grower’s location can affect their seed buying decisions.
“Nothing grows the same way across the street,” said Siegers.
Choosing the right seed for the maximum amount of quality and yield is the goal of vegetable growers. The best seed selection depends on the growers’ market, goals, location, soil and their own experiences.
Siegers Seed Company sells to growers east of the Mississippi River from Michigan south to Georgia and Florida. The company has vegetable trials around the country to show how a particular seed may differ from one part of the country to another.
Siegers held a field day on Aug. 15 in Southwest Michigan and attracted more than 100 attendees. At the field day, Siegers displayed the good and the bad of vegetable varieties picked recently in the area. Several seed companies also set up tables with displays and giveaways.
Siegers pointed out some varieties that are looking good this year and he stressed that no one seed company has all a grower needs. He said the BHN 411 Roma tomato is looking pretty good. He also cited the 1832 yellow squash from Seminis that offers multiple resistances and is precocious. Siegers also noted the 278 extra tender sweet corn as an “up and coming” variety. He said the variety is a super sweet, augmented gene type.
Siegers noted that the Jaladuro halapeno from United Genetics as the number one halapeno - a “nice pepper” that was released last year.
He said his company looks at varieties from as far away as Israel, California and Mexico. Company representatives work with growers to develop the best program for their area and will share data on trials.
“The saga continues in the search for a grape tomato,” said Siegers, about the popular tomato. The Jolly Elf is a unique one that has a determinate plant type that is easier to manage and less expensive to grow.
The main consideration when choosing the right seed is that it has to be a variety that has performed well for more than one year, according to Greg Klay, sales representative for SeedWay. The amount of sunshine and rain also affect how a crop may fare in a particular area. Upstate New York trials may show different results from the same varieties planted in Wisconsin. His company distributes seed from more than a dozen seed companies, primarily to growers east of the Mississippi.
Klay said his company does small plot trials, including six sweet corn trials in the Midwest as well as onion, carrot, cabbage and pumpkin trials. SeedWay uses test plots to educate and show growers how various early to late varieties can fit into a program for them.
For sweet corn, the Serendipity and Jackpot from Syngenta are two good varieties for the roadside retailer. He said the Jackpot variety with rust resistance also looks promising. For onions, Klay said the BES-142 and Bradley varieties from Bejo look promising because of their high yields and as good storage onions.
Klay said the Carson carrot varieties from Bejo looks good in the Midwest, as well as the Nandrin variety for an early slicing carrot.
Klay has observed increased amounts of pumpkins planted. “I think the pumpkin crop is probably the one everyone looks to,” he said.
Klay noted that the Pam, a hybrid pumpkin variety from SeedWay is a sugar pie type pumpkin that is very uniform and an easy one for kids to pick up and carry.
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