(Summer Squash, Yellow Crookneck Summer Squash)

Cultivated for centuries by native populations of North America, summer squash ‘Yellow Crookneck’ remains a popular favorite in the United States. The bumpy, bottle-shaped fruits of this classic heirloom are bent at the neck, and have glossy, golden-yellow skin surrounding firm, delicious, buttery flesh. They are best picked and eaten when very young and tender, and are ready for harvest approximately 65 days from sowing.

Like many summer squash, ‘Yellow Crookneck’ is a member of the New World...

(Summer Squash)

The distinctively patterned, yellow and green fruits of this F1 hybrid squash are also notable for their firm texture and delicious nutty flavor. The slender, club-shaped fruits are mostly yellow, but each has a pale green tip that appears "hand-dipped." This productive variety forms big, bushy, open plants which grow from seed to harvest in about 54 days. The fruits are best when 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm) long, and will be produced from summer to fall if regularly harvested.

Like most summer...

(Large-fruited Mix Gourd, Ornamental Gourd)

Seed mixtures sold under this name yield a crop of large decorative "gourds" in a wide variety of shapes and colors. Numerous cultivars from several species of Cucurbita (including C. pepo) are typically included.

Most "gourd" seed mixtures contain cultivars of Cucurbita pepo, C. moschata, C. maxima, Lagenaria siceraria, and other members of the squash family (the Cucurbitaceae). These warm-season, trailing or...

(Ornamental Gourd, Small Formula Mix Gourd)

Seed mixtures sold under this name yield a crop of small decorative "gourds" in a wide variety of shapes and colors. Numerous cultivars from several species of Cucurbita (including C. pepo) are typically included.

Most "gourd" seed mixtures contain cultivars of Cucurbita pepo, C. moschata, C. maxima, Lagenaria siceraria, and other members of the squash family (the Cucurbitaceae). These warm-season, trailing or...

(Cumin)

Mexican and Indian foods are renowned for their flavors of cumin, but surprisingly this annual herb originates from North Africa along the Mediterranean, most specifically Egypt. It is a fast-growing but short-lived plant that completes its life cycle in only three or four months. Cumin may be grown during the frost-free times of year when temperatures are comfortably cool, such as spring or fall. The cumin spice is the dried fruit and the seeds, which are typically ground.

An upright plant...

(Eastern Cyclamen, Perennial Cyclamen)

The charming flowers and elegant foliage of this hardy cyclamen are highlights of the winter garden. A low, clump-forming, tuberous perennial, it is native from eastern Bulgaria to western Azerbaijan, with disjunct subspecies in Northwest Iran and the Levant.

Relatively small, fuzzy tubers shaped like cheese wheels give rise in autumn to deep green, kidney-shaped to heart-shaped leaves with scalloped or toothed margins. The leaves of some plants have striking silver or pewter markings. The...

(Perennial Cyclamen, Something Magic Cyclamen)

Truly magical is this selection from Terra Nova Nurseries. Cyclamen ‘Something Magic’ offers a compact plant with stunning foliage and large bright rose-pink blooms. One of the first plants propagated from tissue culture so the individual plants are uniform in size, color and growth requirements.

This is one of the hardiest cyclamen for garden use. Native to the mountains of Bulgaria, Turkey and Lebanon, C. coum is a tuberous perennial. Like many garden cyclamen,...

(Ivy-leaved Cyclamen)

This hardy, durable, low-growing perennial offers charming flowers in late summer and handsome foliage through the chilly months. Native to southern Europe and westernmost Turkey, it has escaped gardens and established naturalized populations over much of the rest of Europe.

The gray- to dark-green, heart-shaped to lance-shaped leaves of Cyclamen hederifolium arise from underground tubers in late summer or early fall. The leaves are often strikingly marbled or veined with contrasting...

(Quince)

(Quince)

Long cultivated for its fragrant, tasty fruit, this small, slow-growing deciduous tree from western and central Asia is also notable for its lovely spring flowers and its picturesque multi-trunked habit.

The simple oblong-oval leaves flush light green in spring, soon followed by large, five-petaled, white or pale pink blossoms that are visited by bees. The leaves mature to dull medium green with fuzzy, paler undersides. The pear-shaped to apple-shaped, fuzzy-skinned fruits ripen by early autumn,...