As a vegetable grower, you've probably asked yourself the question: Which varieties grow best in my garden? Cornell University's Vegetable Grower Variety Program (VVFG) is here to help. The concept is simple: growers from all over the state go to the VVFG website and report which varieties do or don't grow well in their gardens. You can view vegetable variety ratings and read reviews to see which vegetable varieties grow best.
The Vegetable Variety Test Garden (VVTG) is an affiliate program of the VVTG that allows each county extension to cultivate a vegetable demonstration garden. The 2024 VVTG project guide is “Cultural Roots of Eastern Europe.” Cornell University has partnered with Hudson Valley Seed Company in Accord, New York, to provide seeds and plants.
These vegetables are grown in the Parker F. Scripture Garden at the Oneida County CCE, which will be cultivating a variety of vegetable varieties originating from areas of Eastern Europe.
Here are some of the plants you can see: Come visit us this summer and see how our varieties are thriving!
Cosmonaut Volkov Tomato. This variety is native to Ukraine but was selected and named by a Russian space engineer turned horticulturist. This tomato is a large, irregular variety that produces large fruits with a sweet and sour flavor.
Gigante d'Italia Parsley and Genovese Basil. Italian parsley is a large plant with very large leaves and a very strong flavor. Basil was chosen by Italian villagers hundreds of years ago as the best pesto basil.
Bulgarian carrot chili pepper: a small, very hot pepper shaped like a carrot and with an orange-gold skin.
The garden also grows Ukrainian sliced cucumbers, Robert Hazelwood dry beans, Danvers carrots, Cherry Bell radishes, Detroit dark red beets, Early Jersey Wakefield cabbage, Elba potatoes, bouquet dill, mint, and Clear Dawn onions. Vegetable information is available on signs posted throughout the garden. Our gardens are open to the public free of charge during daylight hours. For more information about these plants, visit the Hudson Valley Seed Company at https://hudsonvalleyseed.com/. For more information about the Cornell VVTG, visit the website at https://gardening.cals.cornell.edu/adult-programs/vvtg.
Cornell Cooperative Extension Oneida County is here to answer your home and garden questions. Email your questions to homeandgarden@cornell.edu or call 315-736-3394 and press 1 then extension 333. Leave your question, name and phone number. We are available weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. to answer your questions. You can also visit our website at http://cceoneida.com/ or call 315-736-3394 and press 1 then extension 100.
