Hybridization is a technique that has been used purposefully and accidentally for thousands of years to achieve a diversity of characteristics including unique colors and shapes, high yields and disease resistance. Many growers rely on the benefits that hybrids offer, especially disease resistance and uniformity of maturity and size, because their markets require a level of consistency that may not be achievable using open-pollinated seed. While we are thrilled about the current "renaissance" in OP breeding, we are also grateful to the partner companies we work with for continuing to develop the high performance hybrids our commercial grower customers need -  like these, our NEW hybrids for 2016. Passat F1 Cabbage - 90 days Storage & processing · Upright habit · 6-8 lb heads One-stop-shopping for all your cabbage needs! Versatile late-season variety with large, dense heads and early vigor. Ideal for slaws, sauerkraut, storage and fresh eating, with quality that improves in storage. High Brix and classic texture with a short core. A gorgeous, uniform late season variety to replace Kaitlin. Good resistance to leaf diseases and black rot. Bred by Bejo Seeds for the kraut & processing industry in Holland. (Brassica oleracea) Disease Resistance: Fusarium Yellows, Thrips Adona F1 Cauliflower - 76 days Spring or fall crop · 5" heads Strong, vigorous plants with beautiful, high quality heads and a short harvest window. Attractive, well-domed compact heads with dense flavorful white curds that resist becoming fuzzy or ricey. Heads are well-protected; wrapper leaves are well suited to tying or the "break, fold and cover" method of blanching. Tolerant of bacterial soft rot and downy mildew. From Bejo Seeds. (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis) Cupar F1 Carrot - 95 days Storage · 8" Chantenay-type High yielding, vigorous roots with disease-resistant foliage. Tapered deep orange roots with broad shoulders and very little greening. Maintains its attractive, uniform appearance and sweet flavor improves in storage; ideal for CSA growers looking for a reliable and long-storing carrot for bunching or season extension.  (Daucus carota) Kalunga F1 Cucumber - 55 days Compact · 12-13" fruits Lightly ribbed, long green fruits on vigorous, productive plants. Compact plants are early to mature, producing one fruit per node. The highest yielding European type in our trials! Tasty, non-bitter fruits have golden flesh and an extended shelf life. Ideal for unheated greenhouses, but widely adapted to many different growing conditions and seasons, with intermediate resistance to PM. From Vitalis Organic Seeds. (Cucumis sativa) Disease Resistance: Scab, Target Leaf Spot First Kiss F1 Melon - 71 days Cantaloupe · 1-2 lb Exceptionally early melon with consistently high quality fruit. We were instantly lovestruck with this small, early cantaloupe! Every melon was filled with firm, wonderfully sweet flesh—unusual in such an early melon. A standout in our taste tests 2 years in a row, with strong disease resistance and an attractive, lightly netted rind. Bred by Dr. Brent Loy at UNH.  (Cucumis melo) Disease Resistance: Fusarium Wilt (2), Powdery Mildew (1&2) Orange Sherbet F1 Melon - 80 days Eastern-type · 7-8 lbs Extremely disease-resistant melon with superb eating quality. Generally agreed to be one of the best hybrid cantaloupes available, and the hands-down winner in our 2014 taste tests! Well-netted round to oval Tuscan melons slip easily from the vine. Consistently delicious aromatic flesh with high Brix is firm and ships well. Our first melon with watermelon mosaic virus resistance! Bred by our friends at Colorado Seeds.  (Cucumis melo) Disease Resistance: Fusarium Wilt (1&2), Powdery Mildew (2), Watermelon Mosaic Virus Zoey F1 Sweet Onion - 95 days Intermediate day · 4" bulbs A widely-adapted sweet onion with excellent quality. Beautiful with pale yellow skin, narrow necks and sweet, flavorful white flesh. High yielding, uniform and vigorous, with some tolerance to pink root and leaves that flop down without crimping, allowing bulbs to size up while creating a barrier against disease. Best planted early in the season to maximize size potential. From Vitalis Organic Seeds.  (Allium cepa) Abay F1 Sweet Pepper - 85 days green, 95 yellow Widely-adapted · 4" fruits Jumbo-sized blocky gold fruits on widely-adapted plants. Hefty 4" peppers with thick walls start dark green and mature to a beautiful golden yellow. An excellent open field variety that is well-suited to spring and fall plantings in the Southeast, and as a main crop in northern areas. The only hybrid organic yellow bell on the market that's resistant to bacterial leaf spot! From our partners at Vitalis Organic Seeds.  (Capsicum annuum) Disease Resistance: Bacterial Leaf Spot (1-5), Tobacco Mosaic Virus Bastan F1 Poblano Pepper - 65 days green, 85 chocolate SHU 3,000 · 4-6" fruits Large, high quality dark green chiles on productive plants. Thick-walled, medium-sized fruits are a glossy dark green, nearly black, maturing to a deep chocolate with mild heat. Plants have an upright habit with excellent leaf cover and concentrated fruit set; extremely high yielding. Delicious roasted, stuffed, battered and fried - or try them stuffed with smoked gouda and grilled! From Vitalis Organic Seeds.  (Capsicum annuum) Escalade F1 Spinach - 43 days Summer crop · Upright habit Nicely savoyed, emerald green leaves with luxuriant texture. Slow growing and slow to bolt, Escalade is the perfect vehicle to ride out the main season. A bullet-proof variety that east coast growers will appreciate—capable of handling temperature and light variations better than any other organic variety—but also great for western growers thanks to strong mildew resistance. Produces uniform oval-shaped leaves ideal for commercial baby leaf production. Excellent DM resistance. From Vitalis Organic Seeds.  (Spinacia oleracea) Disease Resistance: Downy Mildew (1-14) Yellowfin F1 Zucchini - 50 days Compact, open habit · Harvest at 6-8" The first organic yellow zucchini with PM resistance! Uniform, cylindrical fruits with pure gold color and buttery flavor simply glow at market. Compact, nearly spineless plants have an open habit for ease of harvest. Strong resistance to powdery mildew and intermediate resistance to CMV for a reliable harvest even in challenging field conditions. From Vitalis Organic Seeds. (Cucurbita pepo) Disease Resistance: Powdery Mildew, Cucumber Mosaic Virus Festival F1 Dumpling Winter Squash - 90-100 days Semi-bush habit · Stores well · 1-2 lbs Delightful multi-colored squash with superior eating quality. Attractive personal-sized squashes topped our dumpling trials in both flavor and yield for 2014! Deeply ribbed and striped fruits with a wide, slightly rounded bottom. Flesh is peach-colored, similar to an acorn squash but with superior sweet flavor and texture.  (Cucurbita pepo) Fortamino F1 Rootstock Tomato A vegetative rootstock developed to boost plant growth in short, cool seasons. The ultimate stress-buster! Created for transplanting into stressful conditions, such as the field or unheated hoophouses. A strong root system gives plants a boost in early growth stages, later providing excellent leaf cover and reducing transplant shock. Scions grafted onto Fortamino also have increased yields, with more flowers per truss and a higher average fruit weight. Intermediate resistance to TSWV, root-knot nematodes and corky root. (Lycopersicon esculentum) Disease Resistance: Tobacco Mosaic Virus, Leaf Mold, Verticillium Wilt, Fusarium Wilt (0-2), Fusarium Crown Rot Bartelly F1 Tomato - 60 days GREENHOUSE · Indeterminate · .75 oz Delicious, disease-resistant cherries for unheated greenhouses and high tunnels. Knocked our socks off with its sweet, well-balanced flavor! Slightly oval fruits developed for growing in unheated organic, low-input greenhouses; also suitable for heated greenhouse culture. Healthy, vigorous plants are well-branched with strong resistance to TMV and leaf mold. From DeBolster Organic Seeds.  (Lycopersicon esculentum) Disease Resistance: Tobacco Mosaic Virus, Leaf Mold (1-5) Skyway 687 F1 Tomato - 78 days Heat-tolerant · 12 oz fruit Our first heat-set field tomato! Heavy, high quality field tomatoes with good flavor for vine ripening on vigorous, semi-determinate plants. Particularly well-adapted to organic conditions in the Southeast U.S., setting fruit well over 90°F and offering strong virus and nematode resistance. Prune ground suckers early in the season. Tolerant of bacterial spot, with intermediate resistance to TSWV, TYLCV and root knot nematodes. Semi-determinate · (Lycopersicon esculentum) Disease Resistance: Tomato Necrotic Stunt Virus, Verticillium Wilt, Fusarium Wilt Tom F1 Watermelon - 80 days High yielding · 4-10 lbs Smaller, early melon with dense, flavorful flesh and long shelf-life—perfect for taking to market. Beautiful light green melons with dark green striping and slightly oblong shape. Flesh is a deep pink with excellent sweet flavor and dense, fine-grained texture. Long shelf-life and the highest yields of any hybrid melon in our trials! (Citrullus lanatus)   Looking for more? Check out our NEW OPs for Organic Growers or all of our new varieties!