North Dakota State University (NDSU) is working with gardeners across the state to test new vegetable varieties.

Who can participate?

Selecting trials

Fifty-three trials were available in Spring 2010. Each trial is a comparison of two varieties. Seed packets contain enough seeds to plant a 10-foot row of each variety. Thus, if you would choose to participate in the red radish trial, you would receive enough seeds to plant two 10-foot rows of red radish.

Our agreement

This project is a research program, not a seed store. Gardeners must agree to manage their seeds in a responsible manner. They must sow, grow, harvest, and taste the vegetables. Gardeners must report their results to NDSU. Reports should be submitted after the first hard frost in fall.

Is it hard to evaluate varieties?

Laying out the plots is easy. You will receive planting instructions (PDF, 80 KB) along with your seeds, row markers, and a 10-foot string with your order.

NDSU is not looking for complicated data. For each trial, we simply wish to know which of the two varieties germinated best, was most healthy, produced higher yields, and produced the best tasting vegetables. We wish to know which of the two varieties you prefer and which (maybe one, both, or none) of the varieties do you recommend to other gardeners in North Dakota. Click here to see a completed evaluation form (PDF, 80 KB).

Evaluation forms for 2010 are available for downloading.

What will we do with the results?

Upon receiving the results of gardeners (typically soon after the frost), NDSU will compile the results and send a final report summary (see 10-page 2009 summary (PDF, 808 KB) to all gardeners along with a certificate to recognize their valued participation. An online report is available (see the 101-page 2009 report (PDF, 2950 KB)

The results will be used to develop recommendations for gardeners in North Dakota (PDF, 118 KB) and distributed via University publications and broadcasts.