Nebraska is well-known for producing an impressive amount of agriculture! Unfortunately, not every Nebraskan has a green thumb. If you dream of growing your own fruits or vegetables here are some favorites recommended by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Known as “cultivars,” these recommended favorites are just about certain to yield a healthy harvest here in the heartland.

Tomatoes:

For salad or cherry tomatoes look for the Husky Red Cherry variety which is suitable for growing in containers. For standard tomatoes, the Bush Celebrity variety is very disease-resistant and compact with good flavor.

Rhubarb:

Producing long, red stalks with good flavor is the Valentine rhubarb variety. Squash: For green squash, you are nearly guaranteed success when growing Zucchini Elite. For yellow squash try the Sunburst variety, which produces tender, patty pan-shaped vegetables.

Peppers:

If you are looking for sweet peppers, UNL recommends King Arthur peppers. This variety does well in heat and results in blocky, 4-lobed peppers, both in green and red hues. If you prefer some spice, Mucho Nacho will give you hot, jalapeno-type peppers. Super Chili Hybrid is a good option if you are wanting to dry peppers at the end of the season.

Pumpkins:

For the best pumpkin pie, start with Small Sugar pumpkins. If you’re more interested in an impressive jack o’lantern, the Howden variety takes an average 110 days to grow to full size.

Cucumbers:

When jarring pickles at the end of the season, you can’t go wrong with the Homemade Pickles variety. To yield crisp and delicious cucumbers during the summer, Diva cucumbers are overlooked by cucumber beetles and have smooth, thin, skins.

Lettuce:

For an iceberg-style lettuce, the Summertime variety is a good option. For kale, the Red Russian variety produces large plants with excellent flavor and are very cold tolerant.