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Garden catalogs are more than pages and pages of pretty pictures for casual enjoyment.

They inspire you to improve or reinvent your yard.

They describe each plant down to the number of petals on the flowers or how the leaves are arranged on stems.

They also introduce you to the latest and greatest in plant development, whether it's a new color in a coneflower or a bigger and better tomato.

For 2012, Burpee's catalog introduces its Boost Collection of six nutrient-rich vegetables designed exclusively for home gardens. All were naturally bred by traditional hybridization, with no genetically modified organisms, or unwanted GMOs, according to a Burpee spokeswoman.

Burpee claims its Boost veggies provide higher levels of disease-fighting antioxidants. For example, a half cup of Cherry Punch tomatoes delivers 90 percent of the recommended daily dose of Vitamin C, and Sweet Heat peppers produce 65 percent more Vitamin C than the average garden pepper. Its Healing Hands salad mix with four greens - mustards, radicchio and lettuce - can be harvested every three weeks for several salads. Home gardeners can purchase Boost via the print catalog or online at Burpee.com. The Gold Standard hybrid cucumber with five times the beta-carotene and Healing Hands Salad Mix are available as seeds only; the tomatoes and peppers in the collection come as seeds or plants.

Here are some more catalogs, all free, worth getting because they offer a wide selection of growing material for Zones 3-10 and they do double duty as educational material:

Brent and Becky's Bulbs

Always known for spectacular spring- and summer-flowering bulbs, Brent and Becky Heath have added a few perennials to their summer catalog. This year, Becky recommends a Veronica called Royal Candles with royal blue spikes that look showy in the full-sun summer border; it grows 10 to 15 inches tall and is cold hardy Zones 4-9.

The catalog also includes a couple new Colocasias, or elephant ears that add a touch of the tropics to your warm-weather gardens no matter where you live. They grow in the ground or look stunning in large pots on your patio or porch. One of the new ones is Bikini-Tini with bluish gray leaves with dark purple veins and leaves that face upward and fill with water when it rains; they stand on sturdy stems in full sun or partial shade and are rated cold hardy to Zone 6.

The Heaths, who live and garden in southeastern Virginia, also like Eucomis, nicknamed pineapple lily, because its fresh and finished flowers give the garden beautiful structure.

To get the free print catalog visit www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com or call toll free 877-661-2852.

Logee's

The cover of Logee's new catalog showcases what it does best - offer rare and hard-to-find plants like the container-grown Fukushu kumquat on the cover. Inside, the catalog profiles 68 new plants, including staghorn fern on volcanic rock, Bienvenue hibiscus with 6-inch, pink-swirl blooms, variegated Chinese violet with light pink-lavender blooms and orange lipstick plant.

Located in Connecticut, Logee's celebrates 120 years of offering tropical and hardy fruiting plants and an assortment of fragrant and tropical plants for containers. The company rounds out its catalog with hardy jasmine, red passion flowers, mandevilla, bamboo and angel's trumpet. Some of its oddities include chenille plant with furry-red catkins, lollipop flower with spires of yellow rocket-shaped lollipops and Chinese perfume plant with scented yellow blooms you can enjoy several times a year.

When you order, you get 2 ½- or 4-inch potted plants that can go in containers or in the ground.

To get the free print catalog visit www.logees.com or call toll free 888-330-8038.

Niche Gardens

Niche Gardens is a retail and mail-order nursery that has found its niche in nursery-propagated wildflowers and native perennials, ornamental grasses, and unusual trees and shrubs. Located in Chapel Hill, N.C., the nursery's catalog is on the plain side with mostly listings of tried-and-true specimens like wild columbine cold hardy in Zones 3-8, artemisia cold hardy in Zones 3-10 and asters for Zones 4-8. New plant offerings include two dwarf conifers - Chamaecyparis Snow and Nana Gracillis - that are small enough for almost any garden and also add a touch of living art as they grow.

You'll also learn that native asters have new names, as described under Ampelaster carolinianus, or climbing aster, which produces loads of tight, purplish-pink buds that open to reveal spidery rose-pink flowers that mature to lilac. At Niche Gardens, a mailbox covered in this vining aster blooms mid-October through November; the plant is cold hardy Zones 7-9 so it can be treated as a summer annual in colder climates.

To get the free print catalog visit www.nichegardens.com or call 919-967-0078.

Ordering tips

# Choose hardy plants. Select plants suitable for your climate, not just because they look pretty in pictures, especially when it comes to perennials, shrubs and trees that you want to keep around for a long time. Catalogs and online sites usually provide cold-hardy zones for each species; if you don't know your zone, look for a map that illustrates the different zones or contact your extension office. Also, make sure the plant is suitable for the site in your yard, such as sun or shade, wet or dry. Read catalogs carefully for plant descriptions and tips that help you make good choices.

# Select suitable seeds. Read descriptions carefully and pick varieties that will yield the best results, especially if you live where there is a shorter growing season for summer flowers, vegetables and fruits. Also, look for disease-resistant varieties.

# Be ready. Avoid ordering plants that you can't quickly put in the ground or pots. Use mild winter days to till and prep beds before your plant orders arrive. Instructions that come with the plants are your best guides.

# Order early. Plants and seeds are often available in limited quantities, so place your order early to avoid disappointment. If you don't want a substitution, state so clearly on your order form.

# Keep records. Make a copy of your order sheet so you have the names, item numbers, prices and dates to help you communicate clearly with a company if you have questions about an order. Also, be familiar with the company's guarantee policy before you order.

SOURCE: Direct Gardening Association, www.directgardeningassociation.com