Gardening to Eat - What Do You Grow?

[The Curt Jester]

Yes, I put this in the leisure section.   Those who do not garden probably consider it work, but I consider it fun.

If you planted a vegetable garden, what kind of plants do you grow?  Do any of you keep records of how much produce you get?  For the fun of it (and also to check to see how much value I get back) I have kept track of all of the pickings from my garden and how much they weigh with the exception of the first rhubarb picking which I didn't think about.   

My garden has:

Basil
Beets (and beet greens)
Broccoli
Butternut Squash
Celery
Cilantro
Cucumbers
Garlic
Green Beans
Green Onions
Kale
Peppers (Banana)
Peppers (Pepperoncini)
Rhubarb
Sweet Peas
Swiss Chard
Tomatillos
Tomatoes (Cherry, Grape, Roma, and a mystery volunteer)
Verdolagas/Purslane
Zucchini

So far produce is at 175 lbs total.

[Lynne]

Which, in your opinion, was the easiest to grow?

I don't grow anything yet.

[The Curt Jester]

Which, in your opinion, was the easiest to grow?

I don't grow anything yet.

Tomatoes generally grow themselves with minimal effort.   My neighbor got tomato blight (or something like that) on his, but it didn't affect mine.   If I were being more careful I would spend time to get rid of the suckers, but I find my crop has been sufficient anyway.   In fact, I don't really have to plant them anymore.   If I wait a little bit, I will get enough volunteers to fill the garden.   This year I planted 5 of them and I got an additional 18 from last years compost and droppings.    All I do is transplant them to a more suitable location if they are too close together.

Tomatillos have the same ease as tomatoes and they, too, volunteer.   I can't find any store or garden center that sells seeds, but you can purchase some from a store and use those seeds and they work quite well.

Cucumbers are extremely easy as well.  I have only one plant and that has produced about 130+ cucumbers weighing in around 54 lbs.   I do nothing to manage it aside from setting up a climbing fence at the beginning of the season.   

Zucchini grow really well here in Illinois and one plant can produce enough to keep us busy eating it.   One thing to watch out for are all the squash bugs because they will kill the plants if not caught early.  I was a little too busy with work at the beginning of the school year and I neglected the garden for a few weeks.  During that time the bugs killed the one plant that was producing.  We still got a fair amount before that happened.

[Bernadette]

I've grown mixed lettuces and tried other things; it was years ago, so I can't remember what turned out well and what didn't. I did have a bumper crop of green beans, though.  I'd love to grow spinach and broccoli, my two favorite veggies. And potatoes: I can never get enough potatoes.

[The Curt Jester]

I forgot to mention that I did attempt cauliflower and eggplant.  Both of those were flops.   The former started out nicely and then shriveled and died.   The latter never even came out of the ground.

[Chestertonian]

We had a container garden on our balcony last year.  This year they just did tomatoes and strawberries

[Regina Caeli]

We have citrus trees - lime, lemon, orange, and grapefruit.

[Heinrich]

The Terra in my area is Sand. Chilis and Rocks at 6000 fertig.. We get Rain about 8 weeks year. No gardening here.

[Greg]

French Beans and strawberries (in pots).  Not hot enough here for tomatoes to develop much taste outside of a greenhouse.  With a greenhouse they grow just fine.

Strawberries are the easiest fruit and the kids just pluck them off and scoff them as they ripen. I am on the edge of a forest so we have a lot of spiders and snails to contend with so plastic pots high on brick walls tends to mean very little loss of fruit.

I want to plant and leave stuff to grow with the minimum effort.  Bit of watering and pruning are fine, but I don't want to deal with disease or pests or have to watch stuff daily.  I like getting out of my chair for 20 mins a day but growing anything significant is a huge waste of time.

[red solo cup]

Beets
Carrots
Peas
Pole Beans
Zuchini
Several varieties of tomato
Lettuce
Kale
Cukes
Basil
Cilantro
Parsley
Field pumpkins
Winter Squash
We also grow a lot of  Scarlet Runner beans for the Hummingbirds. Last year we put in an asparagus bed and a couple of Elder Berries. Both are doing well.

[Carleendiane]

Curt, I grow exactly what's needed to make my salsa, which is my base for chili and a few other soups. Saves time by not having to cut up vegetables. Then what I need for pickles. I grow lettuce for my table and beets for pickling, if I plant enough. We grow alphalfa, clover, Timothy grass for our sheep and geese. Makes both meats tender and no rude smell or taste.

[MundaCorMeum]

I just have herbs right now, but I'm hoping to add some fall crops.....kale for sure; not sure what else, yet.  I need to sit down and plan it out.  We have terrible soil, so I've not had good luck with anything other than herbs, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, and corn one year.  But, the cow manure in our barn is finally composting, so my husband just hauled a bunch of it for me to put in my small garden bed.  I used to have 4 raised beds, but we had to tear them down last year, so I only have one flowerbed-sized garden at the moment.  I'm hoping to build some new ones before spring comes again.  I love to garden, and I love fresh produce, but when time is short, it's usually the first thing that I slack on, and time is always short, so.....my garden ventures usually don't do so well.  But, I keep persevering!  One of these years, I'll get a bumper crop of everything 

I love the idea of keeping records of everything!  And, it sounds like your garden is doing amazingly well.  Congrats! 

Eggplant grows really well here in the south, and it ends up being one of those crops that people drop off bags of on their neighbors door steps, then run   It's a very bland vegetable on its own, though, and also quite spongy.  It's a good filler veggie.  It's great in casseroles.  I have a recipe for egg plant fritters that is excellent (a wet batter, that you fry by the spoon full; makes little hush puppy looking breads).  And, egg plant parmesan is perfect for a Friday.  I've never been able to grow cauliflower, either.

[Chestertonian]

I just have herbs right now, but I'm hoping to add some fall crops.....kale for sure; not sure what else, yet.  I need to sit down and plan it out.  We have terrible soil, so I've not had good luck with anything other than herbs, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, and corn one year.  But, the cow manure in our barn is finally composting, so my husband just hauled a bunch of it for me to put in my small garden bed.  I used to have 4 raised beds, but we had to tear them down last year, so I only have one flowerbed-sized garden at the moment.  I'm hoping to build some new ones before spring comes again.  I love to garden, and I love fresh produce, but when time is short, it's usually the first thing that I slack on, and time is always short, so.....my garden ventures usually don't do so well.  But, I keep persevering!  One of these years, I'll get a bumper crop of everything 

I love the idea of keeping records of everything!  And, it sounds like your garden is doing amazingly well.  Congrats! 

Eggplant grows really well here in the south, and it ends up being one of those crops that people drop off bags of on their neighbors door steps, then run   It's a very bland vegetable on its own, though, and also quite spongy.  It's a good filler veggie.  It's great in casseroles.  I have a recipe for egg plant fritters that is excellent (a wet batter, that you fry by the spoon full; makes little hush puppy looking breads).  And, egg plant parmesan is perfect for a Friday.  I've never been able to grow cauliflower, either.

you could make baba ghanousg

[MundaCorMeum]

I just have herbs right now, but I'm hoping to add some fall crops.....kale for sure; not sure what else, yet.  I need to sit down and plan it out.  We have terrible soil, so I've not had good luck with anything other than herbs, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, and corn one year.  But, the cow manure in our barn is finally composting, so my husband just hauled a bunch of it for me to put in my small garden bed.  I used to have 4 raised beds, but we had to tear them down last year, so I only have one flowerbed-sized garden at the moment.  I'm hoping to build some new ones before spring comes again.  I love to garden, and I love fresh produce, but when time is short, it's usually the first thing that I slack on, and time is always short, so.....my garden ventures usually don't do so well.  But, I keep persevering!  One of these years, I'll get a bumper crop of everything 

I love the idea of keeping records of everything!  And, it sounds like your garden is doing amazingly well.  Congrats! 

Eggplant grows really well here in the south, and it ends up being one of those crops that people drop off bags of on their neighbors door steps, then run   It's a very bland vegetable on its own, though, and also quite spongy.  It's a good filler veggie.  It's great in casseroles.  I have a recipe for egg plant fritters that is excellent (a wet batter, that you fry by the spoon full; makes little hush puppy looking breads).  And, egg plant parmesan is perfect for a Friday.  I've never been able to grow cauliflower, either.

you could make baba ghanousg

I'll need a recipe, please.  Preferably, the famous, family secret one 

[JubilateDeo]

I have a problem in that our soil is TOO fertile which means the weeds are difficult to control.  Before our yard was a yard, it was a deciduous forest, so it keeps trying to become a forest again.  One year, I planted tomatoes, carrots, green beans, and zucchini, and the weeds took over pretty quickly (we have a big Japanese knotweed problem)