What (Else) Will You Grow in 2010?

[cdbva]

Tomatoes go without saying, of course. But a few weeks ago I started musing about other possibilities for the spring. This will be the first full year I'll have space to grow whatever I want in the plot that seemed so impossibly huge when I got it. Now I'm wishing I had a couple more plots. But you're only allowed one. And I was lucky to get mine when I did; they say there are 500 on the waiting list now!


So, my prelimary list is:

Eggplant

A mixture of sweet bell peppers

Chard. I love chard.

Turnip greens, maybe with turnips underneath them.

Basil, of course

Sage - may live over

Oregano - will live over

Parsley

Cilantro - must do some research on making sure it grows

Lettuces. I want to grow enough salad that we won't have to buy any.

I might try:

Bay leaves

Rutabagas

Raspberries

Pumpkins (my neighbor at the gardens has offered me half of her plot to do this)

Some kind of squash

Am I missing anything? What will you grow?

Christine

[habitat_gardener]

More pole beans! I love having a variety. But growing more beans will mean less room for tomatoes -- I'm also at a community garden plot, and my plot gets afternoon shade, so I try to rotate the crops that get the sunniest spots. Gotta try runner beans -- I've heard the roots will overwinter here and then start producing earlier the following year. I'm also eager to try some of the heirloom varieties that were recommended here. I wish I had enough space to grow dry beans!

Both summer and winter squash, if I can find a spot for them. I squeezed them into the shadier side this summer and they didn't produce much.

Cucumbers, of course. I've tried a bunch and the ones that did best were the long oriental varieties, also in the choice sunniest spot. Basil, probably, and maybe dill and cilantro. Maybe some more peppers in containers -- it usually doesn't get hot enough for most peppers. Haven't tried pimentos.

I still have celery that's planted itself. I'd love to try a red celery if I ever get around to ordering some.

Maybe lettuce. That'd be a good use of the shadier side, but I'd rather eat kale than lettuce. I keep thinking I'd grow to like lettuce if it came from my garden, but i rarely get around to growing it. One year another gardener gave me some seedlings she'd thinned out. I ate some, but most of it bolted.

Because it's a year-round gardening climate here, I have some turnips and kohlrabi and carrots still in the ground, ready to harvest soon, as well as edible-pod peas that have started producing.

Perennials I already have: yacon, raspberries, blackberries (thornless), strawberries, artichoke, perennial kale, rhubarb (though it may come out, as I rarely use it), red currants (ditto). Herbs: sage, lemon balm, mints (in containers), lemon verbena, lemongrass, thymes, oregano, marjoram, bronze fennel, lavender. Plus lots of flowers, mostly for the pollinators.

Garlic (assuming I get around to planting it this month). Onions, all planted a couple weeks ago. Dinosaur kale, planted last month. Borage and parsley plant themselves. Mache comes back on its own, starting around now, and miner's lettuce appears later in the winter. And how can I forget nettles? I love the smoothness of nettle tea, and it was fun to make nettle muffins (a lovely shade of green inside). I picked my first batch a few weeks ago, and usually they go strong until it's time to plant tomatoes.

Some potatoes come back on their own, but I haven't figured out the timing yet -- planted too early the foliage freezes back (as late as mid-April), and it doesn't look like I'll get a crop from the summer volunteers.

Christine, you may want to try a bay tree in a pot that you can bring inside in the winter. It survives winter here, but it probably wouldn't fit into a community garden plot and would probably need protection from the cold.

[shelleybean]

I wish I had room to grow everything I want to eat but here's what I can fit. A quarter of my garden is devoted to tomatoes. I will also be growing:

Lettuce
Cabbage
Peas
Onions
Asst Herbs
Peppers
Eggplant
Okra
Sweet Potatoes
Snap Beans
Field Peas
Butter Beans
Squash and Zucchini
Cucumbers
Cantaloupe
Chard
Collards
Kale
Carrots
Garlic
Broccoli

And I'm looking forward to ALL of it!

[rxkeith]

lets see,

a mix of asian greens,
broccoli
brussels sprouts
cabbage
collards
kale
chard
a mix of lettuce
beets
carrots
taters
egg plant
garlic
onions
winter squash
summer squash
several kinds of pole beans
melons
watermelon
basil, dill, mint, rosemary
sweet potatoes
sugar snap peas
raspberries
strawberries
currants
if there is room
fava beans
broccoli raab
edamame soy beans

looking toward next year i plan on ordering some more raspberries, and a couple fruit trees, an apple for sure, then who knows what else.

probably missing something, but thats enough to keep me busy and then some.


keith

[chalstonsc]

Sugar snap peas
Tom

[cdbva]

Bay leaves grow on trees?

Oh.



Didn't know.

And one more thing to add: I forgot peas. Oh man, I love fresh peas.

Christine

[pooklette]

Lettuce
Spinach
Radish
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Beets
Cabbage
Turnips
Kohlrabi
Carrots
Onions
Corn
Snap beans
Dry beans (I love growing these!)
Potatoes
Hot and sweet peppers
Winter squash
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Pumpkins
Cucumbers
Brussels sprouts
Sweet potatoes (maybe)
Garlic
Basil
Oregano
Parsley
Cilantro

Phew! I think that's it. I make no promises that all of these will thrive, but I'm stubborn so I'm going to try.

[cdbva]

Pooklette, why do you love growing dry beans?

Christine

[DeanRIowa]

Seasonal:
Peppers
Cucumbers
Snap Beans(Bush/Pole)
Dry beans
Sweet Corn
Popcorn
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Eggplant
Winter Squash
Summer Squash
Multiplier Onion
Sweet Potato
Watermelon
Cham-ae Melons
Cilantro
Oregano
Basil
Dill
Pumpkins
beet
Radish
Spinach
Swiss Chard
cyclanthera Pedata(Laddy's Slipper)
Peas
Yardlong beans
Mexican Mouse Melon

Item new this year:
Corn(for Posole/Hominy)
Potato
Oca
Artichoke
Jerusalem Artichoke
cyclanthera Pedata(Fat baby)

I promised I would grow less this year! oh well!

Dean

[icelord]

You have to plant alot to make it worth your wile! Peas, that is.

Darth

[Mojo]

It is de rigeur for me to grow eggplant and cucumbers. The squash may prove problematic, for two reasons. First, depending on the number of tomatoes i put in, there may be space issues. Second, the borers finally found my bed last year and I am told that once they find it, they come back every year if there's squash, so I may take the year off from that.

Aside from that: I don't have room, not if I want everything to have room. Basil comes up anyway no matter what I do. I might try putting in cilantro and dill early.

[RJ_Hythloday]

more peppers, sweet and hot. Lettuces and spinach, eggplant.

[cdbva]

Originally Posted by icelord

You have to plant alot to make it worth your wile! Peas, that is.

How much is a lot?

[shelleybean]

Depends on what type of peas you want to grow. I grow sugar snap peas and since we eat the pods, I only grow 12 feet worth or so (pole variety). If you grow shelling peas, it's like anything else you shell out of the pod. Once shelled, there isn't nearly as much in the bowl as when you started. The pods make up most of the volume and shelled product is a small amount unless you grow and harvest a lot at once. And with peas, you really want to cook them right after you pick them, before the sugar converts to starch, so you really would want to pick a lot at one time. If you only pick a little and shell them out, you might have enough peas for only one or two people. This is true for many kinds of vegetables--if you want to pick a lot at once, grow a bush type variety. If you want your harvest spread out over a long period, choose a vining sort. In general, anyway. If you have enough plants, you can pick a lot of anything at once.

[Tormato]

The good thing about vining peas, is that they can be planted densely. A 12 foot row, for me, is about 120 plants (5 per foot in double rows 4" apart).

If anyone is serious about planting fruit trees, they might think about having them at the top of their list.

Tormato