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Favorite Vegetables to Grow

Mar 8, 2010

by Clay_Miller
posted in Green Living

The following are my favorite vegetables to grow in my garden. OK, not all of these are technically vegetables. There may be a fruit in there. It's my list! I've grown all of these more than once, but alas I can't grow each one every year. My list is sort of in order, but not exactly.

Tomato

I love tomatoes. They are very easy to grow and come in so many different varieties. They are so nutritious and great right off the vine, at least for me. These strong plants can be grown in pots in addition to wide open gardens. I grow Big Boy or Beefsteak along with cherry tomatoes as well as a yellow variety every year. I recommend growing yellow tomatoes if you haven't. Yellow tomatoes have virtually no acidity.

Okra

I love to eat okra in whatever they can be thrown in (soups, stews or fried by themselves). Very versatile plant with a gorgeous flower (it is a cousin to the hibiscus flower). You'll be amazed at the white/yellow bloom that comes out before the fruit emerges.

Strawberry

Fun to grow and a crowd pleaser for children. They got their name because straw seems to be the best mulch for them. I used to sit in my grandfather's strawberry patch for an hour at a time and just eat strawberries. They are so tasty you may have to battle some critters and birds for your harvest.

Corn on the Cob

So easy to grow and fun to watch. My favorite variety is the Silver Queen sweet corn (a favorite among deer). If you can win against the critters you can really reap the rewards of a good corn crop. I had a hard fought battle with a family of deer over my sweet corn. Don't worry, other than me, no animals were harmed in the making of the sweet corn.

Jalapeño Peppers

I like hot food so growing these are understandable. I like to take them off the vine, slice them up and make instant HOT nachos. I've grown them in a garden and in pots. They've done great in both. They are hotter off the vine than in store, so watch out for that. These are hot.
See the full review, "Jalapeño peppers are easy to grow and are hot in any garden".

Grapes

I've had a little success with growing grapes. They are definitely fun to watch grow. It is a little work making the trellis system. They are very tasty. Also may have to fight birds for some of your harvest. I used to eat too many sour grapes in my grandfather's garden because I was too impatient for harvest time.

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SybellaWilkes June 20, 2010

Fun list! Would have to add salad though - I love to pick and eat salad and herbs straight from the garden onto the table.

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joytur March 13, 2010

I've gardened for years. In my state of Maine, okra is not on the can-do list but all the others are easy to grow and very tasty. I'd add leeks to my favorites list. In Maine, a gardener needs to use transplants, which come, for some reason, in groups of 50 or more usually, but the entire process is worth it. Leeks are large enough to pull by midsummer and can be harvested through November. Is there a Gardening Community on Lunch yet?

Clay_Miller March 13, 2010

I've never grown leeks before. I may have to do that. No, there isn't a gardening community on Lunch.com yet. If only I had more time. This community is sort of filling the void for gardening until a gardening community has been created.

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devora March 10, 2010

Okay, I'm officially hardcore saving up so that I can get a house with a garden to plant these goodies! I didn't realize that green beans, okra and rhubarb could be grown in a home garden, but then again, I was never really sure how they were grown :P By the way, I think you'd get a kick out of this review about giant pumpkins. Thanks for sharing this awesome list, Clay! :)

Clay_Miller March 10, 2010

Yep, all of these can be grown in most places and they are easy to grow. I did look over at the giant pumpkins review. That is good stuff.

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Ulalume March 09, 2010

Great list idea! I think a lot of people these days are moving toward growing their own food, when possible. I would love to do this, but weather here doesn't really permit, (strawberries may work for me though) and I have a lot of hungry squirrels that live in my tree :)

Clay_Miller March 09, 2010

Thanks. In Kentucky you can grow about every vegetable, but fruit is different. If I was further south I'd love to have fruit trees. A couple of orange trees would be really cool. Yeah, we have a bunch of squirrels too. They like to eat. This year they even ate some of my tomatoes.

Ulalume March 10, 2010

I live in Florida, and there are a lot of citrus trees around here.

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About the list creator

Clay Miller (Clay_Miller)
Ranked #56

Graphic designer/illustrator and owner of Miller Creative Designs, LLC who on Lunch.com likes to shareinsight on Greenand health insight, ideas and other tidbits.Creator/writer of Ways2GoGreen .com& … more

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