Unless you own a large field, chances are you don’t have infinite space in which to grow vegetables. It seems only sensible to make the most of the land you actually have, and yet most gardeners don’t. If you want growing your own to be fun and to save you a bit of money in the process, then don’t bother growing stuff you can buy really cheaply in the shops.
Take onions. I’ve grown onions every few years because I’ve been seduced by an offer in a garden centre for super cheap onion sets. But from now on, I shan’t bother. I have never grown onions which taste any better than locally-grown ones I can buy cheaply in the local market. They take up space, are in the ground for ages, and are actually a bit of a bother as they tend to bolt or get nibbled by onion fly.
Instead, my new resolution for my new gardening space (more on this soon) is that everything I grow will be so marvellous that I either can’t afford to buy it in the shops, it tastes better than shop-bought veg, or it just isn’t in the shops at all.
Here’s my list of grow-your-own clever crops and time wasters.
Clever crops (veg)
Asparagus
Aubergines
Artichokes (globe and Jerusalem)
Broccoli (purple-sprouting)
Celeriac
Chard
Chicory
Courgettes
Cucumbers
French beans
Kale
Kohl rabi
Peas
Peppers
New potatoes (especially heritage varieties)
Pumpkin
Salad leaves
Sweet potatoes
Sweetcorn
Tomatoes (pick a good variety though – see this taste test and this taste test for ideas)
Clever crops (fruit)
Heritage apples
Apricots
Blackcurrants
Blueberries
Cherries
Figs
Gooseberries
Grapes
Medlars
Peaches
Pears
Plums
Quinces
Raspberries
Redcurrants
Strawberries
Whitecurrants
Time-wasters
Beetroot
Broccoli (the common version which is actually a calabrese)
Cabbage
Carrots (apart from yummy scrummy baby carrots)
Cauliflower
Onions
Parsnips
Potatoes
Shallots
Swede
Turnip
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Ann
Oh but beetroot should be upgraded to Clever Crops (Veg) Lovely taste and easy to grow.
jeff the woodland gardener
I totally agree, but it has taken me 3 years to come to the same conclusion. Onions are easy to grow but take ages, and lots of space. Turnips grow well, but cover everything else either side of it, they grow faster than other veg such as carrots and are quite a dominant veg. I am sticking to the legumes (love those peas), lettuce, cucumbers, toms, specialty potatoes and courgettes (of which I’ve had a bad case of mildew leaf this year). Love the site!!
F&F
Glad you like it! Mildew finished off my courgettes early three years ago, although they’ve been better since. I’ve heard spraying the leaves with milk diluted in water helps.
F&F
True, and I do love beetroot crisps as well as the young leaves…