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Heat Loving Food Plants !. Houston, TX. Made by Biodiverse for Life Visit our web site at biodiverseforlife.org. Big veggies are great. However, for a maximally useful and nutritious home food garden, the plants to grow the most of are ……. And don’t be shy about using….
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Heat Loving Food Plants ! Houston, TX Made by Biodiverse for Life Visit our web site at biodiverseforlife.org
Big veggies are great. However, for a maximally useful and nutritious home food garden, the plants to grow the most of are …… And don’t be shy about using…. HERBS AS GREENS ! HERBS and GREENS! Herbs don’t just taste great, they are nutritional powerhouses! (for example see: parsley nutrition)
THE STAGE: Example of a large summer garden in Houston, TX: mostly herbs and greens.
And now, some of …… THE PLAYERS:
Lambs Quarters Chenopodium album Texas, US, Eurasia Harvest by pinching tender growing tips ~2”. Will get bushy and 4-5 ft. tall. The more you pick, the more you get. Annual. • Greens related to spinach and beets. • Contains all essential amino acids! • Supports skippers, moths, and • sparrows. Source: Wildor Seeds of Change. ‘Magenta Spreen’ C. gigantium ‘Huazontle’ C. berlandieri
Jerusalem Artichoke / Sunchoke Helianthus tuberosus Source : Grocery store • High in Potassium, Iron, and • Inulin. • A type of Sunflower. • Harvest tubers after plants die back • and after cool weather arrives • Tubers can be stored over winter in • the ground and harvested as needed • Plants will come back next year from • unharvested tubers
Cholesterol Spinach Gynura nepalensis Harvest by pinching tender growing tips ~4-6”. Will get bushy and 2 ft. tall. The more you pick, the more you get. Perennial. Source: Cuttings • Related to Okinawa spinach. • Great cooked as greens or raw • like lettuce • Perennial. • Grows in some shade. • Cholesterol reducing, • demonstrated in rats.
Sweet Potato Vine Ipomoea batatas Harvest by pinching tender growing tips ~3-4” and cutting vines and using the leaves. The more you pick, the more you get. • High in vitamins A, C, and • calcium • This is a special type of sweet • potato grown only for its • tender leaves • All sweet potato greens are • edible and nutritious, use the • tender growing tips of • regular sweet potato plants • Good in some shade • Tender perennial Source : Cuttings, Grocery store?
Egyptian Spinach, Molokhia Corchorus olitorius Harvest by pinching tender growing tips ~3”. Will get bushy and 4-5 ft. tall. The more you pick, the more you get. Annual. • Loved by the pharaohs • Cook as greens, very tender, and also • delicious in soups • Relative of jute. • High in beta-carotene, iron, • calcium, and vitamins C and E. Source : Kitazawa Seed Co.
Lau / Bottle Gourd A variety of Lagenaria siceraria • Young gourds can be used • as a vegetable • 4-6” of tender growing vine tips • and young leaves from two • feet of the growing vine tips make • delicious sautéed greens! • Annual Source : Kitasawa Seed Co. ‘Early green-skined’ ‘Long opo’
Bitter Melon / Bitter Gourd Momordica charantia Source :Kitsawa Seed Co. ‘India Hybrid’ • HIV, diabetes, and • immune response. • 1 cup = 70% daily vitamin C. • Young gourds can be sliced • thin and sautéed with onions • and salt. • A delicious, bitter, vegetable • Annual
Turk’s Cap Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii North America Source: Nurseries • Flowers and small • fruit edible. • Larval host plant for • Gray Hairstreak. • Nectar for hummingbirds. • Perennial, will do well • in shade or sun
Hyacinth Bean Vine / Lablab / Flat Bean Dolichos lablab Source : Kitasawa Seed Co. ‘Shirohana Fujimame’ Cook before eating. Contains some cyanogenic glucosides. Also in the seeds of : apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, plums, and quinces, Also in : almonds, sorghum, lima beans, cassava, corn, yams, chick-peas, cashews, kirsch, and flax seeds. Iodine and protein protect. Cooking Inactivates. • Tender perennial • Cook pods when young or fresh seeds
Chaya Cnidoscolus aconitifolius Also contains some cyanogenic glucosides. Source : Cuttings. • Harvest young leaves • Exceptionally high in • protein, calcium, iron, • and vitamin A. • Nutrients are 2- to • 3-fold greater than • any other leafy green. • No pests. • Cook before eating. Simmer • submerged in water for • 10-20min until tender. • Use as spinach or in soups. • Perennial
Papaya Carica papaya Source : Grocery store or Echo Seeds. • In the top 3 fruits, nutritionally. • Harvest all summer • Can eat green or ripe, • and seeds are edible. • No Pests! • Overgrown herb, not a tree. • Male, or female, or bisexual • Grow bisexual ‘solo’ type • Homegrown papayas are delicious! • One of the most productive and fastest • producing fruit trees! • Tender perennial
And of course……. Eggplant, Basil, Long Beans, Winged Beans, Peppers, Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Okra, Edible Chrysanthemum, Climbing Spinach, Cow Peas, Mexican Mint Marigold, Oregano ………. For a slide show on simple food gardening and composting: Click Here For additional information on growing and harvesting , for recipes, and to post questions or comments: http://hsfg.forummotion.com/