Best 'value' things to grow?

PeteW

Hiya,

As space is limited in my vegetable patch, I'm trying to think what would be the best 'value' crops to grow. By this I mean ones which either provide a large amount of produce or produce that would cost a lot in the shops.

For instance last year my two courgette plants consistently produced an insane amount of courgettes, which are quite expensive in the shops these days anyway so I'll definitely by growing those again. Conversely, my sweetcorn took up quite a lot of space but gave a low yield so I won't bother with those again.

So does have any suggestions of would make best use of my space?

Cheers

Pete

Ilovecubbage

i generarly find these very good value and more tasty than shop bought. Butternut squash, sweetcorn, celeriac, beetrute, french beans - freez well too. maybe some fruit bushes. Depends how big your patch is.
Hope there is some idea for you.:)
Just remembered that we had the courgets in a grow bag two of them in on bag so you can have it on the patio.

Linda32

It sounds as if you have a reasonable amount of space, so maybe a couple of squash plants, maybe a wigwam of runner beans, these are pretty fool proof and prolific. Make sure you can pick them at least every other day as they do have a habit of going stringy.

Maybe cherry toms, depending on the amount of sun you get. We don't get much due to too much shade/rubbish summers. So we won't bother with those this year. But if conditions are right then you can get alot.

gazza975526570

Runner beans - crop for ages and you get loads

Rhubard - expensive to buy

Beetroot - easy to grow - few enemies!!!

Courgettes as you already

Most other things tho you can normally find quite cheap or have lots of enemies - thus making it either harder or havg loss of crops

conradmum

Runner beans take up little space (as they go up) and as long as you pick them regularly, will produce over several weeks. Pick them quite young and they'll taste much better than anything in the shops too.

Primrose

A few Climbing beans at the back of the plot (either Runner or French) where they don't shade other plants in the sun's shadow might be nice if you like them as good quality beans are expensive to buy. They can climb up individual straight poles. Tomatoes are nice too. If you like the small sweet ones, Gardeners Delight are one of the tastiest varieties, or if you don't want to stake them, you can try the low Tumbling varieties, Tumbling Red or Tumbling Yellow which crops prolifically so are good value for money. Mixed salad leaves are always nice to pick fresh too. Swiss Chard is a good "greens" crop to grow. It tastes like spinach but the young leaves are good for use in salads. Potatoes are relatively cheap to buy and take up space, so best given a miss. A row strawberry plants will last for about 3 years, if you want some soft fruit to enjoy in summer.

Farway

Mange tout peas, always expensive but as easy as any other pea to grow, plus you can use the tender shoots as salads or soup, there were some recipes on here recently for such use

lolarentt

Runner beans, french bean, spinach, beetroot, broad beans, lettuce, tomatoes, o/d cucumbers. These are good producers of 'expensive in the shops' veg in comparatively little space. If you grow perpetual spinach (spinach beet) it goes on all season and gives first picking in year 2 as well as being foolproof. Not worth the time/space if you've not much room for spuds, and brassica and leeks generally, which tend to be cheap in the shops, and take up a lot of space for a long time before harvesting.

(Parsnips are a doddle if you've got the space)

mjm3346

Runner Beans, cannot beat the taste of fresh picked and cooked, take up very little ground space and never get really cheap in the shops so are always a value crop.
A few new spuds (possibly in a tub) can be a treat but the generally low price of maincrop means without tons of space they are not worth it.
Toms can provide big crops in small spaces although shop prices tend to be low when the home produced are cropping, same with many of the salad items.
Spinach is good for a long season and does not usually get really cheap to buy.
If you use fresh herbs growing them represents great value and taste compared to shop prices -Rosemary, Thyme, Oregano, Basil, Coriander and of course good old take over your garden Mint (best contained in something and not allowed to roam free).

conradmum

Also, cut and come again salads have a huge mark up in the shops. You only need to keep a square foot or so of this on the go (moving around the bed) to keep you supplied with fresh leaves for months and months. You can buy mixed seed packets especially for this, but remember to sow sparingly.

foxgloves

Runner beans, courgettes, maybe shallots, but definitely baby leaves such as mizuna, rocket, saldini, etc......the sort of baby leaves that cost over a £ for about a handful packed in a gas-filled plastic bag at the supermarket. Frilly lettuces can be easy too, such as lollo rosso.