Top 5 best veg to grow.

Sally_A

I'm sure I posted before, but if you are new to veg, and want the best return for your money - this is based on costs in the shops in true MSE style.

1. Mangetout - much better than peas - whole pods fill up a plate rather than individual peas.
2. French beans - again very prolific - 12 bean poles in a 1m squared area. I've frozen the glut in 2010 without blanching, and they seem to go from frozen via the steamer to plate brilliantly.
3. Runner Beans - as above - but harvesting about 4 - 6 weeks after the first Frenchies appear.
4. Garlic - a bit too late to put in most varieties now, but please try to grow your own, a fresh moist bulb from the garden is so much tastier than a dried bulb imported from Spain. The green scapes (flowering stem) can also be used for flavouring dishes before the main harvest.
5. Tomatoes - only really MSE if you can grow 24+, warm sun riped toms are brilliant when freshly picked - glut can be frozen as whole toms, and used when needed for pur!e, passata, or just chucked into a Cottage Pie instead of a tin of chopped tomatoes.

Closely just out of the top 5 are Chillies, and herbs, especially Basil, Parsley and Oregano.

cootambear

cut n come again salad
courgettes
herbs ( not veg i know)

wssla00

Not veg but:

Soft fruit- strawberries, raspberries etc

cootambear

wssla00 wrote: »

Not veg but:

Soft fruit- strawberries, raspberries etc

absolutely. strawbs are labour intensive hence high price in shops. but we dont mind stooping down to pick those red jewels.

mindst you, I now have a 100 plants, with more to come in april.

god, I love strawberries

RAS

Cut and come again salads

Soft fruit. I often snack in season on raspberries, red currants, white currants, maybe a few strawbs or black currants, for brekkie. I was in the supermarket and realised that my breakfast snack cost about £6 per day. Tend to have some more at tea time.

cootambear

also, you can by a big tub of natural yoghurt (cheap from asian shops as it tends to form a large part of indian subcontinent diet), add sugar and your own fruit, voila, fresh cheap fruit yoghurt.

Lotus-eater

French beans
Lettuce
Courgettes
Tomatoes
Perpetual Spinach

Sublime_2

I'm growing herbs in pots, but my step-father grows potatoes, carrots, beans, onions, and courgettes. Loads of other stuff too.

Mum grows, stuff like herbs, peppers, chillis, aubergines, and tomatoes in pots.

Farway

Not veg, but rhubarb must be in the list just for ease of growing and silly shop prices for something that grows like a weed

for me I would leave the garlic out [I hate the stuff], and bung in rhubarb, sage & rosemary in a sunnyish spot, plant and forget and never cheap in shops

nodwah

I would add rocket - grows like a weed too and ridiculously expensive in the shops.

lostinrates

cootambear wrote: »

mindst you, I now have a 100 plants, with more to come in april.

god, I love strawberries

I read that as 1000 at first! 100 is a lot still. What varieties do you recommend?

I love alpine strawberries I know they are even more fuss to pick but the taste is worth it. We have normal strawberries too and I love that we et a few ripening each day..perfect for breakfast or after supper with some soft goats cheese or in a glass with something cold and sparkly.


I have to say it though...I'm more of a raspberry/gooseberry/rhubarb kinda gal really.