What unusual things do you grow?

pinkcandyflossprincess

Farway wrote: »

No, like citrus they can be grown but really only indoors overwinter, no idea if you would ever get one to fruit

thanks for that!

rabidbun

I left some of the Achocha on the plant way too long cjb02 I think - they did eventually go spinier. :OD Lazy gardener, me! Or could have been lack of water...

Little_Miss_Determined

Wow! I'm inspired I'm so pleased that I took the extra turf off to double the size of my veg plot. I'm going to have to go and google a lot of stuff though. Haven't heard of a lot of things that have been mentioned. Are tomitillo's like tomatoes? Definately going to buy an artichoke plant. Has anybody grown, eaten, know anything about asparagus peas?

Off the subject a bit but I saw my asparagus peeping through the soil today! This is the first year that we can eat it! I'm ridiculously excited.

Sambucus_Nigra

Little_Miss_Determined wrote: »

Wow! I'm inspired I'm so pleased that I took the extra turf off to double the size of my veg plot. I'm going to have to go and google a lot of stuff though. Haven't heard of a lot of things that have been mentioned. Are tomitillo's like tomatoes? Definately going to buy an artichoke plant. Has anybody grown, eaten, know anything about asparagus peas?

Off the subject a bit but I saw my asparagus peeping through the soil today! This is the first year that we can eat it! I'm ridiculously excited.

Yes - don't bother! They don't taste of asparagus, or pea and are really not worth the effort......they did flower all winter here though so every now and then I'll sow a few late summer for winter ground cover. Only if I get given a free packet, I'd never buy them.

rabidbun

Tomatillos are basically sour/savoury versions of the sweet physallis fruit, to which they are related. They come in a fair few colours and (at least the ones I have tried) grow to around 4-5ft high, requiring heavy staking. You'll need two plants minimum for pollination. Oh, and they can grow well in large pots, but take lots of water that way compared to letting them dig their roots down into soil.

They can be productive but often need a longish season, a good week or three of sunshine in total and lots of water to swell and ripen the fruits. Most varieties are ready to pick when the outer papery husks start to split, and many can be used fine smaller/unripe if cooked to sweeten them a bit. They are great used in Mexican style (and other) casseroles, chillies, and both cooked and raw in salsas. They can be very bitter raw, but are balanced out well by other things in salsa recipes giving a lovely sour taste.

RAS

dogstarheaven wrote: »

winter melon (another chinese veg - good in soups)

If you have not grown this previously, one word of warning; winter melons are triffids. Expect several stems all about 20 feet long. I found fruit hidden in the strwberry patch at the end of the season.

funkymonkey849

Not growing anything particularly unusual, apart from:

Round courgettes - we have a mixed pack of seeds with green, light green and yellow colours

Carrots with purple outsides and orange insides

Purple dwarf beans

In future years I would like to grow yellow cherry tomatoes and purple potatoes

radiohelen

I've got tomatillos this year, yellow giant mange tout, raab, green caulis from Italy, chillis and peppers, outdoor cucumbers, melons and a whole stack of squashes. I love squash I'm also going to go and get some weird beans. We did Borlotti beans last year but it was hard to know when to eat them so they got left on the plant! Time for maybe some purple ones or something.

It does kinda mess with the whole rotation thing though. Most of this stuff doesn't fit well with a four year rotation plan.

radiohelen

RAS wrote: »

If you have not grown this previously, one word of warning; winter melons are triffids. Expect several stems all about 20 feet long. I found fruit hidden in the strwberry patch at the end of the season.

They also taste weird... they taste like they smell, which doesn't do it for me.

Sambucus_Nigra

radiohelen wrote: »

We did Borlotti beans last year but it was hard to know when to eat them so they got left on the plant! Time for maybe some purple ones or something.

It does kinda mess with the whole rotation thing though. Most of this stuff doesn't fit well with a four year rotation plan.

a - you eat borlottis after the pods are dried - so being left on the plant until the pods crack is right, you just have to finish drying them on afterwards.

b - in reality - only potatoes and brassicas need rotating in the UK; and onions if you have white rot. Most other things can be plugged in wherever there is a gap. If you aren't a farmer that is.....you will also have alot less problems if you just pocket plant stuff around the place [I only rotate potatoes - everything else is jumbled up as it creates less issues because the crops aren't all concentrated in one spot.]