There are many different vegetables that you can grow in your garden this year, but I have, what I think, would be the top 5 best. These are easy to grow, hardy and will give you more vegetables than you know what to do with. They are all very storable, so you can either can or freeze them to enjoy until the next season. Of course, we all know that fresh vegetables not only taste better but are much healthier for us too.
Spinach or Mustard Greens - Greens are one of the easiest vegetables to grow. They seed themselves and will usually come back voluntarily the next year. However, I would recommend that you go ahead and replant new ones, so you will be sure to have enough. Just as the plants are growing shoots up and are going to seed, you want to pick the larger leaves. Wash them thoroughly and strip out the main vein that runs through the leaves. Boil them in some salted water until tender. You can add bacon, ham or other types of meat for flavor. If you have enough, they are easy to store in plastic bags and freeze for the winter.
Onions - Onions are another vegetable that are super easy to grow. You can buy them in small bunches and just barely stick the bulb into the ground. Many people enjoy what is called, "green onions". These are onions that you have dug up before the bulb itself has developed into the ordinary onion. I can eat green onions with salt and crackers all by themselves. Yum! You can also chop the tops and use them in place of chives. Once the tops of the onions have "broken over" the bulb of the onions will continue to grow. The looser the soil is the larger the onion will grow. You can store onions in a cool dry place for a few months. You can also chop the onions coarsely and freeze them for later use in cooking.
Garlic - Garlic is great for cooking and is very healthy for you too. You plant garlic just as you would plant onions. Loosen your soil and just barely cover the bulb with the dirt. Once the garlic has "gone to seed" is when you want to dig them up. You can store garlic in a cool dry place, just like onions. They will actually keep a little longer than onions. Use them fresh in your recipes or chop them coarsely and freeze them for use all year!
Tomatoes - Nothing is better than a fresh, home grown tomato! I love to take the salt shaker with me when I go out to the garden, wash off a ripe tomato, sprinkle a little salt and eat away! You can plant cherry tomatoes to use in salads or larger slicing tomatoes for sandwiches and cooking. With proper watering you can have fresh tomatoes all summer long! You can also can tomatoes and have fresh vine ripe tomatoes for cooking all year. I also add celery, onion and a little garlic and make my own stewed tomatoes for canning. I can tomato sauce and picante sauce also. Add some Italian seasoning and you can have spaghetti sauce too!
Green Beans - Green beans are very easy to grow as long as they get enough water. Plant the seeds about 1 inch in the ground, cover and water! Within a couple of weeks you will start to see little blooms. Each bloom is going to be a green bean pod. Get ready, because when they "put on" you are going to have a lot of green beans all at one time. They will usually have about 3 good cycles before it starts getting too hot for them and the blooming will slow down. It is a little back breaking to pick all those beans, but it is so well worth it! Out of our small garden, we usually can between 30-50 pint jars of green beans each year. We can in pints now as out children and grown and gone. We always have green beans to last us all winter up until they bloom again in spring.
I hope I have given you some good information here on 5 of the best vegetables to plant in your garden this year. Not only will you eat healthier, but I think you will also enjoy your garden!
Sheila Brown is an experienced writer who enjoys writing articles on a variety of topics. She enjoys helping people and hopes her writing will be an outlet for that.
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