Zone 9b checking in! Goals for this year are to find and plant:
- longevity spinach
- seminole pumpkin
- blue spur flower / plectranthus barbatus (natural toilet paper!)
The first two are supposed to be good perennial ground cover edibles for dappled shade where sweet potatoes are not growing well for me currently. Haven't been able to find them yet, and I'll need to make an effort to do so.
@Roots&Wings
I know:) where to get several different types of perennial spinach and Seminole pumpkin seeds -
https://www.echobooks.net/bookstore/seeds/This will be my first year trying a few perennial veggies, my very own first ever permaculture experiment. I'm planting a new area in my garden and since I just planted two apple trees (they are Australian-Pink Lady) and supposed to be able to survive our hot summers - and they have, while living in pots, but now that we've planted them I want to do what I can so they'll stay happy and healthy.
I've been researching apple tree guilds for a hot and humid climate - therefore the interest in Seminole pumpkins. It's supposed to be too hot for Comfrey.
I wanted to grow sweet potatoes as ground cover since they are the easiest thing to grow I've ever come across and we love them - but - in one of my garden books it was advised not to plant potatoes near apples or even store them together - potatoes effect the taste of the apples.
So I will be planting garlic chives - I have plenty to divide and plant and Dill - grew some from seed which is doing well and definitely Nasturtiums because apparently they protect the apple tree from certain diseases.
@Indio I've also been researching rebar and heavy duty fencing because I'd like to build an 8' high archway that I could grow pole green beans on. If anyone has any suggestions, pls share.
The easy answer is cattle panels, cheap and easy to work with and cut - see this video on youtube from Roots and Refuge - good stuff:)
Here is the cattle panel archway projects - lots of good info
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXOX1nzCnaQ@OmahaSteph About easy veggies - have you tried celery? I do mine in a big, deep window box and mostly just harvest the leaves for salad and soups/stews for months on end. The young stems are great for munching with dip or peanut butter or melted hot pepper cheese:) ...
So no extra time for harvesting - no drama about "having to harvest" at a certain time - I get about five months worth of harvest. Easy:).
... and yes, you can just dry the leaves too and then keep them in a well sealed container for instant seasoning.
I do it on paper towels and then just crush the leaves by rubbing my hands together in a flat, prayer mode:) - easy:).
If you like spinach - try perennial spinach varieties - see my link for seeds above (to Roots and Wings). You prepare the bed once and then just keep it mulched and fertilized - easy.
I'm trying a couple of different varieties this year - no pressure to harvest - we like that.
I'm with ya on the tomatoes - a) they are the prima donnas of the garden, way too much work and b) I'm OK with one Roma and one cherry or grape tomato.
There is something to be said to stick with tried and true and whatever your favorite veggies might be. I'm still experimenting after decades of gardening, but I do try to keep it real - works well some years. Other years life gets in the way:) or I overestimated the effort required.
Hence my foray into permaculture - it makes sense.
I'm definitely doing way more this year and the past six months of last year then I've tackled in a long time - sometimes you are simply more motivated and excited to garden than other years.
I went from I'm too old for this to OMG I can't wait for my 2020 garden to be fully planted and grown - go figure.:)