Nice veg!

I am after ideas of some unusual/old varieties of veg to plant. Has any one grown something they would recommend?

Thanks - I think! - for the jerusalem artichokes!

Watch out for the windy after effects though. Apparently people ate them a lot during the war, when they couldn’t get potatoes.

Hi Rachel,
I’m really pleased with our crop of Jerusalem artichokes (topinambourg in French, though I’m not sure of the spelling!) - they’re dead easy to grow - no need to water them or anything - and they give cheerful yellow flowers in Autumn. The longest part is scrubbing them before cutting them up and popping them in the oven, drizzled with olive oil, for baking. Yum! I think I’ll go and dig some up now!

Thanks Wendy! I like the idea of mixing flowers and veggies. I have a book on potager gardening that shows lots of gardens like that and it is really inspiring. Sadly, my efforts are seriously lacking!

Hi Rachel,

The seeds came from Baumaux http://www.graines-baumaux.fr/catalogue.php?cat=1&sscat=79&sscat2=20&produit=1224 I’ve also seen it used in flower borders, it looks amazing with dahlias it has a fleur de lys shape…my husband says try Purple Kale = chou frisé redbor, pak choi/bok choi = mei quing choi (résistant à la chaleur) also in Baumaux catalogue…

Thanks Wendy. It looks great - such a luscious deep green. Did you buy the seeds locally or online?

What about Cavolo Nero http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/cavolo_nero. We use it in Italian dishes but also as conventional greens to have with roasts, lasts all winter and grows well round here…