Anything wrong with same old same old???

[Mrs T]

Now I'm relatively new to this growing thing but I am absolutely THRILLED when I harvest ANYTHING I have grown from seed... this year I have been especially pleased with my potatoes (which did much better than last year and were, I believe, testimony to my growing expertise) and I am constantly (and they seem to be available pretty much all of the year) with the carrots I grow...
But at the Malvern show at the weekend, I came across Mark Diacono (River Cottage Head Gardener) and his book (which I bought - so that worked then!!) giving a presentation in their 'Good Life' tent...
MD reckons 'life's too short to grow ordinary food' arguing that 'it's no harder to grow and eat the unusual and utterly delicious than it is the entirely ordinary'... Ummm, at the start of the presentation I was definitely ready to argue the opposite with him but he put forward a persuasive case (with treats!) and now I'm not so sure...

So I thought I'd ask here...

What do you think???

Are some things just too 'ordinary' to merit the bother of growing???

If you are into growing 'unusual', what's your best crop???

MD mentioned szechuan peppers which sounded brilliant and peaches and nectarines which also had me convinced...

HELP!

[zazen999]

I grow a few 'different' things but to be honest; give me potatoes, beans, peas and lots of lovely onions and I'll be a happy bunny.

It's no good growing it if you don't eat it - so it depends on your own tastes and likes...

[Hans Mum]

even the humble spud has varieties you cant get hold of easily i grown pink fir apple spuds for the flavour & texture, but ive never seen them in the supermarkets (or farmers markets) and ive had a bumber crop this year. so suppose i agree with him to a point.

[zazen999]

I agree though with changing to better varieties to enhance taste....not necessarily different veg.....some of it died out for a reason

[rustylady]

I grow Sungold tomatoes, and a few varieties of chilli pepper. Also the usual potatoes, beans and courgettes. Sweetcorn too. I think the appeal of GYO is that the food is so much fresher than you can buy in the shops. I wouldn't bother with peaches and nectarines because I don't have the room and don't particularly like them.

[Keith2202]

I'd interpret that as it is fine to grow your staples every year, but you may get a bit bored of them after a few years so why not experiment with different stuff alongside them.
If you had grown say, spuds, carrots, and parsnips every year for ten years then suddenly grew jerusalem artichokes, you might "why have I never grown these before my soups would have been even better, I've been missing out for the last ten years!"

Personally I think it is more fun to grow lots of different stuff.

[SarzWix]

I think in some cases too, it's all well and good for someone in Dorset to say "You should be trying all this amazing stuff", but then when you try and tranfer it to the frozen/soggy North, it doesn't all work quite the same... I wouldn't waste my space on peaches and nectarines when I'm struggling to grow apples without canker!

On the other hand, you can devote some space to trying new things, whilst making sure you still have plenty of the things that do work, and you know you like.

[Mrs Dobby]

We grow a large variety of things, we try some new things every year, but also grow our staple crops, as these we know we will eat, and it allows us not only to save money (on the prices of organic stuff from supermarkets), but also reduces our food miles, gives us the ultimate in freshness and we know whats been used on our crops, plus its always good to harvest something fresh, in season, you just cant beat the taste!

[Snadger]

Must admit that just as the giant leek shows are in decline I've finally come around to all the intricacies of growing large leeks.
I'm not in a leek show but love the mistique around growing leeks from seed,pods,pips,grass,king pods and all the miriad of other tricks of the trade associated with it.
Just found out yesterday that cutting the seed stem off a shaven headed leek which is sprouting grass, and putting it in a vase of water with Milton sterising solution in it will make the grass grow very quickly and allow it to be seperated from the parent plant very easily, thus giving clones of the original plant!

Just goes to show that after trying loads of exotic veg..........most of which have failed, I have returned to my North Eastern roots of leek growing!

[Mrs T]

even the humble spud has varieties you cant get hold of easily i grown pink fir apple spuds for the flavour & texture, but ive never seen them in the supermarkets (or farmers markets) and ive had a bumber crop this year. so suppose i agree with him to a point.

Ummm... I guess I want to grow stuff that will taste good but we can eat as part of our everyday menu... But I also want at least some crops that are relatively reliable...

I agree though with changing to better varieties to enhance taste....not necessarily different veg.....some of it died out for a reason

Yeah... some don't survive for good reason - I have similar concerns when the only recipe I can find for something is a war recipe...

I grow Sungold tomatoes, and a few varieties of chilli pepper. Also the usual potatoes, beans and courgettes. Sweetcorn too. I think the appeal of GYO is that the food is so much fresher than you can buy in the shops. I wouldn't bother with peaches and nectarines because I don't have the room and don't particularly like them.

I've got chillies growing and I am chuffed to bits with them... it's the first time I've had a real harvest despite previous attempts... the green house has definitely made a difference... and with the GH in mind, I do think my options are widening but then it quickly fills up!!

I'd interpret that as it is fine to grow your staples every year, but you may get a bit bored of them after a few years so why not experiment with different stuff alongside them.
If you had grown say, spuds, carrots, and parsnips every year for ten years then suddenly grew jerusalem artichokes, you might "why have I never grown these before my soups would have been even better, I've been missing out for the last ten years!"

Personally I think it is more fun to grow lots of different stuff.

Ummmm he seemed quite clear that your regular staples could be bought from the supermarket with little taste compromise... which I do believe is quite wrong...

But you're right, his basic argument is about growing a wider range and trying new things...

I think in some cases too, it's all well and good for someone in Dorset to say "You should be trying all this amazing stuff", but then when you try and tranfer it to the frozen/soggy North, it doesn't all work quite the same... I wouldn't waste my space on peaches and nectarines when I'm struggling to grow apples without canker!

Just what MrT said as I sat clutching the book saying 'well he has put together a compelling argument and I really think it would be wonderful' - I already back up any number of my staples in my greenhouse - thus securing a crop... there's not room of endless experimentation...

On the other hand, you can devote some space to trying new things, whilst making sure you still have plenty of the things that do work, and you know you like.

[BeatTheSeasons]

Hi Mrs T

That's such an interesting question.

I'm pretty new to growing my own too and I know I've already wasted a lot of money on novelties that had no chance of success.

Life's too short to grow ordinary food? I don't consider my homegrown produce to be just 'ordinary'.

If what gives you pleasure is harvesting fresh 'organic' crops straight from your garden and then enjoying that special super-fresh flavour then ......... you'd better grow something that is actually going to crop!

I've seen peaches and nectarines grown successfully in the UK. It was at Heligan, in a sheltered south facing valley in Cornwall, and under glass! They even grow pineapples there - some poor chap spends the whole winter shovelling horse manure into 'hot beds' to keep the temperature above 10 degrees.

I've had NO success with unusual exotic crops, and I don't think I'll bother until I have a greenhouse.

But on the other hand my fresh peas, beans, tomatoes, strawberries and blackcurrants are the best thing I've ever tasted. And yellow courgettes are just as easy to grow as green ones, but can you even buy them in the shops?? And as for purple sprouting broccoli..... food of the gods!

So I would say try more unusual crops if you have extra space, but not at the expense of missing out on things you know will work.

Summer's too short to grow extraordinary food!

[zazen999]

On this topic - we have an Exotic Crop Fair at Ryton Gardens on Sunday; where people who grow the unusual across the Midlands [including at Ryton] are showcasing their harvests and I hear there's a seed swap on the day

Exotic crops on show at harvest event - News story from Garden organic

[Pies]

First you have to define whats same old and whats unusual. For some growing a better standard of crop is whats different. For others its the method of growing. I dont think trying to grow exotic veg which requiers constant attention and special treatment is going to suit most

But i do feel growing exactly the same crops year in year out is boring,this year im growing my onions from pips and seed only growing winter onions from sets. It's a challange but not an impossible one.

I think changing variety or method can be just as good as trying to grow exotic crops

P.S snadge thanks for the tip

[Keith2202]

Depends what you call exotic too!
I had never even heard of kale, cavolo nero, turks turban squash, purple sprouting broccolli, kohl rabi, until I started getting a veg box delivered about 3 years ago and they were included in that. I'd never heard of jerusalem artichokes until I got my allotment and some appeared. So as far as I am concerned they are all "exotic".

I gave my mum a yellow courgette and she insisted that there was no such thing as a yellow courgette (despite having one in her hand) so it must be a squash (technically correct)! So to her yellow courgettes are "exotic"

[snakeshack]

I like same old same old for my main crops but always grow something I have never grown before every year.
sometimes it works,this year it was pumpkins and 3 types of squash,and shallots from seed which were fantastic.
last year it was jerusalem artichokes which grew 10 ft high & produced 2 barrowfulls of tubers which taste like snot and turn you into a hovercraft,oh and by the way I still have them this year as the smallest piece will grow into a mighty plant if you even look away for 10 minutes.
next year who knows?