This season, consider these 5 veggies to add to your organic garden and keep enjoying the benefits of going green. Summer is a great time to spruce up your produce. While maintaining a green project is a challenge of its own, the most rewarding moment comes later, when you get to reap the produce and make mouth-watering dishes with the unique flavor that only naturally planted veggies have to offer. Are you new to the hacks of green gardens? Learn how to get started with your organic garden, here.
Brussel sprouts
While these can be tricky to cook, they are still delicious and full of nutrients that’ll help strengthen your body as they provide fiber, vitamin A, C and B6, not to mention magnesium and potassium. Grow them in containers, placing one plant per 16-inch deep container. But be careful with cabbage worms! The first warning sign is a few white butterflies hovering above your sprouts. Make sure to pick the worms by hand to protect your cabbage.
Red bell peppers
This veggie, while rich in potassium also contains almost 100% of vitamin A, and it can also be planted in 8 to 12 inch-deep pots. Look out for aphids or flea beetles, though. Luckily, home-made insecticide (such as tomato leaf spray) and hot pepper spray are both effective ways to combat and get rid of insect infestations.
Beets
One of the most versatile veggies you’ll ever find, beets are a great option to add to your garden as they’re great ingredients to include raw in a salad, or sautéed as a side dish. Growing them is just as fun, since each seed is a group of many. For this reason, it’s important to grow one 3 inches apart from the other. The trick, however, is in knowing when to harvest them. Green beets are better savored when they’re small. Whereas the larger they got, the more bitter and hard.
Carrots
Mostly known for being the “stars” of healthy veggies, carrots are among the richest greens, containing potassium, niacin, manganese, vitamins A and C, to mention a few. Carrots can also be challenging to reap, as they’re best tasted small. The longer the carrot rests under the ground, the harder and more tasteless it becomes. Find a 12 inch pot and spread one seed every three inches. Be sure to keep the soil moist to avoid affecting the flavor when the harvest time comes. Make the best of this delicious sweet veggie by reaping it when it’s still short and tender.
Leafy Greens
Choose among a variety of leaves to plant: from collard to spinach, and kale, turnip, you name it! The best part is, you don’t necessarily have to stick to just one. Plant as many as your home space allows in ten inch deep pots, 4 inches apart. Keep in mind these too have to be harvested small in order to preserve the flavor. One warning, though: greens like collard do not work well with heat, so the best time to sow them is during spring or fall.