Have you seen the Canada Food Guide?聽 The updated picture of a 鈥渉ealthy鈥� plate looks appetizing and achievable. The interesting thing to note is that half the 鈥減late鈥� is made up of fruit and vegetables.聽 One quarter is grains, and one quarter is 鈥減rotein鈥� foods such as meat, eggs, dairy, and beans of all kinds. The Food guide is just that, a guide, which is something for us to aim for in our menus. But if we want to begin a brand new decade by setting some positive goals before ourselves, healthier eating may be one. That sets a challenge before us, gardeners! Let鈥檚 think ahead for a moment to this year鈥檚 upcoming gardens!
With so many varieties of vegetables now developed for container gardening, all of us, even those without an actual 鈥済arden鈥�, can try to grow something that can go from the planter to the plate. Tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, herbs and even potatoes and carrots are all excellent and productive choices in containers.
If garden space is limited, as it is for many of us, what are our best gardening choices? First of all, make a list of your absolute 鈥渕ust-haves鈥�.聽 This will help focus on the main choices. For us, it鈥檚 tomatoes, onions, peppers, squash, and potatoes. We grow herbs in containers. Your list will be different, but when we make a list we can see that there is likely room for at least a bit of all our favorites.
What are the best choices in terms of high yields for small gardens?聽聽 Onions or shallots give back an impressive harvest with even a small row. Tomatoes are a wonderful choice, especially if you choose cherry or grape tomatoes. There are also tomatoes like Patio that are smaller (in plant size and tomato size) but have great yield.聽 When space is limited avoid the sprawling, indeterminate tomatoes.
Cucumbers will also deliver a good harvest; varieties like Cool Breeze will set fruit without bees, or Bush Pickle Hybrid that鈥檚 a bush variety growing only 36 inches tall, and are equally good in containers.
Though it sprawls, zucchini is a high yield choice, because once it starts producing, it keeps right on, and the crop is so versatile: eat zucchini, raw, steamed, baked, or grate it and use it in spaghetti sauces, soups, muffins, or cakes. Sweet Pea used to make a wonderful zucchini chocolate cake, with a top layer of chocolate chips and walnuts: absolutely delicious! And very moist with the addition of grated zucchini.
Beets are another plant that we can enjoy from root to leaf: the beet root is delicious steamed, roasted, or in soups, and the leaves are full of vitamins and delicious in salads, steamed, or in yummy dishes like beetniks! Even a short row will yield a good number of beets. Sweet Pea always planted Detroit Dark Red, and these are still one of our favorites.
Greens of all kinds are a wonderful healthy choice: whether it鈥檚 lettuce or Swiss chard, there are colorful and flavorful varieties that are a must for any garden patch.聽 You鈥檒l have many salads from a short row. Beans and peas are great for eating, but also wonderful for setting nitrogen in the soil. Here again, if we keep picking them, they will keep producing!
You will be amazed at the yield from even a small garden or a collection of containers, and that delicious crop is a good step towards healthy eating!
The Yorkton and District Horticultural Society will be having their next meeting on Wednesday, March 19, 7 p.m. at SIGN on North Street. Visit us at www.yorktonhort.ca to see what鈥檚 鈥渃oming up鈥�, and have a great week!
