Top Nine Stubborn Vegetables to Cultivate (Yet Truly Reward Your Efforts)
Growing some vegetables necessitates a careful approach to ensure a successful harvest, especially for those that are pickier about their growing conditions. Yet, with the right knowledge and suitable growing conditions, even novice gardeners can cultivate these challenging vegetables for a delightful homegrown taste.
Save your beloved Better Homes & Gardens vegetable recipes with the handy "MyRecipes" feature. All you need is to click the save icon (don't forget, it features a heart!).
Asparagus
Growing asparagus involves an investment in time and patience, as these plants take several years to reach maturity. If growing asparagus from seed, expect about four years before enjoying a harvest. A quicker route is planting asparagus crowns, from which you can start harvesting in just two to three years. Asparagus requires space in the garden, but interplanting it with quick-growing herbs, such as cilantro or parsley, can maximize productivity while you await your asparagus bounty.
Celery
Celery thrives best in cool, moist conditions and is sensitive to heat. To prevent bitterness or hollow, stringy stems, sow celery seeds early in the season, maintain consistent watering and mulching, and provide shade during hot weather. Celery needs approximately 1 to 2 inches of water per week, occasionally more during the hottest periods.
Cauliflower
Cauliflower is sensitive to heat and may bolt or develop misshapen heads in warm conditions. To avoid this, start cauliflower seeds early in the spring or midsummer for a fall harvest, and grow them under row covers to protect from bugs. Like other brassicas, cauliflower plants are prone to pests that damage leaves and heads. Watch out for cabbage loopers, aphids, cutworms, and even deer and rabbits.
Brussels Sprouts
Growing Brussels sprouts can be tricky due to temperature issues or poor soil quality, leading to small or undersized sprouts. To encourage larger sprouts, enrich your garden beds with compost before planting, fertilize regularly, and sow Brussels sprout seeds early in the season. Gardeners living in warm winter areas can plant Brussels sprouts in the fall for a spring harvest.
Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes should be planted from slips several weeks after the last spring frost to protect them from frost damage. Unfortunately, this may not provide enough growing season in areas with short seasons. To speed up growth, start sweet potato slips indoors in spring and transplant them into soil amended with compost. In areas with cool summers, cover the planting area with black plastic and plant the slips through slits in the plastic to warm the soil and speed development.
Heading Lettuce
Most types of lettuce bolt in hot weather, but heading-type lettuces, such as romaine and iceberg, are more susceptible. If you don't sow these plants early enough in the spring or if hot weather strikes unexpectedly, your lettuce plants won't form heads, and they'll become bitter. Growers in hot climates should sow lettuce seeds as early as possible, position plants in light shade, and water frequently.
Sweet Corn
Different varieties of corn can cross-pollinate, leading to unpalatable results. Planting only one type of corn in your garden can help prevent this issue, but proper pollination is crucial. These wind-pollinated plants often require growing in large groups or squares to ensure pollination. They may also need fencing or supports to stabilize their stalks in high winds.
Artichokes
Artichokes are perennial vegetables that can take several years to produce edible flower buds. They require a lot of space in the garden and are not particularly cold-tolerant. Growers in cold climates may need to provide winter protection or forgo growing them altogether.
Onions from Seed
Growing onions from seed can be more time-consuming and requires patience, as onion seeds often have poor germination rates. It's essential to overseed when planting, replace onion seeds annually, and ensure good airflow in indoor grow rooms to prevent damping off in onion seedlings.
A combination of patience, care, and attention to specific growing conditions can help gardeners tackle the challenges of growing these demanding vegetables for a rewarding homegrown harvest.
- By saving Better Homes & Gardens' vegetable recipes utilizing the "MyRecipes" feature, you'll be prepared to cook your homemade edible gardening efforts into a delightful meal.
- In the pursuit of vegetable gardening, novice gardeners may find growing asparagus and Brussels sprouts challenging due to their demanding conditions.
- For a successful celery harvest, gardeners should maintain consistent watering and provide shade during hot weather to prevent bitterness or hollow stems.
- To achieve larger cauliflower sprouts, enrich your garden beds with compost and plant cauliflower seeds early in the season for optimal growth.
- In vegetable gardening, sweet corn plants require proper pollination, usually grown in large groups or squares, and may need fencing or supports to stabilize their stalks in high winds.
){kind=link}