I have seen the power of tomatoes. Left alone they will scatter everywhere.
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I have horseradish. What do jerusalem artichokes taste like. Have heard they are similar to potatoes.
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beens and peas will reseed themselves. just leave some pods to completely ripen. theyāll be back in the spring.
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Skirrit
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There are actually quite a few true perennials, although some are pretty obscure:
(I know, many of these are already on the list)
perennial scallions
Egyption onions
asparagus
rhubarb
perennial leeks
sorrel
ostrich fern (fiddleheads)
sylvetta arugala (aka wild arugala; true perennial)
good king henry
Caucasian mountain spinach
sea kale (different from regular kale)
hostas (spring shoots, flower buds; grown as vegetables in Japan)
day lilies (roots, young greens, flower buds; grown as vegetables in Asia)
Solomonās seal
N American wild beans (only worth it if youāve got an experimental streak)
Ground Nut (Apios americana)
tree collards (may work in your zone)
and moreā¦
In warmer (tropical) zones, scarlet runner beans, lima beans, sweet potatoes, and peppers are perennial as well. Heck, there are a gazillion tropical perennial veggies. One thing Iāve noticed about this list is that most of them fall into the early spring greens or fall roots/tubers categories. The perennial greens show up so much sooner than anything else, unless you take the trouble to overwinter lettuce, spinach, or other greens. The other thing is that many of these are true perennials, but work best (or at least give the most extended harvest) when treated as annuals. I would also highly recommend checking out the book Perennial Vegetables by Eric Toensmeier. I think he paints a rosier picture of the level of difficulty than is probably realistic, but he has a good review of many of these perennial species, how to grow them, and what to do with them.
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Your right about the tropicals. I grew up in the south and in a warm enough environment Hot Peppers will live up to 20 years and look like trees. The main thing Iām noticing about the list is not many are normal grocery store items. Any experience with lettuce? I heard they are somewhat perennial and will grow well in shade. Something I have plenty of.
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Happy to send you a bunch. I have a few requests for them every year so I save seeds.
Dill - reseeds every year if you live a couple heads not cut.
Lavage - kind of a perennial celery
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I have been told that lettuce will grow well in shade. Do you have any experience with it? For yours, you just let a couple go to seed and they come back every year?
Lettuce will tolerate some shade.
Yah . Let a few plants go to seed.
When you see the birds eating the seeds, either tie a paper bag over them for protection, or shake the seeds around so the birds ( finches )donāt eat them all .
I grew Yakon for several years, you are supposed to dig it all up in the fall but I would miss a few and they would come back next year on their own. I think it may be just hardy enough for my zone. No work at all other than harvesting them.
It is a root vegetable that tastes like a cross of carrot and celery, nice and crunchy. I liked it but nobody else was eating it so I stopped growing it.
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Last year we had a couple cucumber vines come up in our tomato patch. They were planted the year before, so it was quite a surprise to see those vines, we even got a few cukes.
Thanks. If I let several of them go to seed will enough pop up next year to be useful? Will they still be usable after going to seed?
FYI- I wound up putting in 20 more hazelnuts after that thread we were on.
My lettuce half barrels are in partial shade, about 50% of the day shaded. They do fine and yes, I let a couple go to seed in each one. If Iām on top of this in a given year, Iāll also clean out weeds from them and then just replant the volunteer baby lettuces, in better placements, but I donāt always get that done.
You seem to have an interesting list going and I expect youāll have success with some. Are you going to protect the area from deer or are you perhaps super lucky and donāt have a deer issue? If you have deer and donāt protect the bed, I would start taking a few off the list. For instance Iāve never been able to grow chard in my front yard since the deer wander down the street and it seems to be at the top of their preferred menu items. Some on your list should be of no interest to deer, but many would be munched.
The other thing in my area would be weeds. I remember your other thread of trying to take back an area from stickers and other weedy plants. For many of the plants on your list, unless you are starting with very low weed seed in the soil (bringing in hot-composted compost?), the weeds will overtake a lot of things in a season or 2. Maybe if you start with a nice heavy layer of wood chips youāll buy yourself some time.
I do wish you luck and hope youāll keep us updated. It is just hard to truly be lazy and get a reasonable crop.
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You are correct in all. I have a half acre that looks like a prison that I keep my vines and other deer candy in. Just extending the prison walls to include these. Deer are a major problem for me and I usually lose $100-$200 a year to them in one form or another.
I have plenty of mulch and understand that it will need to be weeded. 5-6 select crops is all I will be trying. I expect it will work fine for a couple years then most likely will need redone again. My focus is on tree fruit. This is just for fun. Lastly, your right, veggies are not for the lazy man!
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Another good one to add is prickly pear cactus (Opuntia sp). The young (carefully de-spined) pads make a great vegetable when grilled, then cut up for tacos or a salad. They call them nopales in Mexico. Still kind of a spring green sort of thing, but itās more of a late spring/early summer slot, and theyāre more like green beans in texture, with an earthy, slightly tangy flavor. If you put them in a spot with full sun and good drainage, they need very little care, especially if you plant them tightly between rocks to minimize weeds. In your zone 6/7, you should have some good options. O humifusa will definitely work, maybe O stricta. Another unconventional choice, but worth the very little effort. They have a reputation for being slimy, but I donāt find that to be the case when grilled whole. Steaming, boiling, or cooking in a crowded pan is another storyā¦
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I wanted to chime in with cattails. Not sure if they count as a vegetable, but the roots (rhizomes) are edible and taste like cucumber. I would have an unlimited supply from work if I wasnāt worried about the possibility of heavy metal accumulation. But in a pinch, they could provide a significant amount of food with a bit of work, and they grow like weeds in marginal zones like wetlands that you wouldnāt otherwise be able to āfarmā in most cases.
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A friend recently sent me starts of Babington Leek, supposedly a perennial, like elephant garlic, āreseedingā from topset bulblets.
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Iād count 'em.
And, if you can catch them in bloom, thereās a tremendous amount of pollen you can also harvestā¦and that is certainly very nutritious.
Could be used as a flour/meal substitute (the pollen)ā¦as breading, etc.
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