Choosing the right vegetables for your garden

A vegetable patch gives you the convenience of having fresh produce any time, and by growing your own, you can choose an organic approach. Here are some of the options for vegetables you can add to your garden.

The world of vegetables is diverse, colourful and full of flavour. Here are some popular options that you can consider for your garden, including details about when and how to harvest them and tips on storage and cooking.

• Asparagus: Harvest in spring. Leave uncut in the first year. In the second year, cut the spear just below the soil using a sharp knife. Cut off the end, then stand the stalks in a small container of water in the fridge. Cover with plastic.
• Beetroot: Harvest 10 weeks after sowing. Young beetroot has the best flavour, but you can store the crop in the ground and harvest it over many months. You can also pick the leaves for salads.
• Cabbage: Harvest in summer to autumn or 8–16 weeks after sowing. Harvest the entire plant when heads are firm and plump. If you won't be eating the cabbage right away, you can slice it, blanch it for 3–4 minutes and store it in the freezer.
• Carrots: Harvest in spring through fall. Pick continuously to spread the harvest. Small young carrots have the best flavour.
• Parsnips: Harvest 18–20 weeks after planting. Pick continuously to spread the harvest. Pull baby parsnips at 2–3 months or leave them in the ground for up to 6 months. Store them out of the light for 1–2 weeks or in the vegetable crisper for several weeks.
• Potatoes: Harvest in summer. Pick after flowering, when the leaves start to turn yellow. Store potatoes out of the light to prevent greening, which occurs due to the formation of alkaloids.
• Pumpkin: Harvest in autumn when the stems begin to wither and when the vine starts to die off. Cure pumpkins (harden the skin) in a warm spot, but store them in a cool, dry space on a wire rack.
• Sweet corn: Harvest in late summer or 10 weeks after sowing. When the silks turn brown, the corn is ready to pick. To maximize flavour, cook corn as soon as possible after picking.
• Sweet potatoes: Harvest in autumn or 20 weeks after planting. Tubers (potatoes) are mature when the plants turn yellow. Leave tubers in the sun to cure for a few days after digging them up.
• Tomatoes: Harvest in summer. For the best flavour, allow tomatoes to ripen on the vine. In fruit fly zones, pick full-sized green tomatoes and ripen them inside your home to reduce pest damage.

If your garden is small, the following dwarf vegetable varieties may be good options.

• Pioneer beans, which are harvested in summer
• Baby beetroot, which is harvested in spring and fall
• Baby carrots, which are harvested in spring through fall
• Thai chili peppers, which are harvested in summer
• Salad Bowl lettuce, which is harvested in spring through fall
• Earlicrop Massey peas, which are harvested in spring
• Salad Crunch radishes, which are harvested in spring
• Tiny Tim tomatoes, which are harvested in summer

Quick tip: Coordinate your plantings with neighbours or family so that you don't all grow the same crop and can share the harvest!