Unusual Favorites of Year's Past

I like to grow the vegetables that produce well for me, but there are a few things that have made it to my plant for the sheer fun of it list.

1.  Ground Cherry - These easy plants may be bought as starts from Seed Savers, or as seed from a variety of sources.  The fruit look like tiny tomatillos and have a tart pineapple taste.  My kids have both stood as toddlers eating them straight off the vine.  They dry well and cook into cookies nicely too.

2.  Cucuzzi Squash - This is an edible gourd. As with most gourds, plant them far from your home.  The vines are long and prolific.  They bear a lovely baseball bat size gourd that can be eaten when picked young. Even if you look every day, these will sneak up and scare you by not being there one day and being the size of your leg the next.

3.  Burgundy Okra - Lovely and tall, this is a wonderful plant to grace the garden.  These okra are more tender than others and have a wonderful flavor raw or cooked.  Instant ticket to feeling like you are the best gardener out there.  Pretty and huge.

4.  Red Chinese Long Bean - This yard long bean grows quickly and easily.  Tasty in bean salads and numerous other recipes, this bean loves the warm weather and needs a fairly tall trellis.

5.  Cardoon - A relative of the artichoke, these must be started indoors due to the long season that they need.  I rarely actually eat these which is a shame, but I love their exotic look.  It's a bit finicky, but the years they succeed, they provide a lovely accent to the garden.