Growing vegetables

Some vegetables are perennials but most are annuals and biennials, usually harvested within a year of sowing or planting. Whatever system is used for growing crops, cultivation follows a similar pattern:

• preparation of the soil by loosening it, removing or burying weeds and adding organic manures or fertilizers
  
• sowing seeds or planting young plants
  
• tending the crop while it grows to reduce weed competition, control pests and provide sufficient water
  
• harvesting the crop when it is ready; sorting, storing and marketing the crop or eating it fresh from the ground.
  

Permaculture

Permaculture (permanent agriculture) is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It has a set of agricultural and social design principles centred around simulating or directly using the patterns and features observed in natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter, and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way. The philosophy behind permaculture is one of working with, rather than against, nature; of protracted and thoughtful observation rather than protracted and thoughtless action.

The three core elements of permaculture are:

• Care for the Earth
  Provision for all life systems to continue and multiply. This is the first principle, because without a healthy Earth humans cannot flourish.
  
• Care for the people
  Provision for people to access those resources necessary for their existence.
  
• Return of surplus
  Reinvesting surpluses back into the system in order to care for the Earth and people. This includes returning waste back into the system to recycle into usefulness. This is sometimes referred to as “Fair share” as each of us should take no more than we need and then reinvest the surplus.
  

Mixed cropping

Mixed cropping is growing of two or more crops simultaneously on the same piece of land. It is also known as multiple or multi-cropping. This type of cropping leads to an improvement in the fertility of the soil and hence increase in crop yield. When the two crops are properly chosen the products and refuse from one crop plant help in the growth of the other crop plant and vice-versa. Mixed cropping can also be an insurance against crop failure due to abnormal weather conditions. If one crop fails due to shortage of moisture or insufficient availability of nutrients, the other crop can cover the risk of complete failure. 

Mulching

Many different materials (both organic or inorganic) can be used to cover the soil surface. Examples include wood or bark chippings, leaf mould, well-rotted farmyard manure, old carpet or plastic sheets. Mulching has many benefits - providing plant nutrients, holding moisture, killing weeds, forming a barrier against weed seed and insulating the roots and crowns of vulnerable plants from winter cold. The right time to mulch is depending on the plant species. The best time to mulch is in late-winter or early spring. This will trap in moisture from wet weather and ensure soil does not dry out quickly in the heat of summer.

Crop rotation

The idea is simply to divide the growing area into sections for different types of crop. Every year the crop sections are rotated in the growing area, so that each crop section (with its own requirements, habits, pests and diseases) can have the advantage of new soil and microclimate. As a rule of thumb, crop rotation runs for at least three or four years. This is the number of years it takes for most soil-borne pests and diseases to decline to harmless levels. If the crops are divided into three or four groups, this means that each crop group will only grow on the same soil every three or four years. A traditional 4 course crop rotation is  Legumes - Roots - Fruit  - Leaves. 

• Legumes: lentils, beans, peas
  
• Root vegetables: radish, carrot, potato, onion, garlic, shallots, beet, sweet potato
  
• Fruit-bearing: tomato, corn, cucumber, squash, pumpkin, eggplant
  
• Leafy greens: lettuce, salad leaf vegetables, spinach, chard, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli
  

However a permanent growing area can be used for perennial vegetables and fruit such as soft fruit, rhubarb, asparagus, horse radish and globe artichoke.

Genetic diversity

Organic vegetable and fruit production is much about conserving old varieties. Every variety (or cultivar), old or new, has unique genetic attributes. This genetic diversity is important to conserve as it suits different soils and climates and provides future disease resistance. For example some of the old varieties have a natural resistance against apple scurf whilst new varieties like Braeburn and Gala are rather susceptible to this fungus and so are treated with pesticides. Different regions have local varieties which are adapted to the local climate. The aspect of regionalism is no longer important for modern varieties, as pests and diseases can be controlled by pesticides. Many organic farmers see it as their social duty to save the genetic potential of old varieties so that it stays available for future generations and as an insurance against future changing diseases and climates.

Chestnuts

Chestnuts are grown as tall trees, up to 30m high. There are two types, marron and domestic chestnut. The marron, more a plant of the south of Europe, is grown for its nuts as they are large and sweet. Although chestnut trees need sun for growing their fruits they also need a cold winter. So they are normally grown on the colder northern slopes of hills in the Mediterranean climate.

Chestnuts should be de-husked once they have fallen to the ground and have been collected, as with walnuts. Otherwise the husk turns black and is difficult to shell. The nuts are spread out in a warm place to dry out, turning them two/ three times a week. When dry they can be packed in barrels or earthenware jars. Alternate layers of sand help to keep them stored for up to 6 months, provided that the storing place is cool, dry, frost-free and away from mice or squirrels. Once dried and cleaned of their shells chestnuts can be grounded. Chestnut flour is mostly used for cakes and cookies, but it can also be mixed with wheat flour during the preparation of bread or pasta. It is possible to preserve fresh chestnuts keeping them in water for 7-10 days. Afterwards it is necessary to dry them for a few days and then they can be stored for a few months in a cool and dry place. In this way chestnuts remain fresh and can be used as normally (roasted or boiled).

Hazelnuts

Wild hazel trees have rather small nuts but there are many cultivated varieties with larger cobnuts. Valuable truffle fungi can be cultivated in hazelnut plantations as a secondary crop. Hazelnuts can be processed as roasted nuts and nut-cream and even hazelnut milk. 

Walnuts

Walnut trees grow slowly but reach a height of more than 30 metres. It takes up to 15 years until they start providing nuts, unless scions are grafted onto rootstocks. Walnut trees stand alone as no other plants flourish under their spreading crown. Insects also avoid the trees. Oil can be extracted by grinding and pressing. Nut residue can be used for sauces, cakes, biscuits or pastry. Nuts that are harvested in a green condition are good for making liquor. 

Herbs

There are a huge range of culinary, medicinal or ornamental herbs. Annual herbs like coriander are sown each year usually in the spring. Perennial herbs like sage and rosemary can be propagated by soft shoot cuttings. Other perennial herbs like the mints can be propagated by dividing the roots. Many herbs originate from the Mediterranean, growing on dry rocky slopes in poor soil and with xerophytic, or drought tolerant, leaves. However they may still need to be watered in hot dry summers. Enriching the soil with compost would only stimulate the growth of the leaves, while the flavouring substances would be unaffected. Many wild plants can be used as culinary or medicinal herbs but obviously some may be poisonous unless carefully identified. So good plant identification is vital for wild plant foraging.

What other essential info should a grower need to know? Post to the forum to share your thoughts!