Do you like to try new things?


I do – especially in the garden. I’m always on the lookout for new vegetables to try out, including some heirloom varieties, which aren’t technically new.

One year, I tried growing ‘container corn’.  You can read here how it did.

This year, I tried growing ‘White Icicle’ radishes, which are a cross between radishes and turnips. My mother had given me the seeds and I’ve always had a very easy time growing regular radishes, so I thought I’d try these.

They grew easily and the leaves reached over 2 1/2 ft. long!

It was exciting to pull them out and I couldn’t wait to try them.

 While they were very easy to grow, I must confess that I didn’t like them.

I really wanted to and their flavor was a lot like a turnip, but they burned my mouth – much more than the radishes do.

My grand experiment last year was growing Swiss chard and afterward, I wish that I had been growing it all along. It’s not only easy to grow, it also tastes great in salads!

I grow it both in my vegetable gardens and in pots.

So, while I wish that I liked ‘White Icicle’ I don’t. But, it wasn’t a waste of time growing them. You see, gardening is a grand experiment and it’s always fun to try growing new things and while there are going be some failures – there are also great successes (like my Swiss chard) when you discover what grows well that you like.

*This week, I’m sharing what I’ve harvested from my winter vegetable garden and sharing lessons learned. Yesterday, it was broccoli and how to freeze it.