Intro
After four years, I’ve had time to better assess how much time and energy I have to put into a vegetable garden, which is more than most people being sans children, pets, and long commute, but still full of income oriented ventures. I’ve gotten a better sense of how much of what crops we *actually* use, and what capacity we have for preservation and sharing. With all of that I’ve realized that I can absolutely convert much more of the yard to native plantings and habitat and still leave plenty of room for veggies.
Last year I added a bunch of native shrubs, and later in the season filled in with some perennials. Southeastern Massachusetts folks would do well by visiting these nurseries for native-heavy options and advice:
Butterfly Effect Farm in Westport, MA
Prickly Ed’s Cactus Patch in Barrington, RI.
What’s going in the garden this season?
My shade tomato project!
Tomatoes, a home garden staple, has some exciting progress to be made in my garden. In 2022 a few volunteers cropped up in a shady spot after spreading some compost. It was a dry year and they were neglected in the heat, under a couple of pine trees…yet they produced a couple of ripe fruits! So I saved the seeds. In 2023 I planted them and got robust plants that produced well in both sunny and shady spots. Again I saved the seeds, and will again start another generation.
Other varieties that I love: Weisnicht’s Ukranian, Joseph Lofthouse’s Promiscuously Pollenated seeds (Wilding and Q-Series Panamorous “varieties”) , Tegucigalpa Paste, San Marzano, Mountain Miracle XL
Peppers!
A lot of my gift giving during the holidays are chili powders, and peppers are what I share the most during the growing season, so they get a decent square footage in the garden.
Hot Varieties I love to grow: Aji Charapita, Aji Mochero, Jalepeno, Indian chilies (given to me by my neighbor), Fish Peppers, Ancho/Poblano chilies, Chitelpin Wild chilies, Haskorea peppers
Sweet Varieties: Bacskai Feher, Venezuelan Tiger, Afternoon Delight, and some kind of orange bell pepper (this season it’s “Long Early Orange Bell” and “Doe Hill Bell” seeds from the Experimental Farm Network), Aji Dolce
An Indestructible Eggplant
Squash
C. mochata Varieties: a mix of saved butternut varieties, Long Island Cheese, Seminole Pumpkin, Moroccan Musk Squash, Lunga do Napoli
C. maxima Varieties: Nanticoke selections, North Georgia Candy Roaster, Oregon Homsteader’s Sweet Meat (a take on the OG, re-bred by Carole Deppe)
C. pepo Varieties: Candy Stick Dessert Delicata, Coststa Romanesca Zucchini
Lagenaria siceraria Varieties: Cucuzzi Gourd, Indian Bottle Gourd given to me by my neighbor.
Corn Experiments!
There is plenty of sweet corn grown around where I live so it’s easy to get. What I’ve tried growing last year is an exciting opportunity in plant breeding and locally adapted varieties.
The Experimental Farm Network is the type of seed company that celebrates genetic diversity and open possibilities, with the ethos that diversity allows for resilience in uncertain climates, and usually leads to fantastically delicious results. For the most accurate description of this corn go to the link above.
I bought a couple packets last season for myself and to share. In my yard they went into two spots with different microclimates and they produced enough to have seed again this year. So I’m very much looking forward to growing it again!
Okra
I have been gathering a wonderfully diverse collection of seeds from various sources, and they’re all mixed together. they’ve grown well directly planted into the garden after frost, in full sun. Wonderful for gumbo and curry!
Some of my favorite Seed Companies:
The Experimental Farm Network
True Love Seeds
The Roughwood Collection
Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
The Seedsaver’s Exchange
Hudson Valley Seed Company
P.S. If you’ve gone through the list above and see anything that sounds interesting to you, I am happy to share seeds! Please contact me with a list and I’ll get some seeds to you.
One caveat being that all varieties are grown amongst one another and are allowed to promiscuously mix genetics. This is on purpose, and there is always a chance that what grows from the seed is not exactly exactly like the stated variety. But the seeds have grown for at least one season in my own garden, typically under less than ideal or un-pampered conditions. This is with the intention to adapt the varieties to the growing conditions that I (and the local climate) can provide them.
Happy Gardening!
THIRD SWITCH STUDIOS 
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