Gardening season is halfway over in New Jersey. I'm sharing some of the vegetables, flowers, and herbs that I wouldn't grow in my garden again next year along with some that I definitely plan on growing again!
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This summer has definitely been one of the most experimental gardening seasons for us. We have planted things I would have never imagined growing in my garden. I started a few new plants from seeds. I tried growing some plants indoors (and ultimately moved them outside for the summer). Some of it has been a fail, but some of it has been really successful! It's been a journey and great learning process. Especially for someone like me who is finally starting to feel like an avid gardener!
Plants I Wouldn't Grow in my Garden Again
Of course, during this extremely experimental learning process, I've discovered that there are certain plants I don't think I would grow again. They were fun for one year, but I don't see them becoming an annual staple in our garden. I tried growing some of these plants as a backup food source (especially to preserve and store), but they're not as essential as other plants. And other plants have just become a menace to control.
Chickpeas
I was so excited to grow chickpeas from seed! I went into it blindly though. At first, I had two plants successfully grow from the seeds I started. But they didn't survive transplanting. So I started the process over and direct seeded multiple seeds. Only one plant sprouted and, thankfully, survived.
While it's been fun to see the chickpeas develop in their pods (and even enjoy them while they're green - they're sweeter this way), I don't think it's worth it unless you're growing multiple plants. Cost-wise (and time-wise), it's probably easier just to buy a can of chickpeas from the grocery store. I don't see myself growing these again.
Borage
This plant is a pollinator powerhouse! The minute I planted it, the bees were buzzing around it. It's also good for keeping pests away from tomato plants. And the flowers and leaves are edible and have a cucumber-like flavor. There are more pros than cons when it comes to this plant, I'll admit. But I had no idea it would spread as much as it did! And this is just from growing it in a pot!
I had read about borage self-seeding. But little did I know that those seeds would travel to other potted plants nearby. I've been picking tiny borage sprouts out of pots like crazy lately! So would I grow it again? No! Because I won't have to! I did just move it to a larger pot, so hopefully that'll help. I'll probably find it sprouting out of other pots all over again next year! Kind of glad I didn't plant it in the ground like I originally planned on doing!
Different Types of Mint
While I am thankful for the two pots of common mint that I get to use in my Etsy shop products, I don't know if I would grow other varieties of mint again. I bought an orange mint because it sounded good, but there isn't much flavor difference between this mint and common mint, to be honest. The pineapple mint is good, but I can't seem to use it up fast enough.
Again, these are plants I won't have to buy again next year. Most mint plants are perennial and these should come back. But I now have more mint than I know what to do with it. We'll be drinking a lot of tea this winter!
Tabasco Peppers
We have yet to harvest our first tabasco peppers, but I have a feeling we're either going to end up with a handful or way too many. It's my first year growing these. I grew them because I put Tabasco sauce on everything. But I feel like - like the chickpeas - these were kind of a novelty plant to grow in our garden. I don't see myself growing these peppers again. Although I do plan on taking advantage of whatever amount of peppers we get and trying my hand at homemade hot sauce!
Snapdragons
I grew snapdragons last year simply for the dead flower heads. They look like little dried up skulls, which made them perfect for Halloween simmer pot kits! Unfortunately, the flowers seem to have a quick season in the spring and make a quick return in the fall before dying off again. Even planting them in a shadier location didn't seem to help much this summer.
They are known to be a perennial in certain zones (my zone 7, included). So if they survive the winter, I'll give them another shot next year. If not, I'm okay finding another flower to take their place.
Dragon's Breath Celosia
Have you walked into a garden center recently and seen those bright pink, feathery flowers bursting out of pink and green leaves and stems? That's Dragon's Breath Celosia. I typically find this plant in garden centers at the end of summer to be grown in fall and Halloween gardens. Little did I know that hiding in the old plant's dirt in my compost bin were so many little seeds that ended up sprouting!
So it's not that I wouldn't grow this plant again. It's just that I wouldn't throw the old plant soil in my compost bin again. These flowers are sprouting up everywhere I put down compost (and that's a lot of places)! I have relocated a bunch, made myself a pot, made pots for family and neighbors, and I've given up on the rest. Let 'em grow! Let 'em grow! Let 'em grow! They're all over the freaking place. They win.
Cosmos
This is my first summer growing cosmos. They're such pretty flowers and the pollinators like them, too. I'm also mindful of the fact that they're self-seeders, so I'll probably find them growing again next year whether or not I want them to. But as pretty as these flowers are, the flowers don't last too long and I feel like I'm constantly deadheading them.
Also, they're supposed to be heat tolerant, but my plant has looked pretty dreadful this summer. I have to water it at least twice a day when it's super hot out or else it gets quite dramatic. So much for being drought tolerant, too!
Plants I Would Grow in my Garden Again
On the other hand, there are a few plants that I would totally grow again next year! They grew better than we expected and tasted better than we expected. In fact, I would probably double up on a couple of the plants (or just start them from seed) next year because they've been that good!
Hot Burrito Peppers
We bought these on a whim, but I'm so glad that we did! We've hardly even let them ripen to a red state before using them because they're so good. They have such a great flavor with just the right amount of pinchy heat. It's the perfect pepper for when you want to give a dish a little zip without having an overwhelming amount of spice.
This is definitely a plant we plan on saving seeds from. The peppers aren't growing fast enough for how we've been eating them, so we'll definitely have to grow multiple plants next year!
Salad Bowl Lettuce
I originally started growing these seeds inside. The last time we grew greens (kale and spinach), I was fighting cabbage worms like crazy. I thought the seeds I started died. So I dumped the soil in the garden and, to my surprise, a plant sprouted! So I ended up planting it and have been thoroughly enjoying fresh lettuce from the garden.
In fact, I ended up growing three more lettuce plants in the garden because I've been using it so much! If I can find more room, I might even sow more lettuce seeds so we have a big fall harvest!
Nasturtiums
This is my first time growing nasturtiums. Even though the entire plant is edible, I wanted to try growing them for their pest control. I have to say, it's doing a really great job! The good: it's keeping the aphids away from the veggie garden. The bad: the aphids are hanging out on the nasturtiums.
Since the aphids have been tucking away inside flowers and underneath them, I haven't tried eating the flowers, leaves, or stems. But I did grab a few of the seeds. I read that you could pickle them like capers and guess what? They really do taste like capers, but with a peppery bite and crispier texture!
Lemon Verbena
I bought this at a greenhouse a few months ago just because it smelled so good! It's been growing really well (even after transplanting it to my big, kind of crammed herb garden box) - better than my lemon balm. I've been using it to make herbal iced tea and it's been delicious! I can't wait to dry it for hot tea this fall/winter. I might even throw it into some of my Etsy shop products.
Short n Sweet Carrots
We've been growing carrots for the past few years, but these might be the best carrots we've ever grown! We seeded them in a sandy mixture of soil and they've taken off! They're the perfect size carrot, so sweet, and the tops have even been visited by swallowtail butterflies! Plus, they store nicely in the fridge, maintaining their crispness longer than other varieties we've planted.
Sugar Baby Watermelons
I feel like I'm cheating with this last one because we have yet to pick our first watermelon. I read up on growing watermelons vertically and wanted to give it a try, so I bought some seeds. We now have two watermelons growing along with a ton of flowers and teeny-tiny watermelons just starting. I thought they were going to be super hard to grow, but so far they're proving me wrong.
I think I've had a little help from the bees since they've been all over the flowers! I can't wait to pick our very first watermelon. Growing these has made me feel like anything is possible to grow no matter the amount of space you have in your garden!
