Edible Landscaping II

This Katuk is the last plant I got from Echo Farms. It is delish, with a slight peanut taste. A cup has 10% of your protein requirements for the day. You're supposed to keep it chopped at 4-6 feet.


I've not had any bug problems with it. I do water it once a week if it hasn't rained, but I suspect it would be okay on its own.


Bell peppers, good eatin', nice home for frogs. [I'm pretty sure this is a Cuban tree frog, which is considered an invasive species.] Some gardener I am, look at all that grass!

Edible Landscaping

This spectacular plant is Cranberry Hibiscus [I've also seen it called Red Hibiscus] and/or False Roselle [Latin: Hibiscus acetosella]. An annual/short lived perennial a freeze will knock them back. At least in my yard, it is 100% maintenance free :)

They range in size even in my yard--some getting to 13 feet, some only getting to 4. It reseeds itself, coming up all over the yard. As it comes up you can cut it back to make it bush out.

The leaves are yummy in salads and stir fries. Kind of like a cross between clover and rhubarb--tart.

You can read more about it here, and on the Echo Farms site.

Desperately Seeking Spinach II-Malabar Spinach

Malabar Spinach was another spinach I've tried. Grows like crazy in the summer, not so happy in the winter. I've put in two varieties. The first, red-stemmed malabar spinach, I got at Evergreen Seeds. It's another lovely plant. The second I got from Echo Farms. It's attractive too.



As with the Okinawa Spinach I think the new leaves, raw, are preferable. Neither of them are a true spinach substitute, IMO. I'll try Tat Soi soon, but at this point in my garden Swiss Chard and/or arugula come the closest as a spinach substitute.

Desperately Seeking Spinach-Okinawa Spinach

I love spinach. I loooooovve spinach. But spinach is impossible to grow in Southwest Florida. And I do mean impossible. Even Worden Farms in Punta Gorda hasn't been able to [although they do have Kina Savoy and Tat Soi which look fairly close even though they're basically members of the cabbage family. I will be giving them a try soon.]

After a little research I came across Echo Farms in North Fort Myers [A totally cool non-denominational Christian group dedicated to using science and technology to solve hunger in the world. They basically believe that there is the perfect plant for every instance, you just have to figure out what it is]. I've tried 4 of their plants as summer-tolerant spinach/green substitutes. It's also where I got my tropical sweet potato starts. These first two pictures are okinawa spinach. [Echo Farm Plant list here --- Seed bank here]


Okinawa spinach, if nothing else, makes a lovely ground cover. Unlike Malabar spinach it thrives in the summer and winter. And it is profligate. Two plants took over pretty much a 4'x6' patch of space. I like it better raw in salads. As a saute I find all but the youngest leaves get a bit too mucilagenous [like okra] for me. Although it will work in heavier sauces. But, it grows like a weed, totally pest resistant and other than maybe a bi-weekly watering in the spring [where I am at spring is very hot and very dry] it thrives on it's own.


It even gets pretty, teeny dandelion-like flowers in the winter ranging from red to yellow.



[Magic wonders why I am taking pictures of flowers and not him.]