5 Bonus Harvests You Can Get In Your Garden

Five Bonus Harvests You Can Get From Your Own Garden

Growing your own vegetables in your garden has so many benefits. But did you know that some plants can give you so much more than what you’d expect? Some plants produce bonus edible parts when you harvest, some of that you wouldn’t normally find in the stores. Here are a few of our most favourites harvests you can get:

1. Carrot Tops

When we harvest carrots, the first thing we do is to remove the leaves so the roots can stay fresh for longer.

And what do we do with these left-over carrot leaves? Most of the time they go straight to the compost unless you have rabbits to feed.

So this may come off as a surprise but you can actually eat those carrot leaves – and they taste so much like the root of a carrot.

They may not be the kind that you can use for a side dish on its own, but a few chopped leaves can work wonders for your soup or stew.

It can also be used to make carrot pesto or used for an added carrot flavour to omelettes, salads, and samosa fillings.

2. Coriander Seeds

Most people who grow coriander love to stir it fresh into a curry. But even a slight increase in temperature can cause this herb to bolt even before you can harvest. This rapid rise to flowering should be celebrated because, after this, it will be followed by much-prized seeds.

They are green at first and may taste just like coriander leaves but once it ripens and the green colour fades, it will start to taste zestier and can be a great addition to all sorts of spicy dishes.

They also last longer than the leaves.

3. Cauliflower Leaves

It always feels like a growing triumph when your head of cauliflower emerges from its leafy casing as a tight, white dome of florets.

But that leafy casing should also be celebrated as a growing success because cauliflower leaves are edible and taste great too.

Cook them like cabbage or, the next time you’re making cauliflower cheese, chop the lot up – including the thick white bit that divides each leaf – and cook them all together, practically doubling the size of your meal in the process.

4. Squash Seeds

Almost every recipe that requires squash starts off by telling us to scoop out the seeds in the middle.

But did you know that those seeds can be your next favourite snack?

Just spread them out on a tray, add salt or any seasoning that you want on top and bake in a hot oven.

Once they turn golden brown, they will be crispy and crunchy, giving you a nutritious and healthy snack to munch on.

5. Nasturtium Pods

The news about nasturtium flowers and leaves being edible and making a good addition to salads are now beginning to spread.

But don’t just pick out all the flowers at once, because they can also be helpful in the kitchen when you pickle them.

They are often referred to as the “poor man’s capers” but they’re so much better than that.

Now you know the 5 Bonus Harvests You Can Get In Your Garden, you can now start growing your own vegetables!