Grow This Not That: 10 Tropical Alternatives That Actually Taste Good

if you try growing traditional veggies down here  in the south in the dead of Summer you will fail   but don't worry I have 10 Alternatives that grow  like weeds thrive on neglect and they actually   taste good so let's start with our first one  this one right behind me so instead of growing   white potatoes or Irish potatoes how about you try  growing sweet potatoes sweet potatoes absolutely   love the heat I mean love the Heat and they  also like a really long growing season so   they take anywhere from three to six months to  grow the roots of this vegetable but they want   nice hot humid weather during that time period so  these are perfect perfect alternatives to regular   potatoes and in a lot of ways you can eat them  very similarly especially if you harvest them   and don't allow them to cure I don't know if  you know this about sweet potatoes but if you   don't let them cure if you eat them right away  right exactly coming out of the garden they don't   really have that sweet of a taste they taste a  little bit more like traditional white potatoes   there's also varieties like one I'm growing this  year called Hayman that is a white sweet potato   so not only will it taste very similar to a potato  if I don't allow it to cure but it will also look   like a regular potato so definitely give these  guys a shot and if you want to learn more about   growing them I will make sure to put the video at  the end of this video on growing sweet potatoes   from store-bought sweet potatoes let's move on to  our next one our second alternative on the list   is instead of growing onions or bulbing onions  grow green onions or bunching onions or I think   they're also called scallions and um spring onions  these guys obviously don't have the same look and   feel but they do still have that really nice  onion taste a bit milder than your traditional   onions but when you use them for cooking or as a  garnish on top it gives you that onion flavor and   they grow all year round not just during summer as  you can see these guys have gotten very very big   these were bunching onions that I started from the  the bottoms of onions that I bought at the grocery   store can you believe that once I was done using  the green onions from the grocery store I left   the bottom tips on that have the root and I buried  them in my garden and look how big they've gotten   the next one on the list is seminal pumpkins and  that is my seminal pumpkin now this is a perfect   example of a type of vegetable where the variety  might do better so instead of getting a butternut   squash like a Waltham butternut squash we grow  seminal pumpkins during the summer because well   they like the heat besides really liking the  heat they also are super resistant to squash   bind borers because they are part of the machete  I think that's how you pronounce machete family   and so this is a particular type of squash  family that does well in the Heat and also   has a nice really thick rind they will produce  so many pumpkin and as you can see you can grow   them a lot of different ways and if you don't have  space on the ground in your garden bed how about   try growing them up a tree like the traditional  way it was done back with our Native Americans   now we're slowly starting to get away from the  vegetables that are familiar to us to a couple   that are maybe a little less familiar but still  just as good this guy right back here is what's   called a Thai Soldier Bean you can definitely grow  it up a trellis but in the past I have grown them   just let them go wild and they usually do just  fine but as you can see this guy got a little   bit out of control and these are very similar  to green beans you can see that the beans are   a little bit different they're they're long this  is a type of long bean but they also have like   a purplish color on them as well that even stays  once you've cooked them they don't turn completely   green but these are prolific this is one day's  worth of harvest from a Thai Soldier beans and   even more amazing is they pretty much taste just  like green beans if you can get over the size   and the weirdness of color they're really really  good and one of my favorite ways is to pick them when they're super skinny and super young  like this guy right here you can see he is   so skinny almost like a french green bean and then  I roast him in the oven at 400 for 20 minutes with   a little olive oil and some seasoning salt and oh  my gosh it's crispy yummy amazing goodness now the   next one on the list is a little bit of a stretch  but they are so good and that's these guys right   here these are cow peas but not just any cow piece  these are Whipporwill cow peas these guys right   here and they look like tiny pinto beans so if  you're not a fan of cow peas which if you're not   familiar cow peas are a black-eyed peas not all  Black Eyed Peas look the same these guys look like   pinto beans like baby pinto beans and I think they  taste so amazing I don't think that they have that   um Black-eyed Pea taste to me they taste like a  good solid Bean almost like a small red bean or   like a tiny pinto bean and they grow so easy guys  so easy love the heat so so much they don't need   a trellis as you can see here they probably do  well with the trellis but I never trellis mine   I toss the seeds in the beds and within a few  months you have beans wait for them to dry pick   them leave them out to dry for a couple days as  beans and then store them in a glass container the   next one on the list is probably gonna be a little  bit different but that has to do with greens this   particular guy right here this is Egyptian spinach  I know it doesn't look like spinach we're getting   a little far here but it tastes just like spinach  it loves to grow in the Heat and honestly like I   do nothing to this thing but cut it down and it  just continues to grow this is one plant so if you   had a couple of these plants in your summer garden  they would produce so heavily all your greens for   you that you would have everything that you need  for that time now the leaf shape is different than   spinach so it is something that you have to get  used to but it Cooks down like spinach with that   soft spinach texture it freezes like spinach you  can make spinach dip with it you can do everything   that you can do with a regular spinach down here  right next to it is our kale okay let me bring you   in this guy's looking a little rough because  I didn't give him the Sun that he wanted but   you can see that this is just like any other  kale well not exactly this is Ethiopian kale   an Ethiopian kale is one of the few kales that  really grows well during the summer and I say   well for a reason other kales do grow well like  red Russian will grow Dinosaur Kale will grow   but it starts to become riddled with bugs and it  starts to get kind of bitter and not tasting that   great it tastes okay but Ethiopian kale keeps its  sweet taste keeps its crunchy texture it is just   designed for growing in the heat so if you're  a big kale fan this is the guy to grow during   that deep deep summer heat he will never taste  bitter he will always be sweet and he's gonna   grow abundantly but give them a little bit of  shade as much as he loves the Sun maybe not that   much the next one I know you guys are gonna love  which is garlic you cannot grow traditional garlic   during the summer here in Florida unfortunately in  fact it's even kind of hard to grow it during the   winter but it can be done so make sure you check  out that video next in order to grow a plant that   has that garlic taste though try society garlic I  have this plant of society garlic out in my front   yard and it is prolific requires nothing from  me and lives all year round not just summer it   will put off these beautiful was it pinkish red  flowers and grow these beautiful green stalks it   is a gorgeous plant but please please be careful  because while yes it is a great substitute for   garlic it is intense like garlic it is not like  a wimpy little garlic clove it is intense garlic   so try a tiny bit before you start putting it all  over your dish my poor sister had one nice sized   bite from the garden and all she could taste all  day long was garlic so you know that's a great   substitute for this little guy now the next one  on the list is down here in this little corner   and that is a loofah gourd this is my very first  one so I'm very excited I have not grown them   before but I have tried them and they are a great  replacement for summer squash luffas love to grow   in the heat but they do get very big and I think  I underestimated how large these plants get it has   taken up the entire trellis and it's going right  back over and I suspect it's going to do that a   couple more times now its name says loofah and  you are thinking correctly loofahs actually make   the loofah sponge that you use in your house for  cleaning or for washing your body in the shower   but if you pick them off when they're very small  and immature you you can eat them like a summer   squash not exactly the same but very close close  enough to be able to do it I've also been able to   grow a couple other types of squashes I have a  Patty pan squash that has been growing but not   as prolific as These Guys these guys love this  weather they basically laugh at the squash Vine   bore they are not bothered by any of the pests any  of the disease and the glaring Sun they could care   less it's a great one to grow but leave a couple  on to fully mature so you have some nice sponges   to give to people during Christmas now these big  plants all the way over here are my Roselle plants   Roselle are interesting because they're not  exactly like a cranberry which is what they taste   like cranberries are the little tiny red berries  that we get at Thanksgiving I really don't know   many people who actually grow cranberries I think  that they're like an aquatic up north type plant   I could be wrong but Roselle are a great tropical  variety that you can grow in your backyard without   water and strange temperatures they grow during  the heat of the summer the strange part about a   Roselle is the part that you eat or the part  that's the fruit I don't know so that part is   the flower kind of the calyx of the flower so when  you have a flower and it blooms right you gotta   Bloom you have that little cap on the bottom  part of the flower that is called a calyx and   that's the part that we eat as a fruit on the  Roselle plant they're bright red they're very   beautiful I love them and last year I made fake  cranberry Jam using Roselle and I'm telling you   what my family actually liked it more than actual  cranberry sauce has a great texture it has that   perfect cranberry taste and it is just amazing  I'm addicted to it I try to grow as many plants   as I could I should have grown even more the more  I look at them the more I'm like it's not enough   so make sure you get out there and try this  little hibiscus Roselle and the last one on   our list of 10 today is the Mulberry  and it's these little guys right here   these are berries and they taste very much like  blackberries you do want to let them go all the   way to that black color and you get like the  most sweet amazing little Berry taste well my   blackberries have fizzled out my strawberries  has fizzled out my blueberries have fizzled   out this guy continues to go and it is so  good and so abundant I put this tree in   four months ago four months and I'm still getting  berries how is that for the perfect summer plant   so there you have it my top 10 favorite things  to grow during the summer down here in Florida   where I live these are great alternatives to the  traditional veggies that probably want to fight us   trying to grow this time of year I know that some  of them seemed a little bit weird a little out of   our element but guys give them a try just give one  a try and I promise you that you are gonna love   them and they're going to keep you fed and your  garden growing so well during the summer months   if you want to watch a couple more  of my videos between now and my next   upload I'm going to pop those up right  here including this store-bought sweet   potatoes and the garlic in Florida  happy gardening guys [Music] foreign

Channel: Homegrown Florida

Views: 4,398

Keywords: Florida gardening, sub-tropical climate, tropical alternatives, tropical fruits, Florida gardeners, growing tips, sustainable gardening, heat-resistant crops, backyard gardening, expanding your palate, tropical oasis, fresh flavors, easy-to-grow fruits, exotic gardening, backyard paradise., raised garden bed, raised bed gardening, diy raised garden beds, florida gardening for beginners, central florida gardening, florida gardening zone 9, homegrown florida

Id: _ZEEV4rBruw

Length: 14min 21sec (861 seconds)

Published: Tue Aug 15 2023