How to Amend Florida Soil

How to Harvest Salad Greens

How Our Irrigation Works

Red Oak Lettuce

Season: Fall – Spring (late September till mid April, if cold enough)

• Details: Light and Flavorful
• High in antioxidants
• Recipe: Red Oak Lettuce Salad with Apples, Toasted Walnuts, & Gorgonzola

Siberian Kale

Season: Fall – Spring

• Details: Dark and Leafy, Mild flavor
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamins A, C, and K
• Recipe: Kale and Roasted Red Pepper Frittata / Recipe: Colcannon

Toscano Kale

Season: Fall – early Summer (September till early June)

• Details: Hardy and Nutritious
• Nutrition Facts: High antioxidants, low calories
• Recipe: Tuscan Kale with Garlic Tomatoes

Red Russian Kale

Season: Fall – Spring

• Details: Mild nutty flavor, slightly sweet and earthy
• Nutrition Facts: Great source of Vitamin C and iron
• Recipe: Squash and Kale Tart

Mizuna

Season: Fall – Spring

• Details: Mild flavor and light texture; used to mild out a mustard greens based mix
• Nutrition Facts: Supergreen very high in nutrients
• Recipe: Wok Sautéed Mizuna & Portobello Mushrooms with Minced Chicken/(Chickun)

Swiss Chard

Season: Fall – Spring

• Details: It is a leafy green and is a member of the beet family; earthy in flavor
• Nutrition Facts: Vitamin A, Vitamin K, reduces blood pressure & enhances performance in sports
• Recipe: Creamed Swiss Chard with Lemony Breadcrumbs

Bibb Lettuce

Season: Fall – Spring

• Details: Tasty and distinctive flavor, thrives in cooler weather
• Nutrition Facts: Very low in calories, high in nutrients
• Recipe: Bibb Lettuce with Shaken Vinaigrette

Red Amaranth

Season: Year-round growing season in FL

• Details: Protein-rich pseudo grain that will color the dish red! Perennial plant
• Nutrition Facts: Similar to beets; offer carotene, calcium, iron, protein, and trace elements
• Recipe: Amaranth in Coconut Milk

Red mustard greens

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Leaves are very thin and tender, mildly peppery and nutty when young; robust notes of pepper, garlic, and mustard when matured; they can get VERY spicy if stressed or grown to maturity. The flavor dies down when cooked.
• Nutrition Facts: Many anti-inflammatories, antioxidants, and cancer-preventing compounds
• Recipe: Sautéed (Red) Mustard Greens with Garlic and Sesame

Mustard greens

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Same as red mustard
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamins A and E, antioxidants, and liked to cancer-prevention
• Recipe: Balsamic-Glazed Chickpeas and Mustard Greens

Joi Choi

Season: Cool season plant with tolerance to heat! Year-round growing season, but for heads it’s best for Fall – late Spring

• Detail: Mild flavor, dependable yields; provides crisp tender leaves for oriental dishes; adds flavor to soups, stews, and casseroles
• Nutrition Facts: Leaves and stalk provide high amounts of Vitamins A, C, and K
• Recipe: Garlicky Ginger Joi Choi

Red Pak Choi

Season: Makes small heads and best grown in cool season (Fall – Spring). Same flavor as joi choi and tat soi

• Detail: Type of Chinese Cabbage
• Nutrition Facts: Low calorie content, helps with digestion, cancer prevention, high in Vitamins A and C
• Recipe: Simple Garlic Pak Choi Recipe

Tokyo Bekana

Season: All year long

• Detail: Romaine replacement; a smooth loose leaf cabbage similar to bok choi; mild and used to balance out mustard and arugula mixes.
• Nutrition Fact: High in vitamins low in calories
• Recipe: Tokyo Bekana Spring Rolls

Tat Soi

Season: Grows year-round but heads are best grown in cool season

• Detail:  salad green when small and sauté green when larger. It is known as an asian spinach with a buttery aftertaste. Good for cut and come again or for heads.
• Nutrition Fact: Loaded with vitamins and trace minerals
• Recipe: Avocado Citrus and Savoy Salad with pine nuts and pomegranate dressing

Collards

Season: Cool season crop. Should be started in the Fall and can grow though early Summer.

• Detail: It is in the cabbage family, brassicaceae; date back to prehistoric time with thick slightly bitter leaves
• Nutrition Fact: Excellent source of Vitamins K, A, C, E, dietary fiber, and calcium
• Recipe: Coconut Curried Greens / Recipe: Vegan Southern Collared Greens

Bok Choy

Season: Year-round growing season, but for heads it’s best for the Fall – late Spring

• Detail: Leafy green, mild flavor; great in stir fry, braising, soups, and pho
• Nutrition Facts: Highly nutritious and very low carbs
• Recipe: 10 Minute Lemon Garlic Sautéed Bok Choy

Red Mustard Frills

Season: Year-round

• Detail: Crunchy yet tender, robust and peppery
• Nutrition Facts: Cancer-preventing benefits, high antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, natural detoxifying properties
• Recipe: Salsa Verde / Recipe: Golden Frills Mustard

Malibar Spinach

Season: Spring though early Summer

• Detail: Similar taste to spinach, but not in the spinach family; thick leaves used for thickener in soups and stews
• Nutrition Facts: Contains folate which helps ensure healthy pregnancies, cancer-prevention, and helps naturally treat depression
• Recipe: Shawarma Greens

New Zealand Spinach

Season: All Year

• Detail: Bitter taste, good for sautés or tossed in salads. Native to Australia, New Zealand, and East Asia
• Nutrition Facts: Low in calories and fat, high in Vitamins A and C, iron, and antioxidants
• Recipe: NZ Spinach Green Smoothie / Aussie Alfredo / NZ Spinach Greek Yogurt Dip

Sorrel

Season: Year round if established; needs to be direct seeded in the Fall – Spring.

• Detail: Lemon flavored green; can add lemon flavor to salad
• Nutrition Facts: Nutritional powerhouse (Vitamins A and C, rich in antioxidants)
• Recipe: Dakota Soifer’s Sorrel Pesto  

Watermelon Radish

Season: Year-round growing season

• Detail: Store in the fridge; skin should feel firm and taught before eating (avoid spongy); tops are edible but should be sauteed because of fruzz
• Nutrition Facts: Great source of fiber and Vitamin C
• Recipe: Watermelon Radish with Herbed Tahini Sauce

Purple Top Turnip

Season: Fall- Spring

• Detail: Yummy light spice. Can be used as a potato subsitute and used in a mash!
• Nutrition Facts: High in carbohydrates, proteins, fibers,  and vitamins
• Recipe: Roasted Turnips

Hakurei Turnip

Season: Year-round growing season

• Detail: Surprise sweetness! No need to peel, their outer shell is sweet and edible
• Nutrition Facts: Great source of antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, and dietary fiber
• Recipe: Pan Roasted Hakurei Turnips / Recipe: Ginger Soy Hakurei Turnips

Carrot

Season: Fall- Spring

• Detail: Crunchy taste and highly nutritious! Array of carrot colors including orange, white, yellow, red and purple
• Nutrition Facts: Carrots are a great source of beta carotene, fiber, biotin, Vitamin K1, potassium, and antioxidants
• Recipe: Garlic Brown Butter Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Carrots / Recipe: Glazed Roasted Carrots

Breakfast Radish

Season: All Year (Best Fall – Spring)

• Detail: Vibrant color, edible leaves; the radish is crispy and has a mildly spicy flavor (cooking brings out sweet and subtle nutty flavor)
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamin C, calcium, folate, magnesium, and potassium
• Recipe: French Breakfast Radish and Avocado Toast

Beet

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Pigments and nitrates in beets are found to naturally lower blood pressure!
• Nutrition Facts: Packed with essential nutrients, such as fiber, folate, manganese, potassium, iron, and Vitamin C
• Recipe: Psychedelic Vegan Salad Rolls / Beet Blood Orange Salad / Beet Brownies

Golden Beet

Season: Fall – Spring (usually take a bit longer to grow than regular beets)

• Detail: Mild earthy, sweet flavor either raw or cooked
• Nutrition Facts: High in beta carotene and folic acid
• Recipe: Golden Beets and Brussels Sprouts / Recipe: Lemon-Herb Roasted Beets Recipe

Purple Carrot

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Essentially all vegetables were previously purple or dark in color before modern cultivation; purple carrots are making a reappearance in organic farming!
• Nutrition Facts: Great source of anthocyanin which contributes to high antioxidants
• Recipe: Honey Roasted Carrots

Sweet Potato

Season: Summer (harvest in the Fall)

• Details: Color can be white and purple. Leaves are edible, only when cooked (Earthy in flavor).
• Nutrition Facts:
• Recipe: Oven-roasted sweet potato fries

Tomatoes

Season: Spring – Fall (growing season through early Summer)

• Detail: Botanical fruit species originally from Peru
• Nutrition Facts: Vitamin C, folate, potassium, and Vitamin K
• Recipe: Tomato and Zucchini Galette with Honey and Thyme / Recipe: Tomato Avocado and Grilled Corn Salad

Beans

Season: Mid spring through early Fall.

• Detail: 130 varieties of green beans
• Nutrition Facts: Great source of Vitamin A, C, and K; high in chlorophyll which may block carcinogenic effects from grilled foods
• Recipe: Green Beans with Lemon and Garlic / Recipe: Spicy Sesame Green Beans and Kale

Sugar Snap Peas

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Cross between snow peas and garden peas; thicker pods, more crunchy and sweet
• Nutrition Facts: Rich in dietary fiber
• Recipe: Sugar Snap Pea Stir-Fry / Recipe: Garlic Parmesan Sugar Snap Peas

Japanese Eggplant

Season: Late spring through early Fall; it is a warm season crop.

• Detail: Mild and sweet, tender meaty texture when cooked; arguably a perennial if maintained
• Nutrition Facts: Low in calories, high in dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals, including Vitamin C, folate, potassium and manganese
• Recipe: Grilled Japanese Eggplant / Recipe: Japanese Eggplant with Chicken/(Chickun) and Thai Basil

Jalapeño

Season: Spring through Fall; warm season crop

• Detail: Heat can vary depending on how they are cultivated and prepared; arguably a perennial.
• Nutrition Facts: Low in calories, high in Vitamins C and B6. Research has suggested jalapeños are natural cancer preventing vegetables, as well as weight loss and overall pain reducer
• Recipe: Jalapeño hummus / Zucchini Noodles with Jalapeño Pesto

Black Beauty Eggplant

Season: Late Spring through early Fall; warm season crop; arguably a perennial if maintained

• Detail: Very flavorful. Great for lasagna!
• Nutrition Facts: Rich in folate, potassium, Vitamin K, may reduce risk of heart disease, and aid in blood sugar control
• Recipe: Easy Eggplant Parmesan

Okra

Season: Spring – Fall

• Detail: Pick fruit at 3 inches; can pickle or use in stir fry
• Nutrition Facts: Great source of minerals, vitamins, fiber, and folate
• Recipe: Vegetarian Curry Okra

Prickly Pear

Season: Spring

• Detail: Cactus plant, remove skin. Taste resembles pomegranate. Native to South America.
• Nutrition Facts: High in antioxidants
• Recipe: Prickly Pear Juice / Recipe: Prickly Pear Frozen Margarita

Butternut Squash

Season: Late Spring through mid Fall; warm season crop

• Detail: Can enhance or form base of both sweet and savory dishes
• Nutrition Facts: Low in calories, high in fiber and potassium; beneficial for digestion, blood pressure, and healthy skin/hair
• Recipe: Butternut Squash and White Bean Soup / Butternut Squash and Pesto Rotini / Butternut Squash Pancakes / Hummus

Watermelon

Season: Mid Spring through mid Fall; warm season crop

• Detail: Both a fruit and a vegetable! First recorded watermelon harvest was in Egypt
• Nutrition Facts: Packed with water and nutrients, contains few calories, good source of Vitamin C
• Recipe: Watermelon Pizza / Watermelon Arugula Salad

Broccoli

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Has existed for more than 2,000 years
• Nutrition Facts: Excellent Source of Vitamins C and K, chromium, folate, dietary fiber, and potassium
• Recipe: Roasted Garlic Lemon Broccoli / Recipe: Roasted Broccoli and Lemon Pasta

Cucumbers

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: “Cool as a cucumber” comes from cucumbers ability to cool the temperature of the blood
• Nutrition Facts: Amazing hydrating properties and nutrients, low in calories
• Recipe: Cucumber Pitas / Cucumber Mango Salad

Sage

Season: Fall – Spring (perennial, though stressed in the summertime)

• Detail: Long growing season, used for both medicine and cooking purposes
• Nutrition Facts: Wealth of nutrients and vitamins that lowers blood sugar and glucose, controls inflammation
• Recipe: Pumpkin-Sage Lasagna

Cuban Oregano

Season: Fall – Spring (perennial)

• Detail: Succulent herb, strongly flavored leaves
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamins A and C, omega-6, and anti-inflammatories
• Recipe: Cuban Back Bean Soup

Rosemary

Season: All Year

• Detail: Woody perennial herb with fragrant evergreen leaves
• Nutrition Facts: Anti-inflammatory compounds, nutrients useful for stimulating immune system, improving circulation and digestion
• Recipe: Rosemary Flatbreads / Rosemary Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet Mint

Season: Best in late Fall and Spring. sensitive to both extreme hot and cold

• Detail: Rich spearmint flavor; great for sauces and drinks!
• Nutrition Facts: Helps with vision and immune functions, packed with antioxidants
• Recipe: Iced Sweet Mint Tea

Chocolate Mint

Season: Summer (perennial)

• Detail: Delightful minty chocolate flavor; dry leaves are great for flavoring dessert!
• Nutrition Facts: Improves vision and immune functions; used to treat headaches and inflammation
• Recipe: Luck O’ the Irish Brownie

Parsley

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Popular seasoning/garnish for a wide range of dishes and a palette cleanser!
• Nutrition Facts: Leaves high in iron, as well as Vitamins A, C, and E
• Recipe: Parsley and Lemon Pesto

Cilantro

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail:  Great for guacamole and salsa
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamins A and K, folate, and potassium
• Recipe: Lime-Cilantro Coleslaw

Dill

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Fantastic compliment to fish
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamins A and C, high in antioxidants
• Recipe: Braised Lemon Chicken/(Chickun) with Dill and Tumeric

Lemon Grass

Season: All Year

• Detail: The flavor is found in the base of the stalks (remove leafy top and woody bottom, peel outer layer, mince/chop white inner stalk)
• Nutrition Facts: Many important vitamins, antioxidants, and folate
• Recipe: Thai Lemon Grass Soup

Thyme

Season: Spring- Fall

• Detail: Aromatic herb (mint-lemony) that goes well with almost any dish and can also be used to make homemade soap!
• Nutrition Facts: Vitamins A and C, reduces chest and respiratory problems
• Recipe: Thyme and Witch Hazel Soap Bar

Fennel

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Flowering plant species in the carrot family, crunchy and slightly sweet
• Nutrition Facts: High in fiber, Vitamin C, and potassium
• Recipe: Chickpea and Fennel Ratatouille

Green Onion

Season: Fall – Spring (perennial)

• Detail: The tops of these green onions may be used as substitute for chives in many recipes
• Nutrition Facts: High in vitamins A, C, and K, helps reduce blood clotting and boosts immunity
• Recipe: Mushroom and Green Onion Stir Fry / Recipe: Spring Onion Soup

Fennel Flowers

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: A taste similar to licorice!
• Nutrition Facts: High in Vitamin C
• Recipe: Entree Garnish/ Pollen Vinaigrette/ Grilled Fennel Bulbs

Nasturtium

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Sweet, and with an after taste of a little bit of spice
• Nutrition Facts: Nasturtium leaves have a high concentration of Vitamin C and are also a natural antibiotic
• Recipe: Baby Greens with Roasted Beets and Potatoes

Mint Flowers

Season: Summer

• Detail: Mint fragrance leaves and lilac flower petals
• Nutrition Facts: Used in folk medicine to induce perspiration and menstruation
• Recipe: Mint Lip Balms/ Mint Ice Tea/ Cucumber Mint Bath Soak

Basil Flowers

Season: All year

• Detail: Brings flavor to sauces or soups
• Nutrition Facts: Packed with Vitamin K!
• Recipe: Spaghetti Squash Pizza Bowls

Snap Pea Flowers

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Self-pollinating flowers!
• Nutrition Facts: Low calorie, high fiber flower plant
• Recipe: Cake Decoration Pastry

Cilantro Flowers

Season: Fall through early Summer

• Detail: The seeds of the cilantro plant can be used in Asian, Indian, Mexican and many other ethnic recipes
• Nutrition Facts: Excellent source of Vitamins A, C, and K, as well as iron and manganese
• Recipe: Cilantro Vinaigrette

Cranberry Hibiscus

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Striking and colorful plant, add bright color to food dishes and some flavor
• Nutrition Facts: Low in calories, helps alleviate blood pressure
• Recipe: Hibiscus Syrup / Recipe: Hibiscus Tea

Borage

Season: Fall – Spring

• Detail: Old-fashioned plant with flavored leaves for tea; cucumber-like aroma
• Nutrition Facts: One of the few low calorie culinary herbs, high in Vitamins A and C, antioxidants for improved vision
• Recipe: Borage Jelly / Cucumber Salad / Lemonade