Whether your intentions are to create just a small home garden for feeding your family and loved ones or to create a large garden to venture in small scale produce growing, it is always important that you select fruits and vegetables that grow fast. This way, you won’t have to wait for ages until that you are able to put them on the table for consumption. Generally speaking, fruits tend to take a relatively longer period of time before they mature and are ready for eating. On the other hand, vegetables are known for their incredibly faster growth. You might be surprised to know that fast growing vegetables can mature within a month. Here is a look at some fruits and vegetables that grow fast and which you consider planting and harvest sooner than later.
1-Cucumber
Cucumber seeds are regarded as the fastest growing vegetable seeds that you can possibly plant. Many people across the world are fanatics of cucumber, mostly due to their generally great taste and the fact that they are refreshing and awesomely cool. In most countries across the globe, cucumbers have over the years become a top favorite food for many. Cucumber can be included in salad and alternatively, it can as well be taken on a daily basis along with dinner or lunch.
10 Vegetables You Can Grow in the Shade
Plants require sunlight for their growth and in fact, most of them only grow if they are provided with at least six hours of sunlight in their day for nourishment. While no vegetables can actually grow in complete darkness, some of them can do remarkably well when grown in the shade. This is contrary to the expectations of many people who tend to think that a vegetable garden must be baked in complete sunlight all day long. Actually, this might not be very far from the truth as some vegetables like peppers, squash and tomatoes require sunlight in plenty to grow.
How to Preserve Fruits and Vegetables
There are several advantages of preserving fruits and vegetables. When you preserve fruits and vegetables, you become self-reliant because during times when you can’t buy canned goods from the store, you will have some preserved fruits and vegetables on hand that you can use to serve with your meals. Preserving your fruits and vegetables also retains the nutrients inside of them for a long time and this is opposite of cooking them for a long time, which saps some of the nutrients out of them. Here are 20 fruits and vegetables that you can preserve.
1. Beets
The first step is to sanitize your canning jars and then pour about six quarts of water in a pressure canner. After you do this, you would then choose a few beets that do not have damaged spots or that are not diseased and then you would cut the top parts off the beets as well as the roots before washing them in warm water. Once this step is complete you will cook the beets for thirty minutes to an hour then drain them. To begin the preservation process cut the cooked beets and place them in the jars, then fill the jar with enough water to cover the beets but don’t fill the jar all the way to the top. Place the jars in the canner and let the jars stay in it for 30 minutes. Then remove the jars and place on a sturdy surface.
2. Figs
Figs are a delicious and nutritious fruit and there are several ways you can preserve them. To make a jam out of figs you would chop up three to four cups of figs and place them in a medium-sized pot with enough water to cover the figs. Furthermore, add five cups of sugar and three teaspoons each of lemon juice and vanilla. Let the figs cook down for 15 to 20 minutes then place in canning jars and put lids on the jars. Another way is to boil the figs for thirty minutes and then place them in jars along with lemon slices. Fill the jars with water and place the lids on the jars before putting the jars in hot water for a few minutes. Finally, remove the jars.
3. Kumquats
Kumquats are tiny citrus fruits that taste great when preserved. One good reason why you should preserve them is because kumquats don’t have a long shelf life. To preserve the kumquats, you want to scrub a pound of them with liquid soap and water before rinsing them off with water. After you do this, you would boil the kumquats in a large pot of hot water for fifteen to twenty minutes then add a pound of sugar to the water and kumquats and let simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes. Finally, you would place the kumquats in jars then put lids over the jars.
