A head of green lettuce leaves on a dirt surface

Growing Guide: Lettuce

Lettuce is an ideal crop for beginner growers and seed savers alike. Gardeners can choose looseleaf varieties that do not form heads or grow iceberg lettuces that form a head of tightly overlapping leaves.

A pile of white stalks with long green leaves and white roots, on top of a straw surface with two leaves on the left side

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Leeks

Leeks have been used as a culinary crop for at least 4,000 years. Enjoy this historic allium in your garden and try your hand at biennial seed saving.

A round green vegetable with green stems protruding from its sides and top, over a straw surface

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi, sometimes called German turnip or turnip cabbage, was developed by selection for an enlarged edible stem.

A group of dark yellow ground cherries with tan papery husks on a rock surface

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Ground Cherry

Commonly known as ground cherry, dwarf cape gooseberry, and strawberry tomato, this plant produces a small, yellow, edible berry surrounded by a papery husk.

White garlic bulbs with red-purple stripes.

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Garlic

This culinary staple is rarely propagated from seeds. Instead a few aromatic bulbs of garlic are saved from the harvest and replanted year after year.

A pile of purple vegetables with green stems and leaves

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Eggplant

Eggplant can be a beautiful addition to your garden. Eggplant enjoy a long growing season, but you can extend your season by starting plants indoors.

A small group of brown and white speckled beans over a dark gray wood surface

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Cowpeas

Although cowpea is a well known garden plant in the South, this crop deserves more attention across the country. Its long, slender pods are filled with a prolific number of seeds.

A pile of whole green cucumbers with short green stems, and a few round cucumber slices

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Cucumber

Cucumbers grow well in many regions of the United States, producing prolific quantities of fruit that can be enjoyed fresh or preserved as pickles.

A pile of leafy greens on a dirt surface

Growing Guides

Growing Guide: Collards

While collard greens have traditionally been enjoyed in the American South, this hearty Brassica oleracea plant grows well in many regions around the United States.

A pile of asparagus lies on a wooden surface

Recipes

Recipe: Marinated Asparagus

Marinated Asparagus by Diane Ott Whealy, Seed Savers Exchange co-founder. “When I had absolutely eaten enough steamed asparagus, I began looking for other options,” says Diane. “The marinated version has become an annual favorite.”

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