Foods From Our Gardens We Normally Waste

A lot of us grow a garden every year to save a bit of money and become more self-reliant.  We work hard planting, pulling weeds, and watering, and then we throw away a large portion of what we grow.  Food has become so inexpensive and plentiful that we only eat certain parts of the plants and throw the rest away.

Here are a few examples.

Radishes eat the green tops and or use them in a green drink.  The seed pods are edible and taste like radish.

Turnip the young leaves and flowers are edible.

Cauliflower and cabbage, the core that we normally throw away can be diced up and eaten cooked or raw.

Zucchini and other summer squash flowers are quite edible and have become regular fare in  Third World countries.

Broccoli leaves and stems can be eaten.  I have been using the stems in stews for years.  Just peel the tough skin off, dice and add to stew.  They get soft and are delicious.

Garlic and leeks – The roots and blossoms taste like garlic.  Dry and powder them.

Corn when you thin out the young stalks, the young suckers can be boiled for greens. The early settlers used every part of the corn, even making tea out of the corn silk.  In hungry times the cobs were dried and ground up to use for flour.  Cornhusks can be fed to cattle.

Spinach use the whole plant, not just cut off the leaves.

Parsnips the roots, stalk and the leaves are all edible, the stalks taste like celery.

See also  Clover an Edible Plant

Sweet potato leaves are delicious greens.  The roots stems are also edible

Pea pods can be dried and powdered to use in soups.  The leaves are edible.

Beans, the leaves are edible.

Cucumbers use the stem tips and young leaves.

These are some example of the food that we normally throw away.  In the future, we may not have this luxury.  Learn to use the foods that we routinely waste now, when you are not dependent on them.  You will find that you will like the tastes and save money.  If you have suggestions to add to this list go ahead and make a comment.

Howard

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2 thoughts on “Foods From Our Gardens We Normally Waste”

  1. This post resonates a lot with me. My mom, before she died, used to visit my sister and I and get horrified at what we would put in our compost. She’d pull things out like carrot peelings and broccoli stems. On one of her last visits she taught me to put all things like carrot peelings etc in one freezer bag. Then when you have enough, add to your homemade stock and simmer like crazy. By the way, I LOVE cabbage cores and broccoli stems – I think they are tastier and sweeter than carrots, I wouldn’t waste them diced in a stew!

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