Growing your own food has numerous advantages: physical exercise, flavors that sing and colorful phytonutrients that contribute to well-being. I love to grow a wide range of edibles, and while I look forward to familiar favorites, I am also drawn to vegetables and herbs that bring new flavors, interest and discovery to my garden. I also like them to look good while they are doing it. Let’s face it, when it comes to growing food, our beloved tomatoes get all the glory, yet those plants won’t win any beauty contests in the garden — they are too easily marred by pests and disease. But plenty of other vegetables and herbs outshine tomatoes, including the following heirlooms that bring vibrant colors, fresh flavors, good looks and staying power to the gar-den.
Cauliflower. White is the standard color we associate with cauliflower, but heads with vibrant orange, green and purple pigmentation can also be grown in the cool season. Undoubtedly the most captivating variety of cauliflower is Romanesco, an Italian heirloom that develops in a pyramid of chartreuse spirals. Not quite as cold hardy as other members of the brassica family, cauliflower performs best when temperatures stay above 32° and below 75°. As the plants grow, collard-like leaves emerge from the base as the tiny central head begins to enlarge. Once established, plants can withstand temperatures that drop into the lower 30s. But as I learned during the severe weather of February 2021, even with protection, cauliflower will turn to mush in such harsh conditions.
Colored cauliflower does not need to be blanched like white varieties. Their vibrant coloration intensifies with exposure to sun. Cauliflower of any color can be served raw, sautéed or steamed, but (for me) roasting it in an oven or air fryer is the way to go. Break the head into florets, coat lightly with olive oil, season with salt and pepper (and turmeric, paprika or spices of your choice) and spread on a sheet pan. Roast 15–20 minutes at 425°, until florets are lightly browned and tender to the bite.
Corn. Sweet corn is a fleeting summertime treat, whereas ornamental corn, after being allowed to dry on the stalk, has true staying power. The multicolored ears of corn I use for seasonal decorations are the same ones I harvested from my garden more than five years ago. These varieties of flint and dent corn — two of the six major types of corn — develop starchy kernels that harden when dry. Some varieties can be popped and some can be ground into cornmeal, but generally the mature ears are harvested and used for fall decorations.
Eye-catching varieties include calico-colored ‘Painted Mountain’, miniature ‘Strawberry’ and drought-tolerant ‘Oaxacan Green’. My favorite, though, is a stunning variety called ‘Glass Gem’, a flint corn bred by the late Carl Barnes of Oklahoma. To explore and preserve his Cherokee heritage, Barnes spent decades collecting and growing traditional Native American corn varieties, ultimately crossbreeding and selecting ears with luminous kernels in varying colors. In 2012, a picture of ‘Glass Gem’ went viral on the internet, drawing attention to open-pollinated Native American varieties and contributing to a growing interest in gardening and seed-saving. Save some seed from open-pollinated varieties so you will always have a supply for future plantings.
Peppers. From sweet to heat, there is a pepper to please every palate, with varied shapes and colors to add interest over the warm season. On the mild end, choose from a rainbow of bells, juicy Italian frying peppers, sweet red pimentos and bite-size Japanese shishitos. Turn up the heat with lively tabasco, jalapeño and serrano varieties. Or ignite your tastebuds with chile pequín, Thai peppers and habaneros. Most pepper plants are low-maintenance and attractive, with ripening fruit changing colors throughout the season. And though production often stalls in summer, it ramps up with the arrival of fall temperatures.
Shishito peppers have been a tasty addition to my garden the last few years. The compact plants have a tidy form, and the more I pick, the more peppers the plants pump out. Popular in restaurants and bars, the peppers are often blistered in a hot skillet and served as an appetizer or side. According to pepper enthusiasts, one shishito out of ten could be fiery hot, so consume with caution. Plant pepper transplants after the last frost in spring and opt for open-pollinated varieties if you intend to save seed. Be sure to wear gloves when handling peppers on the hotter end of the Scoville scale.
Swiss Chard. Equally at home in the landscape, the vegetable garden or containers, the crinkled leaves and colorful stems of Swiss chard can be grown as both a striking ornamental and a healthy edible green. It thrives in cool weather, but with a bit of strategic shade and watering, it can also survive our Texas summers. Harvest the outer leaves, as needed. If Swiss chard starts to look ratty, just lop it off at the base and watch it regrow.
‘Bright Lights’ is a popular open-pollinated variety that boasts upright stems in shades of white, pink, red, orange and yellow. ‘Fordhook Giant’, introduced by Burpee in 1934, is a classic variety prized for its broad white stems and large, mild-flavored leaves. Another beautiful ornamental is ‘Rhubarb Red’, with thick crimson stalks and large green leaves that bear an uncanny resemblance to rhubarb. Swiss chard can be planted from seed or transplants in early spring or fall. It is a biennial plant that, depending on weather, will send up a seed stalk in its second season.
Fennel. This attractive cool-season herb is one of my favorite plants for multiple reasons. A dill look-alike, fennel has a pleasant licorice scent with feathery green fronds that provide fragrance and movement in the landscape. Growing three-to-five feet tall, it has a graceful form and makes a lovely accent or background plant in the garden. Bronze fennel is especially ornamental when combined with brightly colored annuals.
Even if you don’t like the flavor of licorice, fennel is a wonderful host plant for butterflies, particularly the black swallowtail. The foliage provides a place for mature swallowtails to lay eggs and a food source for the larva. If a butterfly chooses your fennel for egg-laying, the developing larva can easily strip a plant of its leaves — fascinating to observe but disappointing if you’ve planted fennel for culinary or ornamental purposes. Some gardeners make additional plantings of fennel, dill or parsley in multiple containers or in other areas of the landscape, where caterpillars can be relocated for an all-you-can-eat buffet. The seed heads produce delicate yellow flowers that provide nectar for beneficial insects as well as plenty of seeds for cooking, sharing and future plantings. Easily grown from seed, fennel can be planted in fall or early spring in a full- to part-sun location.
By Patty G. Leander, B.S.
Contributing Editor
Advanced Master Gardener — Vegetables