Try Planting These in Your Nebraska Garden Next Spring

Our first garden hasn’t been a miserable failure. Quite the contrary actually. And in the past couple of weeks especially this thing has REALLY taken off. With the exception of a few things – beets, carrots, I’m giving you both my stinkiest side eye, you miserable excuses for garden vegetables.

Here are a few things you might consider planting in your Midwest garden next spring with a special shout out to my fellow Nebraskans!

Okra – When Gunnar first brought this home I thought, “Okay weirdo. Have fun with that one,” but after doing a little research I’m actually super excited to start harvesting it. You can make some killer stews and gumbos with okra AND it’s a natural thickening agent (not to mention crazy healthy). How cool is that?!

Bok Choy – The Malek-Madani household is bananas for bok choy. We eat A LOT of it. I had never heard of anyone growing it around here, not even my dad who is the Yoda of Garden Masters, but we tried it anyway and met great success. Just plant it early in the season – it likes it cool!

Swiss Chard – hands down the best thing we planted and it is truly the gift that keeps on giving. Swiss chard was the first thing we were able to harvest and as long as you respect it and don’t hack all of its leaves off (Gunnar claims I do this), you will enjoy it well into the fall, raw or cooked, it’s great both ways!

Eggplant – Do you like eggplant? I LOOOVVE eggplant. It’s one that I constantly get asked about at the grocery store (“Is this a zucchini?”) so I’m assuming that means Nebraskans don’t necessarily love it as much as I do. Well I’m going to change that. Because it’s friggin’ delicious and loves Nebraska soil and weather.

Armenian Cucumber – we planted this by total mistake because we are idiots and assumed that something called “cucumber” would actually be a cucumber. WRONG! It’s a melon… that tastes just like a cucumber and looks a lot like a cucumber. Again, I did a little research and apparently some are even calling it “the cucumber of the future.” You heard it here first. Well actually you heard it here second. They were first. But it’s perfect for quick refrigerator and countertop pickles!

Any gardeners out there? What am I missing on this list? And don’t tell me carrots and beets because they don’t grow here, people!