Growing Chinese Vegetables in Your Own Backyard

Mung beans, pak choy, and ginger take center stage in this delightful introduction to growing Chinese vegetables. Perfect for gardeners looking for new challenges and cooks eager for fresh flavors, this comprehensive guide provides complete growing instructions and exciting culinary options for 40 Chinese vegetables and herbs including luffa, soy beans, water chestnuts, and more. Geri Harrington even includes directions for creating your own Chinese water garden! Discover the joys of the Chinese garden and enjoy homegrown exotic tastes on your dinner table.   
Geri Harrington is the author of 12 books, including Growing Chinese Vegetables in Your Own Backyard, The College Cookbook, and The Salad Book. She has also written many articles for Good Housekeeping, Family Circle, and Woman's Day magazines. Foreword

Acknowledgments

A Photo Guide to the Chinese Vegetables

A Taste of China



Part One: The Chinese Vegetables

1. The Chinese Greens

Vegetable Amaranth * Mustard Greens * Mizuna * Garland Chrysanthemum



2. The Chinese Cucurbits

Winter Melon * Fuzzy Gourd * Sweet Melon * Pickling Melon * Asian Cucumber * Chinese Pumpkin * Luffa * Bitter Melon



3. The Chinese Beans

Soybean * Fava Bean * Adzuki Bean * Mung Bean * Yard-Long Bean



4. The Chinese Cabbages

Flowering Kale * Chinese Broccoli * Pak Choy * Chinese Cabbage



5. A Chinese Vegetable Potpourri

Burdock * Daylily * Snow Pea * Asparagus Pea * Chinese Radish * Chinese Eggplant



6. The Chinese Herb Garden

Bunching Onion * Garlic * Garlic Chives * Hot Pepper * Cilantro * Mitsuba * Watercress * Sesame * Ginger



7. The Chinese Water Garden

What You Need to Get Started * Violet-Stemmed Taro * Water Chestnut * Chinese Lotus * Arrowhead



Part Two: Growing Chinese Vegetables

8. Chinese Container Gardens

Why Garden in Containers? * Choosing a Site * Choosing Your Containers * Getting the Light Right * Soil for Containers * Fertilizer for Containers * Watering Containers * Container Vegetables, Plant by Plant



9. Where It All Begins: The Soil

Organic Matter * Soil Tests * Just What Is Fertilizer? * How to Fertilize * Pests and Diseases * Starting Seeds Indoors



Appendix

Botanical, English, and Chinese Names * USDA Hardiness Zone Map * Planting Guide for Vegetables Started from Seed * Metric Conversion Chart * Sources for Chinese Vegetables

Wake Up Your Vegetable Garden!



Make room among your tomato vines and zucchini plants for an exciting new trend in vegetable gardening. Chinese greens, beans, herbs, and other edible plants will delight gardeners looking for new challenges and cooks eager for fresh flavors from the backyard. You'll even find a chapter on starting a Chinese water garden. Complete growing instructions and exciting culinary options for 40 vegetables and herbs guarantee variety in your garden and exotic tastes on your dinner table.