what would you put in a "newbie's" veg pack?

**Guest** · 14-11-2014, 05:02 PM

Tromba d'albenga - when fruit is small treat as courgette when large you can treat it as squash, comic value and it will trail and climb.
Collosal Climbing Pea - tall, productive, yum
FCB - district nurse. can eat pods young and also leave them to have dried beans
Cues - couple of varieties crystal apple/ marketmore or burpless tasty. For salads, summer soups and pickles in the winter
Mixed leaves - quick easy crop.
Toms - several varieties. The smell of tom plants is great and I love the range of taste, colour and size you get.

All the above is great for a newbie as you are likely to get half decent results without to much fuss. With other things it can often get disheartening when they fail.

**Alison** · 14-11-2014, 05:03 PM

Depends on what they like really as the best things to grow are always the hints you like eating the most

. Assuming they like them, I'd definitely include some beans as they're so easy and prolific (runner or climbing French, depending on preference), some mange tout (expensive and very easy to grow), probably some cut and come again lettuce leaves, hanging basket cherry tomatoes (Maskotka are very good for this and much tastier than normal Tumbler) as sweet and tasty and no pinching out required, maybe a quick and easy grow like radish and I couldn't not grow courgettes as they're a brilliant and easy newbie crop. Things like cabbages, sprouts, caulis etc are great but take ages and need a lot of space, chillies, peppers and aubergines need warmth that a UK summer often doesn't provide outside but you could include some seed potatoes (early type) for growing in pots if they fancied that. As I say, think what us liked and fairly easy to avoid disappointments.

**WendyC** · 14-11-2014, 05:04 PM

I try to put together a "Welcome Pack" for newcomers at the allotment site I am chair of. Tend to include salad stuff, runner beans, peas, radish, beetroot. If you know the recipient, you will be able to choose things they like to eat.

**Aberdeenplotter** · 14-11-2014, 05:28 PM

For the absolute beginner, I would start with some of the basics. Carrot, beetroot, peas, cabbage, radish and courgette. All relatively simple (although the carrots will absolutely need to be protected from the carrot fly using mesh or fleece.) Being a generous soul I'd add some non seed items like spuds and onion sets

and if I wasn't being watched, I'd also slip in some salad items like tomatoes and lettuce.

**alldigging** · 14-11-2014, 05:37 PM

Slug pellets. 6 packs of.

Although instructions to use them sparingly might be needed.

Beetroot, french bean, runner bean, broad bean, courgette of some sort, sun gold tomatoes.

**sparrow100** · 14-11-2014, 06:00 PM

What a great question that is! It's only been 3 seasons for me, and I know a lot of this depends on what people like eating. That said the things I was most excited about from seed in my first year were:
1) Sweetcorn
2) Different coloured courgettes to the ones in the shops - pale green ones are my favourite
3) Cherry tomatoes - cropped more reliably for me than larger ones
4) Chillies - I loved lemon drop and padron as something different
5) Squashes - not mammoth ones, but something like potimarron
6) Outdoor cucumbers - I like La Diva

I'd also slip in some interesting climbing beans, beetroot and encourage them to grow potatoes.

**Moopmoop** · 14-11-2014, 06:28 PM

I'd have to say stick with the basic easy to grow veg for a beginner as you don't want them to lose interest before stuff is ready to harvest. As mostly mentioned above my gift would be carrots, tomatoes, courgettes, cucumbers, peas and beans i.e. runner or French climbing. I personally would give very basic varieties as I think that is where most people start, marketmore cucumbers, gardeners delight tomatoes and that sort of thing. Then if they want to carry on they can start to be more adventurous if they want, although I believe a lot of people still only grow the basic varieties as they are reliable and fairly cheap while still taste better than supermarket.

Can I ask why you would like to know? Are you planning a gift for someone else? It's quite a personal thing to give someone so if you don't know the person or not well enough to know their likes and dislikes then again I would stick with the basics. I love purple, yellow and white carrots but not everyone will feel the same, some people only want to eat orange carrots, yes I'm giving my other half evils right now!!!

**muddled** · 14-11-2014, 08:23 PM

I'd give them a good pair of gloves and a packet of ping pong balls to top their garden canes.
Choosing your own seeds is a major part of the fun....provided you still have your eyeballs!

**sparrow100** · 14-11-2014, 10:32 PM

I always get asked why I have empty bottles on the ends of my canes - most of my friends (non-gardeners every one of 'em) think that they are bird scarers...

**Feral007** · 14-11-2014, 10:33 PM

Lol at the eyeballs!

I'd give seeds for mini round carrots. They are so easy to grow and you can grow them in shallower soils like ours.
I can't grow a bean (except broad beans) to save my life, so would never give them to anyone else.

I always like loose leaf lettuce, they go on forever, and if they bolt on you, they will self seed and you have more.
Tomatoes....not so lucky there last two summers, so would give the smaller varieties as they have a better chance of ripening.

Cucumbers, the small apple cucumbers are great.

I like rainbow chard as it is so colourful, if you don't like to eat the ruby red ones, you can put them in a vase and use them for decoration!

Zucchini, just because they are so prolific.

And Russian red kale - looks fabulous, and is so hardy. Leaf tips and flowers good in salads, as well as a green cooked veg.

Oh and I'd have to give them one of the large garlic bulbs, just so they could have a go with that.

I think a nice thing for seeds, is a tip sheet, with the quick tips on what to do to grow best; and a sheet with what to do with the crop.

I'd probably put in one pumpkin seed as well. Because when all else fails, one pumpkin plant can still make you feel like a gardener. One pumpkin and one zuchinni plant will make you a success.

**noviceveggrower** · 15-11-2014, 08:15 AM

How about some cress

I would think the basic thing that in theory can't go wrong, yeah I know. Something that is impressive or gives confidence that the newbie can grow plants and benefit from all their hard work.
I would say well what everyone else has said radish, beetroot, toms, lettuce and some runner beans.
But how about some edible flower like nasturtiums or some bulbs so when nothing is growing they have that burst of colour to inspire them.

**Kristen** · 15-11-2014, 08:40 AM

Things they like to eat - I would hate a newbie to be put off by putting effort into growing a crop which then has a mediocre harvest and is something they don't even like to eat!

Things that are productive but expensive in the shops - like Runner beans

Things that taste better than the shops - like Sweetcorn

Varieties with great flavour, rather than with Supermarket-qualities (e.g. thick skin Tomatoes which prevent bruising)

Nothing that is a tricky / advanced crop that might fail.

**Greenleaves** · 15-11-2014, 09:52 AM

Subscription to GYO

**Alicante** · 15-11-2014, 10:09 AM

I would lend them my copy of RHS guide to vegetables by Tony Biggs. Lend as sadly I think it is no longer in print. When I started growing I knew nothing and it has simple instructions and clear drawings that even a twit like me can follow! I still use it as I am still a bit of a twit.

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