People sometimes ask us what kind of green vegetables we grow on the farm to eat.  This is mainly because, as doctors, we are always advising people to eat green, leafy vegetables for their high vitamin and mineral content which helps maintain healthy growth of cells and promotes healing.  These people in turn, go to Punta Gorda market to look for them, only to find one common type of leafy vegetable to eat which is calalloo (Amaranth sp.).

This is fine to eat (though they still complain about the lack of variety) but also they are not found in such great abundance that they can be eaten in substantial proportions everyday. We eat about 100 to 200 grams (1/4 to 1/2 lb) of dried leafy green vegetable a day and this is the amount that we recommend to other people to eat.

Here in Belize, there is a plethora of greens that can be easily grown with the minimum of fuss and maintenance.  You just need to regularly harvest (cut back) to stimulate growth and you will have them mostly all year round.  The only time there might be a problem is the 2 months of dry season but this can be overcome with daily irrigation which should be possible for a small garden.

Malabar spinach is a climbing vine.  It grows really well in wet areas.  You eat the leafy parts and discard most of the fibrous stem.  It can be eaten raw in salads, steamed or stir-fried.

Chaya plants, also known as tree spinach, needs little maintenance and even survive through drought without much irrigation.  They are best chopped finely and boiled for about 20 to 30 minutes.

A more familiar green for people from temperate countries is kale.  They need a little bit more care and raised bedding; nonetheless, they can still be cultivated in the Tropics.

This one is called Avuvo, apparently a well-known Nigerian green.  The seed was given to us by somebody who had plans to grow Nigerian vegetables in Belize for an export market in the States.  It grows prolifically.

Ok, guys go forth and start your own garden of fresh green leafy vegetables! You will find that they taste so much better than the bought stuff!  As well as providing ingredients for a healthy diet, maintaining a garden will keep you fit (c’mon …don’t hire a gardener!) and you can save money on your grocery bill.