Vegetables

 Geoff McCabe

Growing Carrots in the Tropics

Growing Carrots in the Tropics

How to Grow Organic Carrots in the Tropics Note: This article is also available in Spanish/Español Seeds: Very small, planted shallow Soil Type: Sandy not clay, not rich in Nitrogen, excellent drainage Ph: 6-6.5 Germination Time: 4-20 days Spacing: Rows 25cm apart. Plants 10-15cm apart Water: Daily Sun: Full Sun Harvest Time: 12-18 weeks History […]

 Geoff McCabe

Giant Cucumbers

Giant Cucumbers

Cucumbers seem to grow very easily here, and to tremendous size. And contrary to popular belief, we’ve found that even the largest cucumbers till taste great. Did you know that cucumbers are covered with prickly little spines before being picked? They are easily knocked off and aren’t too sharp, but they give a bit of […]

 Geoff McCabe

Broccoli! We have done the “impossible” once again!

Broccoli! We have done the “impossible” once again!

They said it couldn’t be done, but our meter-high broccoli plants are proving them wrong. We have a couple dozen growing in various spots around the farm, and at this moment, two of them are sprouting broccoli heads, which are expanding daily. How to Grow Broccoli in the Tropics   We’re located in the Southern […]

 Geoff McCabe

Yellow Heirloom Eggplants

Yellow Heirloom Eggplants

These beautiful eggplants are an heirloom species from seeds bought in the U.S. and are about the size of a baseball. They grew easily in bags and have been moved into well-composted soil in full sun during the hot dry season, and are producing well.

 Geoff McCabe

Jalapeño

Jalapeño

Jalapeños grow easily here since peppers are native to Central America. If we can grow enough of them, and garlic too, then we can eventually produce our own bug repellent by combining them, rather than buying it in powder form as we do now.

 Geoff McCabe

Heirloom Eggplants

Heirloom Eggplants

These beautiful eggplants are our first ones besides the long yellow ones. They are small now, around 2 1/2 inches, but growing quickly, and we’re excited to see how big they get, and how many each bush will produce. We started them in the shade house in medium-sized bags but have moved them outside into […]

 Geoff McCabe

Yellow Eggplant (Berenjena)

Yellow Eggplant (Berenjena)

  The yellow banana-like eggplants shown here grow very easily on meter-high bushes the continue to produce for many months. They have grown well in medium-quality soil with almost no care, out in the open. We have replanted the seeds with some success. Most of them will sprout but many die off. This eggplant is […]

 Geoff McCabe

Tropical Sweet Potato (Camote)

Tropical Sweet Potato (Camote)

  The Sweet Potato (not yams), called CAMOTE in Spanish, are native to Costa Rica and considered to be one of the healthiest of all vegetables. They grow in poor soil with little oversight or care, with their vines spreading out on top of the soil and their tasty tubers developing underground. The leaves are […]

 Geoff McCabe

Tat Soi – an Asian Leafy Green

Tat Soi – an Asian Leafy Green

  Tat Soi is a leafy green vegetable from Asia. I had reasoned that vegetables that grow in the humid tropics of Asia would also grow well here in the similar Costa Rica climate, and so far that has been true with a few things. The plant is something like a cross between spinach and […]

 Geoff McCabe

Mini Peppers

Mini Peppers

  These little peppers are sweet (meaning that they’re not spicy) and are easy to grow. They don’t make much if a meal, but we think that food should be fun and beautiful, not just nutritious. So we’re planting all kinds of varieties of everything when we can find it. Like all the peppers we […]