Autumn and Winter Veggies

I’ve just started to plant my veggies that I want to be able to pick from my garden ready for the cooler months. I’ve found up here in Queensland that during Summer and the humidity that dark leafy greens are just not lasting very long once I have purchased them. Baby spinach, kale and rocket especially. I love these in my salads and in my green smoothies so I’ve decided to grow some for these upcoming cooler seasons.

The benefits of these dark leafy vegetables promotes eye health by reducing the chances of macular degeneration, is a great cancer preventative with their antioxidants and bioflavonoids and a form of Vitamin K is found in spinach which is needed for blood clotting and may play a role in supporting bone health. What I didn't know is that spinach may interfere with blood-thining drugs so it's wise to check with your doctor and to watch how much you consume as too much of this can counteract the effects of your medication.

And I also wanted to point out that the oxalic acid found in spinach can also cause an issue with people who are susceptible to kidney and bladder stones that form from oxalates.

Add your dark leafy greens to your green smoothies (wash them well beforehand), chop them up and add to your pasta sauces. I add a layer in my lasagne and any of my veggie pies that I make. Have spinach with an egg on toast and with kale, I always rub/massage it with olive oil to soften it up ready to add to my salads. I love good ol' kale crispies done in the oven too.

Make sure to purchase your leaves as organic as you can and check that the leaves are dark green and fresh looking instead of wilted or yellowing.

I'm now looking forward to harvesting mine in about 6-8 weeks xxx