Q. I am creating garden beds along a walkway on the west
side along a north facing wall. It is shady there most of the day. What edible
plants can I grow there this time of year?
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| Here is the walkway in question |
A. The area next to the sidewalk is a long, a north
facing wall so it does not get much sun. Because it receives less sun, the
production of food will be lower. To come close to maximum production of food of
good quality it needs at least eight hours of bright light. Very bright
indirect sunlight reflected from light colored walls will help production in
this area a lot.
Less
than six hours of bright light will severely impact the quantity and quality of
vegetables produced from flowers such as tomatoes, peppers, squash, etc. There
will be fewer flowers and thus fewer fruits from these flowers.
You
would focus on greens, many kinds of herbs, possibly onion and garlic. Keep in
mind that leaf and stem growth is also affected by light. Leaves that grow
under lower light levels tend to be larger, thinner and tend to tear or rip more
in wind and when harvested. They also tend to be less bitter.
On the
flipside, vegetables produced under the high light intensities of the desert tend
to be more compact, thicker, more bitter and frequently tougher in texture.
Full sunlight tends to produce more nutrient-dense leaves, stems and fruits but
may reduce its eating quality or texture.
This
time of year focus on the cool season stuff like mustards, kale, lettuce,
spinach, and beets, cauliflower, broccoli, rapini, carrots, escarole, mizuno,
and the like. Some herbs include parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, chives,
lavender and cilantro.
