my backyard broccoli is pretty anemic, but I’m going to eat it anyway

The good news in my San Francisco backyard is that the weather is mild,  with no freezes. The bad news is it faces North, so everything grows in slow motion during the winter. My broccoli is pretty anemic, but chard does great, and so do greens and snow peas. Even though it’s barely rained all fall and winter, it’s so shady I really only water every couple of weeks.

some of my favorite greens: Miner’s lettuce is a native that comes back every winter and it’s tasty(left). Mustard greens are really good (center) and so is arugula (right)

Here’s tip: plant Miner’s lettuce. It’s a native plant that spreads like crazy over the winter and it’s really tasty. During the rest of the year it disappears. Another tip: plant pots of lettuces. I like spinach, arugula and mustard greens. They require almost no care and anytime you want a salad, it’s right there.

Chard grows great in the shade, just slowly.

Snow peas are super easy to grow and don’t need much sun.

I don’t mind sharing with these guys, they don’t eat much.

Another bonus to the winter greens, you’ll make some new friends.