Exotic and European vegetable seed for sowing. Each listing gives its plains and hills sowing months, germination period, spacing and days to harvest.
A long, thick white shank with a sweet onion flavour. Earth up as it grows to blanch more of the stem.
The mid-green bush zucchini most widely grown in India. Heavy-bearing and forgiving of a warm spell.
Escarole: broad, smooth leaves, less bitter than frisée and good wilted into soup. The easier endive to grow.
Glossy, near-black courgettes on a compact bush plant. Pick them at 15-20 cm and pick often; a missed fruit turns into a marrow.
Edible chrysanthemum. Aromatic leaves for hot pots and salads, with pretty yellow flowers if you let a few plants go.
Peppery, glossy leaves that grow best in constantly wet soil. Try a tray standing in water, or the edge of a water tank.
The classic Italian sprouting broccoli. After the central head is cut, it keeps producing small side shoots for weeks.
Broad, dark, savoyed leaves on thick white ribs. Pick the outer leaves and it keeps going all winter. It handles heat better than spinach.
A knobbly root with a clean celery flavour, for mash, soup and remoulade. Slow to start, then trouble-free.
Bright yellow cylindrical courgettes that are easy to spot under the leaves. The flavour is the same as green zucchini, with more colour on the plate.
Frilly, finely cut frisée with a pleasant bitterness. Tie the head up for the last ten days to blanch a pale, sweeter heart.
Big, round, fleshy green heads on a silver-leaved plant. In the hills it is a perennial; in the plains, grow it as a long winter crop.
The Brussels sprout recommended for Indian hills and the coolest plains winters. Firm, round sprouts right up the stem.
Long, white, sweet roots that sweeten further after the first cold snap. Always sow fresh seed; parsnip seed loses viability quickly.
Bred to crop in its first year from seed, which makes it the artichoke to grow where winters are too short for Green Globe.
Japanese mustard with finely cut, feathery leaves and a mild peppery bite. Cut it and it comes again three or four times.
A sharp, lemony perennial leaf for sauces, soups and salads. Once it is established, it keeps cropping for years.
An early leek that bulks up quickly. The better choice where the cool season is short.
A compact, heavy-cropping heirloom that suits a smaller bed. It needs real cold to make tight sprouts.
The oyster plant: a slender cream root with a mild, oyster-like flavour. It needs deep, loose soil to grow straight.
The standard green asparagus. Raise crowns from seed in the first year, then cut spears for ten years or more from the same bed.
A tall, cylindrical napa cabbage with crisp pale hearts. Good for kimchi, and it stands in the field longer than round types.
A CSK HPKV release with a firm, compact green head and good side-shoot regrowth after the main cut. Proven in Indian plains winters.
The round red Chioggia radicchio: white-ribbed, wine-red, tight heads. The red colour deepens as the nights get cold.
A vigorous green asparagus that has been grown in Indian hill gardens for decades. Thick, tight-tipped spears.
An IARI Katrain selection bred for Indian conditions: a medium, dome-shaped green head with a short, tender stalk.
A mix of red, gold, pink and white stems. It is ornamental enough for a front bed and cooks exactly like green chard.
Lime-green spiralled heads, milder and nuttier than broccoli. Needs a long, steady cool spell, so sow it at the start of the window.
Glossy dark spoon leaves in a flat rosette. Mild, tender and very cold-hardy, as good raw as it is stir-fried.
Long, upright red leaves with bright white ribs, for grilling or eating raw. The early Treviso, so it heads without a forcing step.
Jade-green stems and a compact head. Easier than white-stem types, and better for a pot or a balcony bed.
Thick, sweet red-green stalks for crumbles and chutney. A hill-garden perennial; the first pull comes in its second season.
Thick white stems under dark spoon-shaped leaves. Cut the whole head at five weeks or pick leaves as you need them.
A barrel-shaped napa with a dense, sweet heart. Quicker to head than Michihli, so sow it later in the window.
