Oriental & Speciality

Shiso ‘Aoshiso’ leaves make for exquisite decoration. It is finely sliced with ginger and added to salads, sautéed vegetables, sashimi, tempura and sushi. Available either red or green, the red having more of an anise flavour and slightly less spicy than the green variety, which tastes more like cinnamon.

Sometimes referred to as Perilla 'Britton' and called ‘Hojiso’ in Japan, this less typical form of Perilla has beautiful bi-coloured leaves. The serrated, red-veined leaves are green on top and deep purple-red underneath.

Summer Purslane was highly esteemed and cultivated in Europe as far back as the Middle Ages, but is now cultivated only for specialised connoisseurs.This wonderfully succulent and cooling herb has tangy leaves make a very nice contrast, in texture as well as taste to other salad leaves.

This highly esteemed ancient crop can be used raw in salads, sautéed as a side dish or cooked like spinach. Summer Purslane has a crispy texture you would expect from a succulent and an interesting nutty, peppery flavour. It is salty on the tongue.

This incredibly succulent, melt-in-your-mouth raw salad green has recently gained popularity in the gourmet greens world, attracting both world class growers and chefs. Best used fresh and tiny, these elegant leaves bring a rich, tart-creaminess to delicate, micro-green salads.

Radish ‘China Rose’ is a traditional winter hardy variety that produces long, tapering roots with attractive rosy pink skins and crisp, pure white flesh. Its cylindrical roots grow 15 to 20cm long and add flavour to winter salads. The leaves can also be added to salads and stir fries.

The Minowase is the finest daikon radish variety for summer to autumn harvest. Sown from mid June to mid July, it can be harvested during cooler weather until the first mild frosts. They store beautifully and excel in stir-fries and roasts, the flesh is tender, buttery, and mild.

Salsify may be a chic new vegetable with the foodie crowd but it just happens to be an old-fashioned heritage root crop. This unprepossessing Mediterranean winter vegetable has a delicate taste, ever so slightly sweet, some say slightly reminiscent of oysters, so much so that it is also known as the 'oyster plant'.

Salsola komarovii, popularly known as Okahijiki is considered to be one of Japan’s oldest vegetables. A gourmet specialty, it is found in the wild growing in salt laden coastal marshes. A first tentative taste of a sprig reveals a surprising texture, the tubular leaves and branched stems are juicy with a crisp texture and salty flavour.

Anyone who has had the pleasure of traveling to countries such as Japan or China will appreciate the bewildering but totally delicious array of vegetables on offer there. No wonder the Japanese have no problem reaching their official recommended intake of not merely five, but 17 portions of fruit and veg per day!

A most attractive selection 'Red Veined' Sorrel is valued for its pointed and bright lime-green leaves with dark red veins, and because of its low-growing habit it makes a nice border plant or garden accent. It looks right at home in a flower border or container if you don't have space for a vegetable patch.

These bite-sized delicacies can be eaten raw in salads, lightly steamed for tender whole cobs or sliced length ways and added to stir-fries. Minipop F1' is a sweet and tasty variety which is very easy from seed and does not require pollination to produce delicious mini cobs.

Tatsoi or Rosette Pak Choi is among the most popular of oriental greens and one of the best vegetables to grow in a cool climate. The spoon-shaped, evenly spaced leaves form a plant worthy to be grown for its decorative value alone. Given enough room the plants will form beautiful wide rosettes of regular, concentric circles.

No one interested in vegetable growing can fail to be inspired by the Chinese people and the diversity and productivity of their vegetables. ‘F1 Kuro’ is a traditional Pak Choi and Tatsoi cross, that produces plants with an upright habit, luminescent green flat stems and tender, dark green, thick glossy leaves.