Brown mustard, Brassica juncea, is a plant that was highly diversified in Asia to produce various seed and vegetable varieties.

With enough effort, we can grow many varieties of chilies in the Pacific Northwest, but some are better suited to our region than others.

The colewort plant was bred into a diverse array of vegetables: kale and collards, cabbages, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, and kohlrabi.

Fennel is a Mediterranean plant that can be grown as a spice, vegetable, or herb.

Although most gingers are poorly suited for our climate, there are a couple of exceptions. Given the importance of ginger as a spice in many cuisines, these exceptions should be worth pursuing.

Nettles are tasty, abundant and widespread in the Pacific Northwest.

Varieties of olives from northern parts of the Mediterranean Sea have proven successful in the Willamette Valley.

Brassica napus, the product of a cross between two mustard plants, has been bred into several vegetable and oil crops.

These little-known winter root vegetables are widely adapted to our region, easy to prepare, and tasty.

Spinach and the related blites are vegetables in the amaranth family.

The common sunflower is grown for its seeds and the sunchoke is grown for its tubers.

Turnips were domesticated and bred into many different crops that many people don’t realize are the same plant.