Kohl Rabi

Being a lover of the colour purple, it was only a matter of time before I thought of the idea of growing a colour themed vegetable garden.

I’ve grown several types of purple veg already including purple sprouting brocolli, carrots, scarlet kale (which is purple in colour), kohl rabi and rainbow chard which includes a purple stemmed variety.

It’s unlikely that I’ll go for it this coming year but as purple varieties of most vegetables are now readily available, I may just start replacing some of my seeds with the purple varieties listed below as they run out until eventually – well who knows.

So what makes purple vegetables special apart from their glorious colour? Well for a start they contain natural pigments called anthocyanins. These act as powerful andixidants that protect  from cell damage and are said to help lower the risk of cancer, strokes and heart disease.

According to Asparabuddies (and their furry friends) purple asparagus is the sweetest of all the varieties they’ve grown, whilst here we’ve noticed that the pests head to the green varieties of kale first, leaving the purple leaves relatively unscathed.

So here’s a list of over thirty different purple veg, including links to seed suppliers in Ireland and the UK if you’d like to give them  …

Asparagus - Purple Passion
Aubergine - Rosa Bianca
Basil - Red Ruben
Beans - Selma Zebra
Beetroot - Detroit Globe
Broccoli - Broccoli Purple Sprouting
Brussels Sprouts - Red Ball Haze
Cabbage Red Drumhead
Cauliflower Violet Queen

Carrots - Purple Haze
Chives SKU
Choy Sum Purple
Garlic Iberian Wight
Globe Artichoke - Purple Globe Artichoke
Leef Beet Bulls Blood Scarletta
Lettuce - Amorina
Kale - Red Russian
Kohl Rabi - Kolibri
Mange Tout Pea Shiraz
Mint Korean
Mustard Osaka Purple
Onions Hyred
Pak Choi  Rubi
Peppers Hot Pepper Purple
Potatoes - Purple Majesty 
Radish - China Rose
Scorzionna - Giant Russian
Swede Tweed
Sweetcorn - Painted Mountain
Swiss Chard (Leaf Beat) Magenta Sunset
Tomatoes - Black Cherry Tomatoes
Turnip - Milan Purple

Do you like the idea of eating purple vegetables? Have you ever grown any? Have I missed any? I’d love to hear your thoughts…