Culinary Plants

Despite all the cursing that can be heard about the Davis climate and clay soil, we are actually blessed with low humidity, a light quality which cannot be seen on the east coast, and a long growing season. These combine to provide us with fertile ground to create a true garden of eatin'! Many of the plants found on our Town Flora page do double duty as both ornamentals and edibles. The astute/hungry visitor will notice that many of the plants used in landscaping are actually culinary herbs, fruit trees, and even vegetables. Though not typically grown in the backyard garden, some commercial crops are included here for the odd fellow who may wish to create a miniature rice paddy in the backyard pond.If you are a student, there is a class offered by the section of plant biology (PLB 143) regarding culinary and medicinal herbs.

The extremely well ordered garden of an engineer; through careful planning he has managed to fit a wide variety of basil, cucumbers, peppers, & tomatoes as well as a compost bin in a 5'x10' garden space

This gardener has built a box trellis of welded wire to keep his cucumbers from rotting on the ground

• Artichokes (December: bareroot)
  

• Asparagus (December: bareroot)
  

• Beans (March-July: seed)
  

• Beets (March/September/October: seed)
  

• Broccoli (September/October/November: seed)
  

• Brussels Sprouts (July: seed)
  

• Carrots (March/September/October: seed)
  

• Corn (April-July: seed)
  

• Cucumbers (April/May: plant starts/seed)
  

• Eggplants (January: seed indoors; April/May: plant starts)
  

• Garlic (November: seed)
  

• Kale/Cauliflower/Cabbage (September/October/November: seed)
  

• Leeks (March/September/October: seed)
  

• Lettuce (September/October/November: seed)
  

• Okra
  

• Onions (September/October/November: seed)
  

• Pasilla/Poblano chile (February/March: seed)
  

• Peas (February/September/October: seed)
  

• Peppers (January: seed indoors; April/May: plant starts)
  

• Potatoes (March: seed)
  

• Pumpkins (May/June: plant starts/seed)
  

• Radicchio (September/October: seed)
  

• Radishes (March: seed)
  

• Rhubarb (December: bareroot)
  

• Rutabagas (July: seed)
  

• Squash (April-June: plant starts/seed)
  

• Tomatillos (April: plant starts)

• Fruit Trees
  

• Berries (December: plant bareroot)
  

• Grapes
  

• Melons (April-June: plant starts/seed)
  

• Strawberries (December: plant bareroot)
  

• Tomatoes (January: plant seed indoors; April/May: plant starts)

• Almond Trees
  

• Olive Trees
  

• Pecans
  

• Sunflowers (April: plant seed)
  

• Walnuts

The On Campus Co-ops have a beautiful mixed garden through which visitors are invited to stroll.

There's really no reason anybody in Davis should ever need to pay supermarket prices for common culinary herbs such as basil, oregano, rosemary, or thyme! All these are low maintenance plants that grow easily in our climate, either in ground or pots.

• Basil (April: plant starts/seed)
  

• Bay Laurel
  

• Chives
  

• Cilantro
  

• Comfrey
  

• Fennel
  

• Lavender
  

• Mints
  

• Mustard
  

• Nasturtium
  

• Oregano
  

• Parsley
  

• Sage
  

• Rosemary
  

• Thyme

• Lemongrass
  

• Acorns
  

• Miner's lettuce
  

• Chickweed
  

• Henbit
  

• Mallow
  

• Purslane
  

• Dandelion
  

• Sowthistle
  

• Burning nettle