If you live in one of those regions where the sun takes an occasional peek, to rise high up in the sky, then having your own kitchen garden may sound like a yonder dream, till some light is thrown on the fact that there are around 10 vegetables you can grow in shade.
Most plants require adequate sunlight to grow but  there are those which can survive with not much of the hay of sunshine. These plant vegetables prefer the cooling shadow of the sun than the sun-itself to reap  the best harvest from spring to fall. The vegetables born in shade do not shrivel fast unlike their “sunny counterparts”
And best of all these vegetables growing in shade do not require constant attention in the way of water inputs as they are away from the scorching heat of the sun during summer.

Here is a list of 10 vegetables you can grow in shade and make your kitchen garden look in full bloom be it summer or winter, spring or autumn.
•    Salad vegetables such as Lettuce : The crunchy and succulent lettuce  is one of those veggies, which remain fresh at the time of harvest, when exposed to less of sunlight. Through the layers of the vegetable, you can easily make out the fresh green, of lettuce home-picked from the shade of your garden.
•    Cauliflower  :Cauliflower as a shade-friendly vegetable, retains its ‘full-bloom’  when grown in shade, the florets remain lush with less of ‘browning’ or wilting, in the absence of heat.
•    Beets: Beet-tops, which are tasteful as a nourishing green and the  root vegetable, which is nutrient-rich  can experience gull growth with partial exposure to sunlight, is one among the 10 vegetables which can be grown in shade.
•    Radishes : In vivid hues from scarlet to white, radishes are the least trouble-some vegetables to grow, compatible with any soil type, with less period for maturity and offering tender edible leaves as well.
•    Swiss chard  : When you are looking for an alternative for spinach, which would consume  less of water and withstand heat as well,  Swiss chards pipe in adding ornamental value to your garden as well. As a “sunlight-economy” vegetable  ranks high in the list of top 10 vegetables which can grow in shade.
•    Brussel sprouts : The mystery vegetable(the plant with heavy-tops) has brought one thing to light that it grows well in shade, and the ‘budding’ sprouts are not only a delight to look at but also a “sprout” in health-value.
•    Broccoli:  Cousin of the cauliflower , broccoli needs an environment similar to that  of  cauliflower and less of sunlight on the green veggie keeps it fresh at the time of harvesting.
•    Leafy veggies such as spinach, kale, collards, mustard greens : Vegetable leaves tend to wilt under constant exposure to sunlight thereby losing their ‘lushness’, which is one  of the reasons that they grown better in shade with less of sunlight.
•    Beans : The Cherokee cornfield bean and the Iroquois beans are the varieties which grow well in shade, Which means to say that when frost lashes its biting chill on your garden, you could simply attempt to scale up the fantasy-like  “bean-stalk to your garden for warmth” (conjured from your dream-garden).
•    Peas  : Of the 10 vegetables, which can grow in shade, peas sets the ball –rolling to keep the sun-sparse regions, green and fresh. Peas can be grown in shade.

You can now conjure up a vegetable-full space in that vacant slot of your garden, which breathes in shade, as the 10 vegetables which grow in shade, can create wonders in the shady regions of your vegetable space!

Photo Courtesy: lifeonthebalcony.com