Stuff to grow in your garden to help with a low carb diet

It goes without saying that growing lots of different types of vegetables will help you keep a varied low carb diet interesting, but some stuff is better to grow than others.

Herbs should be top of your list. They take little effort and can make a dish. Many of them are just not available in the shops. They don't have the shelf life, or consumer demand to justify stocking them. Dried versions are not much like the fresh ones. Growing your own herbs can also save you quite a bit of money.

I have these and am planning on adding some more:

• Thyme
• Rosemary - I am not having much success, but am going to try again as this is delicious in stews and roasts
• Mint - plant it in a large bucket with the bottom cut off which you sink in the soil. Prevents it taking over your garden
• Chives - nice substitute for spring onions and they go to see and make nice flowers in your garden
• Marjoram - very hardy
• Sage - grows all year round. Needs to be controlled, but rarely becomes a problem plant
• Parsley - you will need to replace this every few years. Flat leaf tastes best, but is not as tough as curly parsley

• Leaves in a little plastic bag from the supermarket are a very expensive way to make salad. This is fine for infrequent salad eaters, but at least during the summer months you will be eating a lot of salads, both side and main. A good source of salad leaves from your garden can save you a lot of money. I used to plant rocket every year, but a couple of years ago I didn't bother digging it up at the end of the season. It came on stronger than ever the next year. Its on its third season now and is showing no sign of slowing down. 
• Garlic from supermarkets is often pretty bland. Fancy ones are available in smaller markets, but they can be very expensive. The best bet is to grow some of your own. If you use as much garlic as I do, it is unrealistic to expect to grow enough to meet all your needs. But is is nice to supplement the supermarket with some better flavoured stuff of your own. I buy a range of varieties and plant then in the autumn for summer early summer harvest.
• Chard. This is hardy, delicious and good for you. It is very resilient to pests and like like the rocket I am still on last years stuff. It produces a lot of leaves and can keep you substantially in greens for about half the year from a square meter or 2 in your garden. It can be steamed, stir fried (a bit of sesame oil is great on this) or just added to saucy dishes like curry or the provencal sauce that I use a lot.
• Beetroot. A close relative of chard, but grown for the roots rather than the leaves, although thinnings and young leaves are very good salad leaves to supplement your chard. Beetroot is also very hardy and can be used in some delicious recipes. I will post some of these over the coming months as we get into beetroot season.