Gardening is a great way to get exercise and to grow healthy, nourishing foods but there is also a number of foods that are regularly eaten by people who live in their 90s (and beyond) that, you can grow at home too!
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Foods for Longevity
I was recently introduced to the blue zones with my parents talking about how they were inspired by people living in Sardinia off the Italian coast who were walking every day around the mountainous highlands. This inspired my parents to get out and walk together. We often talk about the birds they see on their walks and other treasures of the English countryside that I miss.
What intrigued me with the blue zones and the people living to be over 100 in each of these regions was what people in the 5 areas ate. I was also interested that a large portion of the centennials interviewed grew a garden or ate food grown within 10 miles of their home. Another common thing these amazing people over the age of 95 were doing was eating seasonal, fresh foods, and cooking from scratch.
So what foods were they eating and growing? In all of these regions, those living well into their 90s and beyond ate a mostly plant-based diet and you can read more about their diet and lifestyle here. Here are 9 vegetables and herbs you can grow at home and enjoy fresh, seasonal produce like the centennials in the blue zones!
Onion
Full of fiber, vitamin C and B-vitamins. The humble onion feature in a lot of cooking in the blue zone regions and are a staple in many kitchens around the globe. Onions grow in fertile, well-draining soil in full sun.
Plant onion seeds indoors 8-10 weeks before transplanting them outside just before the last average frost in spring. Seedlings need 6 inches apart when transplanted to allow for the bulb to form.
Varieties of Onion to Grow
Here are some great varieties of onions for you to grow:
- Long Red Florence – Seed Savers Exchange
- Yellow of Parma – Seed Savers Exchange
- Yellow Sweet Spanish – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Texas Early Grano – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Flat of Italy – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Jaune Paille Des Vertus – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Dakota Tears – Restoration Seeds
- Rossa Di Milano – Restoration Seeds
- Stuttgarter Onion – Giving Ground Seeds
- Rossa Di Toscana – Adaptive Seeds
- Franzisco – Adaptive Seeds
Zucchini
Prolific and easy to grow, zucchini and summer squash are used a lot in Mediterranean cooking. Zucchini is a warm-weather crop loaded with vitamins and minerals your body needs.
Sow seeds outdoors when all danger of frost has passed in spring or start seeds indoors 2 weeks before the last frost and transplant out in spring.
Zucchini plants need space, plant seeds or transplants at 4 ft apart.
Varieties of Zucchini to Grow
Here are some great varieties of zucchini for you to grow:
- Grey – Restoration Seeds
- Round – Restoration Seeds
- Cocozelle Italian Summer Squash – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Costata Romanesca Summer Squash – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Rheinau Gold – Adaptive Seeds
- Mutabile – Adaptive Seeds
- Caserta – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Rugosa Friulana – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Black Beauty – Seed Savers Exchange
- Golden – Seed Savers Exchange
Celery
Surprisingly trouble-free to grow in the garden. Celery likes consistent moisture whilst growing to help it form those long, straight stalks.
Celery needs a long season to grow so start celery seeds 10 – 12 weeks before the last frost in spring. Add plenty of well-rotted compost to the garden bed and transplant into the garden after the last frost.
Varieties of Celery to Grow:
Here are some great varieties of celery for you to grow:
- Golden Self-Blanching – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Peppermint Stick – Restoration Seeds
- Kintsai Dark Green – Restoration Seeds
- Utah Tall – Seed Savers Exchange
- Pink Plume – Seed Savers Exchange
- Chinese Pink – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Chinese White – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Ventura – Adaptive Seeds
- Hollow Pipe of Malines – Adaptive Seeds
Tomato
Tomatoes are the gateway plant into gardening here in America, they’re full of vitamins and minerals and taste oh-go-good fresh off the vine! Plus there are so many varieties to choose from!
Start tomatoes 4-6 weeks before the last frost in spring. Transplant out when all risk of frost has passed. Plant your seedlings 24 – 48 inches apart to give them room to grow. Tomatoes grow best in a sunny location will a good draining soil. Learn more about growing tomatoes here.
Varieties of Tomato to Grow:
Here are some great varieties of tomato for you to grow:
- Lost Treasure Roma – Giving Ground Seeds
- Orange Brandywine – Giving Ground Seeds
- Lila Sari – Adaptive Seeds
- Napoli Roma – Adaptive Seeds
- Gold Medal – Seed Savers Exchange
- German Pink – Seed Savers Exchange
- Japanese Black Trifele – Restoration Seeds
- Paul Robeson – Restoration Seeds
- Purple Cherokee – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Coyote Cherry – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Big Rainbow – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Principe Borghese – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
Check out these 10 Tasty Tomato Varieties You Should Be Growing
Fennel
Not quite the same as the fennel herb you might see growing in a herb garden, bulbing fennel or finnochio as it is known in Italy is a popular vegetable in the Mediterranean. The stalks and feathery leaves help to add more of a fennel-anise flavor to food but it is the white bulb part which is eaten.
Start seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before the last frost in spring then transplant about 10 – 12 inches apart in a sunny or semi-shady spot in the garden.
Varieties of Fennel to Grow:
Here are some great varieties of fennel for you to grow:
- Florence Fennel – Seed Savers Exchange
- Selma Fino – Adaptive Seeds
- Mantovano – Adaptive Seeds
- Perfection – Restoration Seeds
Rosemary
Rosemary features a lot in blue zone diet recipes of Ikarian and Sardnian cooking. It is a classic herb of the Mediterranean. Rosemary grows well in a sunny position with sandy soil. It grows well in pots or containers and needs protection from the cold winter weather if you live in northern states or grow it as an annual. Rosemary is a perennial herb in the UK and in US zones 8 – 10.
Swiss chard
Chard is one of my favorite vegetables and I grow it every year. It has a salty-earthy flavor that works great in blue zone diet minestrone, baby leaf salad, and so many more dishes! Swiss chard is full of vitamins and minerals as well as being super easy to grow!
Sow seeds in early spring in a sunny location with fertile, well-draining soil. Plants get big so make sure you give them space so that they are 12 inches apart.
Varieties of Swiss Chard to Grow:
Here are some great varieties of Swiss chard for you to grow:
- Vulcan – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Oriole Orange – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Fordhook Giant – Seed Savers Exchange
- Five Color Silver Beet – Seed Savers Exchange
- Joy’s Midnight – Adaptive Seeds
- Perpetual Spinach – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Lucullus – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Ruby – Restoration Seeds
- Bright Lights – Restoration Seeds
Potato
The humble spud is the garden gateway vegetable to grow for most gardeners in the UK! Potatoes are surprisingly easy to grow and will even grow in containers. Potatoes are a small addition in soups in the blue zone diet rather than a big heaping pile of mashed potatoes laced with butter.
Learn more about growing potatoes here.
Varieties of Potatoes to Grow:
Here are some great varieties of potatoes for you to grow:
- Adirondack Red – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Dark Red Norland – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Desiree – Seed Savers Exchange
- Rose Finn Apple – Seed Savers Exchange
Beans
Beans are a staple in the blue zone diet. The people living in these regions eat about a cup of beans a day. Try to grow a number of different types of beans in your garden for variety.
Beans are a warm-weather crop that does not tolerate frost or cold weather well. Direct sow bean seeds after all risk of frost have passed. Learn more about growing beans here.
Varieties of Beans to Grow:
Here are some great varieties of beans for you to grow:
- Brightstone – Adaptive Seeds
- Wolverine’s Orca – Adaptive Seeds
- Blue Coco Pole Snap – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Worchester Indian Red Pole Lima – Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
- Rattlesnake – Restoration Seeds
- Provider – Restoration Seeds
- Painted Lady Runner – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Slippery Silks – Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Good Mother Stallard – Seed Savers Exchange
- Tiger’s Eye – Seed Savers Exchange
Learn More
You can learn more about the blue zone regions in these books:
The Blue Zones, Second Edition: 9 Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest
The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People
Cooking and recipes:
The Blue Zones Kitchen: 100 Recipes to Live to 100
The Sardinian Cookbook: The Cooking and Culture of a Mediterranean Island
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