Vegetable Families

Mint, basil, rosemary and thyme: four plants that share a kitchen shelf and almost nothing else — and the one group where over-caring is the main...

Peas, beans and broad beans: the only family that makes its own nitrogen — and where feeding it generously switches that ability off.

Carrot, radish, beetroot, potato, onion and garlic: crops where soil physical condition beats nutrition, and where excess nitrogen actively destroys the product.

Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and kale: the one family FAO singles out by name, adding sulphur and boron to the usual three nutrients.

Lettuce, spinach, rocket, Swiss chard, parsley and coriander: the one family where nitrogen genuinely is the yield, and where bolting ends everything.

Cucumber, zucchini, pumpkin, melon and watermelon: large, fast, thirsty plants where the split between separate male and female flowers changes everything.

Tomato, peppers and eggplant: crops where the harvested part is a fruit, and where the whole discipline is knowing when to stop pushing leaf.