Florida Friendly Survival Crops

Super quick post here! I’m just going to drop a list of crops that do wonderful in Florida and I highly recommend that if you don’t purchase them from me, please find a nursery nearby that should have these available. There are plenty of other crops out there depending on which zone you are in, but these should cover a fair amount of them.

• Katuk (spinach substitute, high protein)
• Mulberry (heavy producer once established)
• Sweet Potato (vigorous high carb tuber)
• Longevity Spinach (tropical spinach)
• Okinawan Spinach (tropical spinach)
• Seminole Pumpkin (native FL pumpkin)
• Pigeon Pea/Gandules (high protein, nitrogen fixer, heavy producer when mature)
• Turmeric (powerful flavor additive and strong medicinal)
• Galangal Ginger (fruity and spicy thai ginger)
• Shampoo Ginger (produces red cones that excrete a liquid for shampooing)
• Culinary Ginger (natural digestive and flavorful food additive)
• Lemongrass (flavorful food additive and has medicinal properties)
• Papaya (flavorful fruit and thrives in Florida’s environment)
• Everglades Tomato (native FL tomato, great for salads)
• Bolivian Sunflower (nitrogen fixer, great privacy plant, pollinator friendly)
• Arrowroot (flour substitute that is easy to digest once processed)
• Florida Cranberry/Roselle (Calyxes create a mock cranberry for the holidays and the leaves are edible)
• Luffa Gourd (natural sponge for bath or kitchen)
• Elderberry (fast growing, great privacy hedge, makes great jams when berries are prepared properly due to toxins)
• Moringa (extremely high vitamin and mineral content, very nutrient dense)
• Hopi Red Amaranthus (flour substitute, great self seeding plant, leaves are edible)
• Daikon Radish (grows upwards of 1-foot, great aerator of soil, flavorful salad and kraut addition
• Surinam Cherry (flavor of “cherries” vary based on variety, pumpkin looking fruit)
• Bananas (Truly Tiny variety excellent for small spaces, numerous varieties that love water)
• Sugar Cane (grow your own sweetener)
• Yaupon Holly (male variety is a coffee substitute)
• Cranberry Hibiscus (great for tea or eating raw)
• Pineapple (easy to grow but does take a while to produce)
• Jamaican Cherry (produces fruit almost year round)
• Malabar Spinach (tropical spinach that has berries for dying clothing purple)

Good luck on establishing your homestead and if you need any guidance, find me on facebook.