Chapter 5. Ethnic Vegetable Production (original) (raw)

Ethnic vegetable production in Florida has significantly enhanced the market and diversity of the state’s agricultural industry. More than 40 types of ethnic/Asian vegetables are commercially grown each year across Florida. In recent years, growing consumer demand has rapidly expanded ethnic vegetable production throughout Florida, particularly from the northeast to southern regions. The acreage is rapidly increasing because of the demand and the niche market. Though availability, profitability, and competitiveness have increased, one of the concerns creating confusion between producers and consumers is that many of the ethnic vegetable crops have different names from different countries and cultures. Additionally, for many ethnic vegetable crops, science-based production recommendations remain unavailable. This unavailability of recommendations may limit the production of these crops as local growers attempt to determine crop requirements with limited guidance. However, before specific recommendations are developed for these specialty crops, ethnic vegetable growers should follow recommendations that are available for crop species closely related to these Asian or ethnic vegetables. This is especially important for pest control and pest management because it is usually very difficult to find pesticides labeled specifically for certain Asian or ethnic vegetable species.

The objectives of this publication are to:

  1. provide various names of some ethnic/Asian vegetable crops with EDIS publications available to readers;
  2. list related chapters in this handbook, which provide recommendations for crops close to these ethnic vegetables grown in Florida; and
  3. list EDIS publications currently available for these crops.

Growers are strongly encouraged to adhere to UF/IFAS recommendations for related crops until guidelines tailored specifically to ethnic vegetables are developed. In addition, some EDIS publications focusing on Asian or ethnic vegetable crops in recent years may be of help to relevant growers.

Web links for these EDIS publications are available for ethnic/Asian vegetable growers in Florida:

  1. “Bitter Melon—an Asian Vegetable Expanding in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1271
  2. “Bok Choy, an Asian Leafy Green Vegetable Emerging in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1337
  3. “Chayote—a Potential Vegetable Crop for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1454
  4. “Chinese Mustard Cultivation Guide for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1402
  5. “Daikon Radish Cultivation Guide for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1370
  6. “Fingered Citron—a Fragrant, Ornamental Citrus Tree for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1427
  7. “Florida Cultivation Guide for Malabar Spinach” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1371
  8. “Goji Berry—a Novel Nutraceutical ‘Superfruit’ for Florida Master Gardeners” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1391
  9. “Leek Cultivation Guide for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1388
  10. “Long Bean—an Asian Vegetable Emerging in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1268
  11. “Long Squash—an Asian Vegetable Expanding in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1272
  12. “Luffa—an Asian Vegetable Emerging in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1285
  13. “Production Guide for Choy Sum—an Emerging Asian Vegetable in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1380
  14. “Production Guide of Vegetable Amaranth for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1407
  15. “Tong Hao—an Asian Vegetable Expanding in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1276
  16. “Waterleaf, a Potential Leafy Vegetable for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1434
  17. “Yacon, a Potential Tuberous Crop for Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1435
  18. “Plant-Parasitic Nematodes Associated with Asian Vegetables in Florida” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN1378
  19. “Symptoms of Nitrogen and Iron Deficiency in Luffa” at https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1475

Table 1. Common name and botanical classification for selected Asian or ethnic vegetables.

View Table