How to Grow a Salsa Garden will teach you to grow the ingredients for your favorite dip right outside your back door for the best tasting salsa.
“My favorite food in the world is Mexican food. I’m not a dessert person. I’m more of a crunchy, salty girl. I could live on chips and salsa. I would take a Mexican meal over some fancy French cuisine anytime.” – Michelle Pfeiffer
What do you need for a salsa garden? Tomatoes, peppers, onions, cilantro, limes and garlic are just some of the things you can grow for the perfect recipe.
Your family will have fun concocting the perfect “secret” salsa recipe. Homemade canned salsa would also make the perfect holiday gift for everyone on your list.
An annual salsa “throw-down” with your neighbors might also be a fun way to show off your themed garden.
Related Post: How to Create a Tea Garden
If you like to garden, I’m guessing you’re creating a life you love. I have a Facebook group called Creating a Cozy Life with over 4,000 like-minded souls. It’s a group where we share recipes, pictures of things that leave you in awe, and ideas on how to make your life just a little bit more snug. Join here to be part of the virtual cozy cabin.
Here’s How to Grow a Salsa Garden:
1) Best Tomatoes for Salsa.
Tomatoes need 6 to 8 hours of full sun a day. You can plant tomatoes in containers or the ground.
Make sure you plant it in loose, well-draining soil and plant deeply. Add lots of mulch.
Tomatoes are compatible with garlic, onions and basil.
Some tomato plants will need to be staked or caged. Keep the soil moist.
When you purchase tomatoes from the grocery store, most people pick Roma tomatoes to use in salsa. The reason for this is they have less seeds and are a more meaty fruit, so your salsa turns out less watery.
Here’s the Home Depot’s Top Tips for Growing the Best Tomatoes Ever
So, what are the best tomatoes for salsa? You can grow Romas or how about trying something new? There’s a type of tomato called “paste tomatoes” that offer the same thing as Romas – meaty and a low amount of seeds.
Here’s a few varieties of tomato paste organic seeds on Amazon:
Tomato Paste Amish Heirloom Seeds by David Garden Seeds
Organic San Marzano Paste Tomato Seeds by Seeds of Change
Organic Black Plum Paste Tomato Seeds by Seeds of Change
Here’s some Roma tomato seeds on Amazon:
Organic Heirloom Roma Tomato Seeds from Isla’s Garden Seeds Company
You can also use grape or cherry tomatoes.
2) Tomatillos.
To make salsa verde, you will need to grow tomatillos. Tomatillos are a green tomato that has lemony taste to them.
Salsa verde is a popular salsa to top quesadillas or fish. You can also use it as a dip for tortilla chips.
Certified Organic Verde Tomatillo Seeds from Seeds of Change
3) Best Peppers for Salsa.
What peppers to grow and use in your salsa depends on your personal taste and how much “heat” you like.
I would suggest growing a variety of peppers so you can make a variety of salsas.
Mild salsa – banana peppers, Anaheim peppers, and Poblano peppers are all mile.
Medium salsa – add a jalapeño to the salsa. Only add the seeds and membrane if you like more heat.
Hot salsa – add multiple jalapeños with the seeds or for an even hotter salsa add serrano peppers.
VERY hot salsa – Thai chilies and habaneros add a lot of heat.
4) Best Onions for Salsa.
Yellow onions are most frequently used in making salsa. The best salsa is the one that makes your taste buds dance.
Red onions, green onions and even sweet onions like Vidalia or Walla Walla can be used.
Do you know why Vidalia and Walla Walla onions are sweet versus other onions? It’s because they have a higher water and lower sulfur content.
Walla Walla Sweet Spanish Onion Seeds by Isla’s Garden Seeds Company
5) Garlic.
A clove or two of fresh garlic adds an amazing touch to any salsa. The best time to plant garlic is in the fall, so that the cloves can create a good root system.
You want to only plant the larger bulbs for maximum benefit. Go ahead and eat the smaller bulbs!
Each clove of a garlic turns into a head of garlic.
Rotate the garlic every two years to prevent soilborne diseases and for increased production.
Giant Garlic Seeds Lyubasha Vegetable Planting Giant Non GMO 150 Seeds
6) Cilantro or parsley.
I love cilantro, but not everyone does. Did you know they discovered that some people have a gene that makes them very sensitive to the taste of cilantro and to them it tastes like soap?
You can read about that study here on the HuffPost.
If you’re a cilantro lover too, then you’ll love growing your own. One year, I ordered a truckload of topsoil for my garden. I was totally surprised when my entire garden was filled with cilantro because the soil had come complete with the seeds.
Cilantro will self seed itself easily.
Here’s an entire set of organic seed packets, including most of the herbs you love:
If you don’t like the taste of cilantro, than parsley will be your go-to herb. Parsley is a slow-growing herb and can take up to six weeks to sprout.
Parsley comes in two different forms, curly leaf and flat-leaf. Flat-leaf parsley has a stronger flavor than curly leaf.
Organic Italian Flat Leaf Parsley from Seeds of Change.
7) Limes.
Growing lime trees in the ground could be difficult, depending where you live. Putting your time tree in a container allows you to move it around to keep it happy all year round.
There are a variety of lime trees, so pick one that is more suitable to your location. If you will be growing your tree in a container, it’s best to purchase the dwarf variety.
Here’s some more information on growing lime trees on gardeningknowhow.com.
Here’s a YouTube tutorial video on creating your salsa garden.
We’ve reached the end of How to Grow a Salsa Garden. I hope you liked it!
Let me know in the comments below what your favorite things are to grow and if you have a favorite themed garden.
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