What fruit/veggie to plant in my kitchen garden?

[simon43]

After a couple of health scares, I've soft-retired at 64 years old and retired to a rural house outside Luang Prabang, north Laos.  It's about 5km from the stunning kuang si waterfalls ????

 

There is about 400 square metres available to grow fruit and for my sole consumption - this is not a business and I wouldn't want to compete with the local villagers who sell their home-produce.

 

Here is a picture of half of the land - the other half on the right is for my radio antennas and science projects.

 

 

Buying fruit and veg is quite cheap in any case, but to get a good choice I need to visit the morning market in LP, some 20km away.  So I can avoid a daily trip by growing my own.

 

There is a mango tree on the land which produces tasty fruit ????

 

Being a complete beginner at growing my own, what can you suggest that will provide a regular crop, with minimal horticulture knowledge required?  (I'll use the veg to make salads - today in the market I bought chinese cabbage, bell peppers, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, onions and some plant that I recognised from the salad that I ate in a restaurant recently.

 

This is a nice location, with paddy fields to the back and .. er ... an elephant to the front!

 

 

 

[cooked]

Just keep trying whatever takes your fancy, some stuff will work, some won't. I am particularly proud of growing peppercorn, always have Pak choi, Chinese cabbage and Pak bung going, I let pumpkins grow, cherry tomatoes (although they generally don't like having wet leaves). Papaya,  chili, also volunteered themselves and I let them grow, dragon fruit and passion fruit, Moringa is a valuable source of nutrients, + various herbs like turmeric and ginger etc. The wife likes a few medicinal herbs ... the list goes on, I'm always trying new stuff, ordering... discovered long pepper , growing really well, kabuk, tara, elephant jams, occasionally get broccoli to grow in winter if I'm lucky.  Plenty of cow manure and other soil improvement materials available. 

[sirineou]

I am also a beginner, but we are in north east Thailand , almost south Laos LOL

You being a lot further north , probably have a bit cooler weather, so you probably have a lot more ortions. 

I am trying my lack on Tomatoes this year, always had good luck with the long string beans Thais and I am sure Laotians, love in their Som tom. (tum bakhung). and talking about that, How about some Papaya plants? 

Cucumbers are always good, and I had great luck with Eggplant.(the long purple kind) 

Since your weather is probably a bit cooler, and your options better, how about you look for a expat FB group in your area  and see if you could get some area specific suggestions.