Vegetable Plants With Purple & Green Stems

Vegetables come in a profusion of colors, but most often the plants themselves are green. Some varieties that are well-known in America also come in both green or purple. International vegetables are experiencing greater popularity as immigrants bring over their favorite recipes and ingredients. With their flashy green or purple stems, a number of international vegetables may soon find their way to your table.

The Royal Burgundy stands out in a bean patch. The bright purple of the stems and the bean contrasts with the standard green from the other plants. The easy-to-grow bush bean is sweet-tasting and produces abundantly. As the bean cooks the purple color gradually fades to a dark green.

Bright Lights is a variety of Swiss chard with multi-colored stems, including purple. Planted as both an ornamental and an edible, the colorful plants taste much the same as ordinary green chard. This version is slightly smaller than normal chard but grows well. Overcooking will wash out much of the color, so light steaming is the preferred way to cook.

Tomatillos from Mexico come in several very closely related species. The fruit that is beginning to be seen in American markets is the Physalis ixocarpa, or green tomatillos. It has long, indeterminate, green vines with green fruit growing in husks. The P. subglabrata are smaller fruited, and the leaves and vines take on a deep purple color as the plant grows. The fruit and husks starts green and also turn purple.

The poor farmers in west and central Africa cultivate an indigenous, bitter-tasting vegetable known scientifically as "Vernonia hymenolepis A. Rich." Several varieties are known, including one that is green-stemmed and another that has purple stems. The green-stemmed ones feature luxuriant growth and less bitter taste which is more valuable commercially.

Worowo, or Solanecio Biafrae, is cultivated in southwestern Nigeria and used in Cameroon and Sierra Leone. Its fresh, succulent leaves are used as a vegetable. Often used as a meat substitute, it is cooked with peppers, tomatoes and onions. In Sierra Leone they steam the leaves with okra and fish. There are two distinct varieties, one with purple stems and another with green. The stems are vine-like, often growing 9 feet long or more.