Mache
Lettuce
Winter squash
Carrots
Tomato
Celery
Spring onions
Grapevine
Blueberry
Walnut tree
Orange tree
Apple tree

Each person take a dozen, or a dozen as a group?

Here's my dozen:

potatoes
sunflowers
broccoli
marigolds
canteloupes
zucchini
carrots
blueberries
garlic
watermelon
sage
spinach

I included a couple flowers. Sunflower seeds are edible. Marigolds are not only edible but are reputed to keep bugs away. And what's a meal without garlic?

beans
beans
more beans
okra
tomatoes
potatoes
corn
onions
carrots
celery
turnips
chiles

Jim

beans
peas
potatoes
corn
onions
chiles
greens
squash
tomato
strawberries

Javamilk, do as you please! If this were real life we'd want a couple dozen so I imagine we'd pick the ones suggested most frequently.

Lilacs of May (I love that name), I also chose sunflowers for their edible seeds. Squash (pumpkin) seeds and sunflower seeds are very nutritious and taste good too.

Jim, I get the idea you like beans. I do too, baked beans,bean soup, beans in the pod. There is a wonderful country store in Pescadero, California that sells dozens and dozens of kinds of beans. Maybe for your list you could just say 'assorted beans', and they you could pick a couple more plants to bring.

Ruthie G and Jim both picked chiles. I had not thought of chiles, but I think it is a good idea.

Carol, I don't know mache. I wonder if it has a different name here, like arugula and rocket. I'm glad to see you chose apples and grapes.

More suggestions?

Rosefolly

Hi Rosefolly, I didnÂt know mache either until came to live in The Netherlands. But it became my favorite. In USA you also call it 'corn salad'. I recommend you try together: mache, diced feta cheese/brie, pieces of walnuts or pine seeds, drizzled only with some walnut oil or olive and lemon juice.
Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Mâche: Spring's First Green

soybeans
rice
opium poppies
yams
tomato
walnut trees
garlic
yeast
grapes
chard
wheat
fig trees
chili peppers

I also just learned the english translation for mache. Corn flower. I fell in love with this green in France and ate it many times during my living there. I have never seen the seeds in america so I brought some home on my last trip last month and cant wait to plant them. I ate it in France with the French Vinegarette, the one with authentic French dijon mustard, not Grey Poupon (that doesnt taste like dijon to me)!

Legumes (protein)
potatoes (carbs)
tomatoes
onions
garlic
string beans
strawberries
apples
wheat (to make bread)
walnuts
olives
grapes (so I can make some wine for everyone, count on me to manage the vineyard haha. happy hour until sunset every evening on the beach.)

see ya there.........

Marial, although dijon is bit too spicy for me, sometimes I've prepared it with a soft dressing I make with mild mustard and I agree, the taste contrasts really nice. However -and sorry, for mixing-up the survivor thread-, just wanted to let you know that in the article I linked above, this lady provides several addresses for getting the seed. I can also try to send you some seeds, feel free to drop me an e-mail through Gardenweb, we can see how I can send you some seeds.
Carol

This is hard! Some things I wrote down pretty quickly, other things took some thought(always hard for me). This is almost like when I hoarded seed for Y2K, but I wasn't limited to 12 plants, LOL!
Here goes:

tomatoes
garlic
onions
potatoes
beans
corn
chiles
summer squash
winter squash
strawberries
blackberries
camellia sinensis(gotta have my caffeine)

Sigh. I of all people should have thought of this one. If I were allowed a baker's dozen, my addition would be cacao.

Gotta have chocolate!

Okay, I came up with two lists, depending on if we bring plants or seeds...

PLANTS:
*green beans
*cherry tomatoes
*garlic
*broccoli
*spinach
*basil
*rosemary
*potatoes
*raspberries
*blueberries
*fruit cocktail tree - stone fruits
*fruit cocktail tree - apples

SEEDS:
*15 bean soup mix
*mixed pack of green & wax beans (I always plant them together anyway)
*frozen bag of berries (the seeds are still viable for some reason - my then-future husband had some berries drop under his porch and we found a raspberry bush there later)
*bag of potato eyes - mixed red and white
*mixed pack of spinach seed
*mixed pack of broccoli seeds
*mixed pack of tomato seeds (the only downside is, plant them far apart or we can't seed-save)
*mixed pack of basil seeds
*rosemary seeds - both creeping and upright
*mixed pack of lavender seeds
*rainbow carrots
*oats (for oatmeal, flour, bread and mulch)

Oh yeah, and if we bring a load of compost, we'll have more seeds in that!!

Lilacs, you're absolutely right! Cacao would be worth waiting for! I was trying to think of plants that would produce quickly(imagine how long we would have to wait for most nut trees to produce!), but chocolate would have to be in there somewhere. I don't know what I'd have to give up for it...maybe the blackberries...or potatoes. Chocolate definitely goes with chiles, corn and strawberries. And we'd need Kubota's soybeans for chocolate milk! Oh, this is agonizing!

filet beans
strawberries
potatoes
broad beans
arugula
parsley
walking onions
asparagus
carrots
english cucumbers
cherry or grape tomatoes
watermelon

A lot of you picked walnut tree - why is that? Walnut trees have always seemed to me very desirable but exotic, hard to grow here, unattainable. Are they easier than I think?

The title of this thread brought back a Survivor idea I had a couple of years ago.

I was working at the local museum at the time. In the museum was an artifact from pioneer days: a waist-high heavy wooden contraption consisting of a long blade with a handle, attached to a 3-foot long, sloping chute. Kind of a miniature manual guillotine. This rather gruesome, primitive-looking thing turned out to be a turnip chopper.

There's an island about thirty miles off our coast. It covers about 2 square miles and is basically a chunk of rock covered in stunted spruce trees, with a brackish lake in the middle. Because it's in the shipping lanes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, it's been the cause of shipwrecks since the 1700's.

My idea for Survivor was to put a bunch of people on this island equipped with nothing but the turnip chopper and a packet of turnip seeds.

Think the network would go for it? Imagine a series of Survivor - Gardening episodes.

PaulNS asked why walnuts. I can't answer for others, but I picked it because it is a nut tree that will grow in a wide range of temperate climates. Nuts provide a rich source of nutrients and when the tree stops bearing, you can use the excellent wood. Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are other possible trees, but without the broad range of adaptability. I actually like pecans better.

Here is my reasoing for the other choices.

beans - love them, and a good protein source, easy to store without modern technology
squash - reasonably good keepers, lots of uses, nutritious seeds
sweet potatoes - I like them better than white potatoes, which would be my second choice here
amaranth - never even tasted it, but is it the most complete protein of any grain, easy to grow, and pretty, too. On a high elevation site, quinoa would be a good substitute
oats - oatmeal, oat cakes
cabbage - brassicas are all very nutritious; this one is easy to store or preserve (sauerkraut)
carrots - tasty, easy to store
onions - as with carrots, and what is food without onions?
tomatoes - anyone who has ever tasted a garden grown tomato know why I picked this one
sunflowers - nutritious, tasty seeds, easy to grow
blueberries - delicious (my favorite berry), exceptionally rich in antioxidants
walnuts - see above

Rosefolly

If it were a reality show, I'd watch it. I actually think the idea has merit. It might not fly against American Idol, but on PBS or HGTV it might be a go. Twelve gardens. Twelve gardeners, each armed with a rake, a shovel, a hoe, and 12 packets of seeds.

What would the grand prize be?

Prize:

A couple of prime acres with a nice house, enough money that you don't have to work, and a lifetime supply of any gardening products that you desire! (includes seeds, tools, chemicals(for those of you who use them) various and sundry "garbage" for composting...)